Banjo

• Vincent Hodges, Grade 7
• Short Story
• 2019

Banjo
Five years ago I was on a tour in Afghanistan with my dog. His name was banjo he was a great companion, a great friend and he got me through all this, sometimes I wonder what it was like for him.
“Banjo come here boy” said Ben he’s my owner I raced over there and gave him a big lick on the face. He’s great I thought. For some reason he looked serious but I knew what that meant it meant we were going out.

It happened like a flash. He was gone. There were gunshots explosions and plenty of other noises. I couldn’t explain it if I tried. I was hit by something really hard and everything went black. When I woke up, everything was gone the only thing left were bodies and debris. I searched everybody I could find. I regularly checked for he’s scent and found the slightest scent that became a dead end. I had no Idea where he was, so I tried remembering which way we came from.

But I couldn’t remember so I just walked. With no point in going in one direction I could have just given up. But I couldn’t I was doing this for Ben. It wasn’t long before I came across a small town they gave me water, food and plenty of pats. But no matter how much they wanted me to stay, I had to go they all looked sad but I needed to find Ben.

I was starting to think weather I should give up or not, doubt was starting to get me. I didn’t know what to do. But it was at the moment of desperation when I saw it. It was an American convoy I knew I had to follow it were it went Ben went. A giant flood of happiness washed over me. Before I knew it I was running.

The thought of seeing Ben again was overwhelming. But I couldn’t let it get the best of me I had to stay focused. After about a day of walking in the direction of the convoy I found an American outpost, and my owner’s friend Jim was there. I ran up to him and licked him so much it was nearly violent. I then sat there and let him check my collar. Straight away he realised I was Ben’s dog and said I had to get back to Ben straight away. A man I didn’t know said he could take a two car convoy back to base and return. And that’s exactly what he did half way through the trip a tire popped but that’s about it. When I got there I smelt Ben straight away. I found him moments after arriving and when I got there he started crying and I didn’t know why but I knew he was happy.

“But not long after being reunited he died” Ben said before shedding some tears and walking off stage.
By Vincent Hodges.