Narrative - Finding My Way Home

 

It felt as if tears were welling up in my eyes as I wailed and whined, but of course, my breed doesn’t cry out tears. Famished and exhausted, I staggered along the path ahead of me, oblivious of where it might lead. I was persistent to keep searching even though I knew it wasn’t going to be easy, considering how lost I already was. I missed her dearly and longed to reunite with her and that desire gave me hope which eventually shown light upon my abyss of defeat.

 

It all began one late breezy afternoon when I awoke from my nap. Charlotte had not returned from school yet, so I found my way out of the house and into the backyard garden where roses and lilacs were in full bloom. I stood in front of them and inhaled their sweet scent. Suddenly, a multi-coloured butterfly landed gracefully on the tip of my snout, causing me to sneeze. Startled, it fluttered away in an instant. It was the most fascinating and beautiful butterfly I’d ever seen and as it flew over the backyard fence, I had an urge to chase it into my captivity. I wanted Charlotte to see it too. So, with effort, I crawled under the fence to pursue it. The butterfly was already some distance away and without a moment’s hesitation, I ran towards it at full speed, thrusting past strangers and houses along the way.

 

After a few minutes of chasing, I gave up as it flew into the cloudy sky and soon out of sight. Panting quite rapidly, I rushed to take advantage of an oak tree nearby for shelter as a drop of rain had landed on my tongue, which soon became a downpour. While I waited for the rain to stop, I accidentally dozed off due to the sheer boredom and the nice weather.

 

When I awoke, it was already dark. As I was scared of the dark, I ran towards the streetlamp nearby and waited for the sun to rise. Cold and traumatised, I stayed awake throughout the night and hours later when the sun rose, I ran straight towards the direction which I thought led towards home. However, I began to stagger shortly after due to hunger and exhaustion. I turned into a corner, then out again, realising that it was a wrong turn.

 

 After what seemed like a decade, I finally found the beautiful and welcoming house full of different varieties of flowers in the front and backyard from my memories. When I reached the front porch of the house, with what was left of my energy, I began to bark excitedly with my furry tail swinging and swaying in all directions. In an instant, Charlotte opened the door and in tears, she embraced me. Her family members celebrated my return and I, myself, was glad and happy to have found my way home.

484 words

written by Charlotte Lay Zhi How, 7L, CCMS, in 2018

edited by Mr. Tan