The Search For Water

• Jamie Cofield, Grade 3, St Peter's Primary School -
• Short Story
• 2018

Excellence Award in the 'Write Along 2018' competition

In the Outback, the desert, it was just about time for some rain to appear, but none would come. There was nothing but dry land and cracked earth. No green grass, no oceans, beaches or ponds. NO water. Nothing but blazing hot sun.
All the animals were dying, there was a major food shortage, and now, what used to be green grass and happy laughs was a place of no hope for survival... Except for this little bit.
A little gecko, who was wanting to help in any way he could.
The little gecko set out one day in search of the very thing everyone wanted most - water. He wandered past the rocks that separated his home from the outside world and with one last look back, he walked on.
He spent days out in the harshest conditions he had ever seen, without finding anything but dust. Finally, he saw something in the distance. Running as fast as he possibly could, what he saw became clearer. They were rocks, surrounding something. He had to know what it was as it could have been water. The little gecko squeezed with all of his energy between the rocks and managed to get inside. There he now was standing in front of a tree, a proper tree, with green leaves and healthy bark. But still there was no water.
As he made his was out, he thought of his friends with no hope, they were all dying. He had to find the water, so with one last look back, he went on.
After finding a series of other places with little to no luck, he was exhausted and hungry as well as really, really thirsty. But even when a massive sand storm hit him hard off his feet, he stayed strong, and as a result of his perseverance and courage, after a few days he could see another thing in the distance. Again, he ran and ran until finally he was at the place he was seeking. There was green trees and grass, there were ponds and lakes. He had found a magical place and everyone’s dream. But suddenly he realised something, his friends, they didn't know!
He thought and thought of how he was going to send the message. “Wait," he thought to himself, "my friends and my special form of communication!" So, yelling as loud as he possibly could, he tried to tell his friends where he was and how to get there using the special call.
After a few days, the little gecko saw it: A stampede of geckos and other animals using all of their energy running towards him smelling the scent of hope. When they all arrived, they all agreed to stay for years to come.