Henry Wang Hengle, Grade 8, BASIS International School Shenzhen

Chapter 2 The decision

I stood there, in the middle of the dusty country. The old man had illuminated a road in front of me, and I was given the responsibility of finding hope for the world. The task seemed like a great burden on my back, even though I knew that I needn’t follow the old man’s instructions.

Either the road will lead me to a life never hitherto imaginable, or it will detriment the rest of my life into a valley of despair. But there would be risks — the long road ahead that I must tread for days, months, and years, filled with danger beyond the normal — these challenges would be difficult; should I take the risks?

These questions crowded my mind as I stood in the middle of the road, unsure, doubtful, even wondering if the old man had been truthful or not. But a second thought came to me: that I shouldn’t miss any opportunity that might lead to a better and more exciting future for me. It was what I had been dreaming of for the past 12 years.

The old man had disappeared, nowhere to be seen. I was left with a feeling of doubt that flooded my insides and into the deepest sinews of my heart. But I with a sudden flash recalled what the old man had been saying all along — hope. Should I be casting all these doubts? No. A sudden voice flashed across the back of my brain amid the fierce battle of thoughts raging on. But that voice quickly disappeared. It seemed that it was impossible to make a definite decision. I thought of the familiar streets and buildings that I would leave behind, but these places suddenly seemed cold and distant; I thought of my future, it felt warm and beckoning.

“It wouldn’t hurt to go on the journey,” thought I, “After all, my daily wage is only one and a half pennies, and who knows how much it will be at the end of the road?”

Thus, the decision was made that I would go on the journey, despite the menacing difficulties, despite the looming obstacles, despite the long road ahead, to search for a new and better life.

Chapter 3 Setting out

All the preparations were made, right there and now. The process didn’t take a long time however, since my belongings comprised of a mere three objects: my thin and ragged gray-colored quilt, my life savings of two dollars and 11 pennies, leftover from my food and living expenses, and a black-and-white picture of my grandmother, the only picture I had gotten of any of my relatives, which I prized beyond anything else.

The prospect of the wide and endless possibilities awaiting me made me happy for the first time in my life.

The feeling was so natural, it just came to me. It was a sensation so beautiful and overwhelming that no poet on this Earth would ever attempt it, that no painter could ever replicate it to the fullest extent, and that no sorcerer would ever procure from nothingness.