Cambet

• Nicola Frost, Grade 6
• Short Story
• 2007

I woke up and noticed I was surrounded by trees. I began to panic! It would be impossible to find my way home!
Thinking of home made me wish I could hear my mother say,” We have missed you so much, I am sorry about our fight this morning,”
“What’cha doing?” asked a friendly voice. “I’m Tom. And I had a fight with my folk’s too.”
“How did you know I had a fight with my parents?” I demanded.
“Well, everyone that comes here does.” He sounded surprised. “Don’t you know where you are?… your in Cambet!”
Now, I know that Cambet is only a song…. My father sang it to me!
You have a fight with your parents,
Don’t be mad,
They feel just as bad.
If you don’t forgive,
Then you’ll regret.
And have to go to Cambet.
I could not believe what Tom had said. “Umm…. I’m Amelia. I should think if we want to ever get home we shall stick together.”
“Hmm… nice name and I doubt that I shall ever get home. I had an extreme fight with my parents and I have been here about six months already.”
He was still talking, but after saying he had been here half the year I just stared at him.
I was so worried if that would be my fate too, as my fight with my parents was terrible. We were fighting because mother said I couldn’t go to the school my friends were going to. She was saying,” You’ll make new friends”.
I eventually convinced Tom to try and help us get home. So we looked for clues.
“I’ve done this a million times before and never found anything,” he kept complaining.
“Well a pair of new eyes never hurt.” I replied. Then I thought how others had got home. So I asked Tom if he knew anyone who gone home.
“Yeah, heaps” he sounded confused.
“Well didn’t they tell you how before they went.” I said.
“Let me see…NO! When you find out, how to get home you either just go, or it takes you straight away.”
I must have looked sad so he added “But I’ll try and tell you.”
I was still mad at my parents when I realised that I should go to the school because I would get better education and mother was thinking about me when she made the choice. So I forgave her.
I woke up for the second time that day and realised, I was home! At first that was all that mattered. But then I thought about Tom. He was probably sad as he made a promise, that if he found out how he would tell me. Then I found a book on my desk. It was called Cambet. I had a flip through and in about the fifth verse it said…
So you have made it out of Cambet,
And you feel sad.
You just left a friend at Cambet.
So say these words now:
I love my parents,
And will always forgive,
As long as Cambet let my friend out with
All that forgiveness too.
Next thing I knew Tom was on the floor in my room. He made it and that’s all that mattered, other than seeing my parents again!