A sudden surprise from a school junior *overwhelmed*

Hi! This is Joyeta. What's up? How was your dayyy? Mine was....to be honest, hectic and stressful. But hey! In the mid of such a stressful schedule, I received a message. A mail. Someone named Fariza Hossain mailed me asking to check her writing out. And with that was attached her own written story.

NOW. NOW. NOW. NOW. NOW. A junior from my school sent me her writing. To check it out. To read it. Whoa, she gave me that much of importance, really?

I don't know Fariza personally, nor does she know me (I guess). But yes, while working on Unlocking the Silence (an online magazine that I have organized in November, 2020), I have edited and designed Fariza's work. Yes! Fariza Hossain is one of the amazing writers and singer of my first ever online magazine, Unlocking the Silence! Oh, and she gave an artwork also...what an allrounder!

Speaking of Fariza...let me tell you! Girl is just in grade 05...GRADE 05!!! I started writing when I was in grade 05. Yes, many of you don't know, but...grade 05 was the time when I, Joyeta Moietree, officially signed my name as a writer when one of my writings got published in our school magazine in 2017 for the first time. So, in one word, grade 05 is one of the most memorable year of my school life so far.

And, hence, I become nostalgic every time I see a school junior of grade 05...that too, a junior of grade 05 who is writing....

NOW. Here I am, in 2021. A school junior of grade 05....sends me her writings to give her my feedback.

I don't consider myself that good of a writer yet. But, Fariza's response just made me feel so so good. Because, beyond this entire thing, I can feel Fariza's love and admiration towards me and my writings! And the amount of respect she has given me today by placing me in a position...where I will give her feedbacks for her writing...as a writer.

I can't talk anymore. I am just overwhelmed and in loss of words. But if Fariza is reading this, I will just tell her one thing: Thank you so much dear for making me feel important. Thank you so much for giving importance to me as a writer. Thank you so much for acknowledging my writing experience. Lots of Love to you! And, good luck for future writing life :)

I don't have much to gift her for making my hectic and stressful day so special. But, I have posted her writing here. Let us all read her sweet story and wish her the best for future.

Have a nice day and don't forget to read the writing!

"LUCK" by Fariza Hossain of Grade 05, Apple Tree International School:

It is a bright sunny day on the middle of June when I just started high school. Everything was great, flowers, classes, friends and teachers.

But something was off. Conversations with old friends were, “Hey, how is it going on?”, and then an awkward silence. My new friends would talk about their lives and I would talk about mine. Ella and Betty are no longer my friends. Well, actually they never were, they always used to be one group of two inside another group of three. So, yeah it’s totally… fine. Maybe that’s the reason of something being off. I feel left out though I have new friends. But I am trying to cope up.

Now, I planned with my new friends to go on a trip to Deschutes national forest. As we live in New York, it is 2416 miles from home. “Okay that is a huge journey guys!” Sally cried out. “It is a 3 day journey in a bus and 30 minutes in plane. What do you think?” asked Justin. Sally, after thinking a bit, chose the 3days journey on a bus. We were all happy.

So, Mum packed my luggage with a big box (probably 1 foot) with a code in it. I didn’t pay much attention on that box. I was busy taking 7 to 8 ropes each probably 12 feet, hiking sticks, travel pillows, water bottles, dry food, matches etc. Okay it is 5:00 am, and I woke up as quickly as possible and got ready. Then, I had breakfast and quickly wore my shoes and hat. Just at 5:30 am, I heard the bus approaching. So, I took my luggage and bag and got inside the bus.

There, I saw Justin, Emma, Cody and Laura. “Hey Lana!” said Cody in a sleepy voice. “Quick! Sit down, we got to pick Sally”, said Emma sounding a little like mom. So, I placed my bag and luggage and sat beside Justin as I clearly know that Sally would yell at me if I sit beside Laura. We picked up Sally and just after we were in front of the forest, we took a bus (which I don’t know the name of) and I sat at the corner.

Just as we were travelling the bus tilted a little and I slipped out of the bus and rolled and rolled until I reached the edge of a lake. “Great!” I exclaimed. Others, unaware of what had happened, continued the journey. Unfortunately they hit a big rock, the bus got out of control and BAM!!! It Flipped over and then onto the ground. I was terrified, so I got up and wanted to run and that is when I saw that my left leg is covered with blood.

But still, with all my might I ran it took me 10 minutes but it wouldn’t have taken more than 3 minutes, so you can guess how much my pain is.

