A Path To
Freedom Rebecca
Chapter 12
HUNTING
After the excitement of the rain
we all headed toward the cliff. It took
us about an hour but when we arrived we found a cavern that was very cozy. We set up camp for the following day. Soon we were back outside looking for some
dinner.
"We aren't going to find
anything to eat here in the desert," I told them kicking a pebble across
the sand. Suddenly, I heard a low sounding “gurrr”
coming from my stomach
"It seems you're as hungry
as all of us," Diana spouted as I looked down at my skinny stomach.
I was trying very, very hard not
to think about food. It was no use; I
haven't eaten a real meal in days. All
that keeps popping up in my head is my mom's home made mashed potatoes and
buttered corn on the cob... Her
delicious mouth-watering casserole… OH
"You know what, I just
remembered something," Diana remarked.
"WHAT?!"
Jonathan, the captain, and me questioned.
"Well in survival class,
Lieutenant James was going over chapter 2, in the Handy Dandy Survival, Lost In The Desert And You Don't Know What Your
Doing Handbook For Dummies, by Huey, Dewy, and what's his face. It was
about how to survive in the desert when you don't have any food or water. Lieutenant James was talking about cacti, but
I can't really remember because someone," Diana paused and stared at me,
"was shooting spit balls at me during that very important lesson."
"Where's the captain?"
Jonathan asked. I looked over my
shoulder and sure enough, the captain wasn't where he was a second ago.
"Hey he's over there,"
Diana pointed towards the cactus valley which we had past by yesterday, before
it rained. Off in the distance was a fat
blob moving awkwardly towards the succulent grove.
"Let's see what's he doing," Jonathan pronounced. So Diana and I followed Jonathan as he
sprinted, as best he could with his bad leg towards the captain and the cactus
valley.
When we reached the Captain He
was ripping the bark off the cactuses as though he was a crazy poised bear with
rabies. As the captain tore the bark
away a green liquid started rolling down the side of the cactus. I was astounded when the captain licked the
bark free part of the cactus. Captain
T.J Porter was kind of freaking me out.
Suddenly Diana ran towards another cactus and did the same thing except
she was more careful when it came to pulling of the bark. Finally Jonathan picked up the idea and tore
the bark of another cactus.
"What the heck are you guys
doing?" I yelled.
"What do you think were
doing?" the Captain yelled back.
"It looks as though you are
attacking the cactuses," I screamed at the captain, with out meaning to.
"We’re not attacking the
cacti, were eating them!" Captain T.J Porter replied.
"OOOOOHHHH. And is that supposed to make me feel better?"
I asked the captain.
"Stop being such a
butt," Diana said.
"I'm not being a butt. I
just want to know what in the world you are doing!" I shouted
exasperation.
"Are you that stupid?! We are eating the cacti, because they are food and we are hungry. So shut up and eat!" the captain yelled.
"O.K. O.K." I said feeling stupid. I walked slowly to a nearby cactus and very, very carefully pealed the skin off its spiny side. When there was a nice clear wet place, I lowered my head and took a bite of the cactus.
Bbbbbbbllllllaaaahhhhhhhhhhh!" It was the most horrible, most disgusting
thing that I have ever, and I mean ever, put in my mouth. It was even worse than my Great Aunt’s tofu
stuffing that tastes like boiled foot.
Suddenly I heard a low, "Gurrrrrrrrr," sound.
"Are you still hungry
solider?" the captain asked with a mouth full of cacti.
"Yeah, but that wasn't
me," I replied.
"Well it sure sounded like
your stomach," Diana remarked.
"Gurrrrrrrrrrrrrr,"
there it was again.
"UGH, OH," Jonathan
whispered. I turned around slowly and my
life seemed to slip through my hands as I saw them.
— © Rebecca
http://www.sfpnn.com/rebecca.htm