Off To War

• Evelyn Bell, Grade 5
• Short Story
• 2016

Hi I’m Lilly I’m 5 years old and my dad is going to war. Now I may look small or seem like a little girl but my abilities are no different to yours. My dad taught me everything I know and my mum, well she isn’t here. My dad says she just doesn’t visit but I know that she is peacefully up in heaven- daddy doesn’t talk about her much. Dad said he called me Lily because it means large trumpet-shaped, typically fragrant, flower on a tall, slender stem. He says that he knew I would be edgy about, everything, ask a lot of questions and never have them unanswered. My imagination would be tall, wide and beautiful just like Lily.

Dad hasn’t told me much about where he’s going all I know is that they are fighting for our country and that well some people, some people d...... die. That’s why his been acting so scared I mean he put salt in his cup of tea and whenever anyone says WAR he starts to shake and I get a shiver down my back.
I don’t want dad to go, for starters I LOVE him and for seconds I don’t want to stay with Miss Booger (her actual name is Miss Brooker but I hate her so to me her name is Miss Booger). Now I’m not someone who just dislikes everyone so I need a good point to hate her. Let’s start with she sends me to bed at 6:00pm and when she brushes my hair she is really pulley. She says that I’m a lady so I can’t play outside really ever, NO ONE AND I MEAN NO ONE CAN MAKE ME ACT LIKE A LADY!!!

I’ve been begging Daddy to stay making up silly excuses like “you always tell me not to fight with other people so why are you fighting with a whole country of people?” or “I hope they teach you how to handle a gun because you’ve never shot one creature!” I really don’t want him to go!
The other night he went outside for a walk I stood on the balcony and listened I could hear him crying and screaming “I don’t want to go; I don’t want to leave my lily!” I went to talk to him and asked, “Daddy if you don’t want to go why are you?” he replied shakily, “lily the government needs everyone’s help even yours if we’re going to win the war, for instance I need to go and fight and you need to stay here with Miss Brooker and make sure you do as she says send me a message each week and not become a lady. You understand, ““Yeah I think so”” okay I love you and I always will. “Daddy?” “Yes Lily?” ”Promise to stay! You promise to stay my Daddy”. “I promise Lily, I promise!” “I love you daddy!”
”I love you too Lily!” he sighed, and we sat and watched the stars go by.