Anyways, what I saw was a nightmare. Emma, Laura and Sally’s bodies half burnt Justin and Cody’s head covered with blood and their hands are burnt. And the worst nightmare, the driver, looked something I shouldn’t be describing of. I could feel tears rolling down my cheeks, “No, no, no it is just a nightmare” I kept telling to myself. I screamed in pain and grief and that is when I realized they are gone... is this how vacation works out with friends, or is it just luck?

I sat beside the bus for nearly 1 hour and then got up took out the bodies and buried them. I took out everything out of the car (including the seats as they were broken) and made a bed with the seats, pillow with the travel pillows, the navy designed blanket, a shed over my head with an umbrella and a bigger shed with a waterproof Blanket over my whole seat house with the hiking sticks. I put my luggage, bag and the box beside my feet. I wrapped my leg with the gauze bandages mom gave me in case I need them. Then I took out the phone and saw that my phone’s battery died. “Now what?” I yelled being annoyed. Then I took out my diary and started making tally.

1 line for a day. Next day I woke up at 2 PM. I never slept so much! I got up had my sandwich and gave the second line. I got up ran to the lake and swam in it for 1 and a half hour. Then I wiped myself with a towel and headed back to the seat house, the waterproof blanket was so big, that it looked like a house with huge curtains. I got inside the house changed my clothes and decided to hunt something with the gun my father gave me (he gave it secretly). So I took the gun and walked through the forest giving chalk marks for keeping the trail back to the seat house.

BOOM! POW! 2 birds. “Yep, this will do it.” I cooked that super tasty meal (1 bird) for lunch. I ate them and decided to go and see the sunset. “Wow! a crimson sunset, birds chirping (sighs) nature, how can you see this in New York?

(Inhales heavily) miracle!” I closed my eyes and enjoyed it until I thought it was time to head back.

For dinner I had chicken fries. YUM! I made my bed, attached a little light on the umbrella, turned it on, and started reading a book, by 1:13 AM I felt a little drowsy and decided to sleep. So, I turned the light off.

Next day, another line. I ate noodles (half of it) for breakfast and swam at the lake. Then I had the same routine and at lunch I ate noodles again. I went to shoot birds again and this time I shot 1 bird. “Okay, not bad, dinner is ready.” I cleaned the bird and went to see the sunset again. Dinner was tasty. I took out the page I was reading and at 10:00 PM I turned off the light. This routine went on for a week.

On the 8th day, another line. I decided to go hiking and catch fishes for the rest of the week. So...4 months gone.

“Aren’t they looking for me or have I gone too deep in the forest?” I cried out.

This week my routine was swimming in the lake and hiking. The rest are the same. I liked this though. BEAUTY OF NATURE. ADVENTURE. PATIENCE. OUT OF GADGETS. WORLD. “Oh god what have we done to this beautiful world? What have we done? Oh why couldn’t we enjoy it? Why did we destroy it? Will you forgive us?” (sighs).

I don’t know why I started to cry and after crying for half an hour I started laughing. I was crazy. Then it began to rain. I was so tired that I started sleeping. I didn’t wake up that day.

And the next day I had noodles and chicken fry so that I don’t have to eat lunch. I swam and then change and straightly heading to hike for the last time in the week. You won’t believe how much awesome the view was. Though I saw it before I wasn’t tired at all. It is the first time in thanksgiving I am not with my family. Though I am supposed to have turkey, I ended up eating a stork (chuckles). That was tasty though.

Justin, Emma, Cody and Laura are holding me tightly and Sally is bringing a knife! Thank god! It was just a dream.

It was 10:00 AM by then so I got up and as for this week, (49th week) I had birds and catching fish and swimming in my routine. This week was the best. I had a lot of fun .

Another month... gone. Another line. My pencil is nearly finished. Every day I think today is the day it is finally here. But unfortunately it was the same.

On the 353rd day, I realized what the code of the box was. It was 1965! When I opened it I got cash, some personal stuff, and a power bank. “A power bank!” I was so happy! I immediately charged my phone it took 1hr and 23 minutes.

I called my mom and on the first ring she answered it and cried “Lana! Is that really you? Are you okay?” I quickly replied “Yes mom. Could you please track my phone and find me? And please take the airplane it would take 30 minutes. Just after 1 hour I was rescued.

My story got famous at the whole school. Ella and Betty are my friends again. “Lana that was really brave and one thing that we can assure you is we were worried for you” said Ella. “Yes” agreed Bella. I said, “You know what? It is all about luck.”

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