Paradise Lost

• Sophie Kiara Black, Grade 4
• Short Story
• 2018

‘Have you seen such a magnificent landscape before Mia?’, Sophie shrieked to her cousin over the wind. ‘I know’, Mia yelled back. ‘It’s wonderful. Where’s Jack? He’s got to see this’, Mia exclaimed excitedly. She ran to find her twin brother which left Sophie on her own to enjoy the peaceful river, her golden locks billowing in the pleasant breeze behind her. A deafening noise soon hit her ears and ruined her peaceful afternoon. ‘What in the world was that?’, she thought to herself. Then she had an idea, a brilliant idea! She would climb the Fig tree, her favourite place in the world, all the way to the top so she could see what was going on! When she climbed up, she realised that the commotion was coming from the factory downstream and her heart drowned into a pool of sadness at the bottom of her stomach, and she suddenly felt sick. She was terrified! ‘My beloved environment’, she gasped in desperation. ‘My river and all living creatures in this exotic land will soon be gone’.
Sophie ran home and told everyone. This was upsetting news to all her family and friends. ‘Why have they re-opened it?’, said Sophie’s Dad in an angry tone. ‘I thought they had agreed to knock it down’. ‘It’s been so quiet lately we had forgotten all about it’, said Sophie’s Mum in shock. Sophie couldn’t bear this anymore. ‘I’m going to the Fig tree’, she wailed without thinking. She grabbed her binoculars and sped from the house in tears. She heard her parents call her back and two pairs of fast footsteps somewhere behind her. It was probably the twins running after her and she was determined to lose them. She swerved to the left than to the right. She went the long way to the Fig tree which she only knew the way to, and to her relief the twin’s footsteps soon died away and she was finally on her own. She walked the rest of the way to the Fig tree and enjoyed the beautiful greenery around her with growing pleasure and warmth.
When Sophie arrived at the grand tree, she got a shocking surprise. Her family stood at the base of her tree, their arms where loaded with fishing gear and lifejackets. Minutes later she was being shoved onto the family fishing boat along with everyone else. She protested in a bad manner, but her voice was muffled as Dad was putting a lifejacket over her head. Then they were on the river and there was no escape. She had to stay cramped in the family fishing boat even though she wanted to be alone. The fishing was not successful. Nobody had caught a single fish. As they were getting off the boat, they noticed dead fish on the river bank. Mum and dad glanced at each other, then at the factory. Sophie stared down at her beloved river. ‘One bit of nature destroyed, what would be next?’