Nature Struck

• Cyril Wibowo, Grade 7
• Short Story
• 2017

It was another day in the small town where Oscar would enjoy living with his family each and every day of his life. It was a quite a sad day for Oscar since his uncle just passed away yesterday. Distraught, Oscar would always take a stroll in the forest to clear his mind, which was exactly what he did. After saying his goodbyes to his family and promising to return at dawn, he set off to enter nature’s land.
The forest was a great place to be, it was one of the most delightful sights to enjoy. Walking pass many tree and plants, with some animals to pass by, joy already started to come to him. During the time of his stroll he would always have his own personal picnic by himself, while enjoying the view of birds chirping, and trees rustling in the wind.
Minutes later, after packing his belongings he decided to go for a bit of an ‘adventure’.
Travelling to places he never visited in his life before was quite a risking thing, the risk of getting lost or injured, were the main dangers. Luckily, Oscar had been to this forest many times, and the potential chance of him getting lost were quite slim. Filled with confidence he, was ready to set off deeper into the land.
Upon taking off he was already learning about the ‘other’ side of the forest. Things he would say to himself would be, “That seems new,” or, “WOW! A new cave ready to be explored.”
But time felt like it passed quicker than before. Much quicker actually. It was probably because of many new wonders experienced. Unfortunately, time was going much quicker than expected, dawn almost struck and Oscar was still stuck in ‘the middle of nowhere’. While trying to stay calm, he would always rely on his same, old, reliable skill that he learned to find his way back, the town would always be the direction that the sun sets. Since he would always walk in one direction.
Twenty minutes passed and it looked like he was going back on track, well it looked he did. Trying to familiarise himself with his surroundings, in a sudden moment, nature struck again, rain started heavily on him. Worried, he remembered suddenly remembered the time his uncle passed away. Becoming aggressive, thinking this trip was a waste of time, he some felt a sense of control in him. Trying familiarise himself once again, he somehow managed to go brain dead in the process. Forgetting all the many ways to get back home. Minutes even maybe hours later, nightfall finally arrived. And it felt like there was no hope left.
The rain still poured, as heavily as before. The only source of cover was a small cave not far from where he stood, he quickly ran towards the cave. Hoping he could stay here for the night. Feeling sorry for his family he tried to stay positive, but once again, nature struck once again.