Jack's Special Day

• Mike Lihou, Grade 6
• Short Story
• 2007

On the morning of his birthday Jack shivered with cold but he was excited too. He pulled his blankets over himself and snuggled in. He felt he should sleep in but then he smelt something. It was the wonderful smell of cooking bacon. It must be breakfast so he pulled off his covers and ran downstairs. He was looking forward to the day because his Dad was taking him jet skiing. After breakfast he got dressed, it was cooler now so he dressed warmly. He then went down to the car where his Dad was waiting. Frank, his dad, asked “Do you realise the importance of what we’re doing?”“No.” answered Jack, confused.“Good because it’s not that important!” he said as a joke and Jack laughed with relief. They left and as they were driving he gazed out the window. The rocks looked more like camels in the golden light. Clouds massed on the horizon like purple bruises but they were heaps far away so there was no need to worry. As they drove along they heard the terrified bleating of the sheep and other noises of day to day life. They were soon at the beach and out in their boat in the waves; they reached the wave top, paused for a second, then plunged back down again. The cloud swell was closer than they had thought and they felt the wind lash the side of the boat. They tried to make a break for it but they made poor time heading for the beach. The sound of the rain was coming closer and closer. Soon they could see land only a hundred metres away and they felt a breath of hope. When they finally reached the shore Jack was very glad to be on dry land. When they had arrived home Jack thought that being a sailor was probably a bad idea. He was so tired he decided to skip dinner and go straight to bed. There was a light above his head as he lay there, the red gleam of a star and he realised that the event had really taken a whole day. Finally, exhausted, Jack slept.