Written by: Suravi Niraula - 24083, Grade XII
Posted on: 31 October, 2023
Just for a moment wait and think about your life. You are provided with a certain amount of time with no fixed expiration date. An individual who looked healthy one moment ago might be dead and lifeless the next. Many don’t see it coming. Many don’t even get a goodbye. However, some feel its presence, lurking in the shadows. This inevitable, uncertain and unpredictable phenomenon—Death.
I laid amongst the tall grass blades, looking at the night sky, the twinkling of the stars and the way the moon played hide and seek amongst the white-grey clouds. The chilly wind was whistling, goosebumps spread throughout my body. Crickets chirping somewhere. I could see the twinkling of light from fireflies at a distance. It felt peaceful.
I felt its presence before I could see it—Death coming towards my direction. I wondered if I could run away from it. I got up and ran really fast. I wondered if it could catch me. I wondered if I ran towards my mother, hugged her really tight and hid behind her, would it be able to catch me? Would it be able to tear me away from the embrace of my mother? What about my father? Would it be able to free me from the clutches of my strong father? Would I get torn away from my sister’s love? I tried to remember the smiling faces of each member of my family. I couldn't. I realized that the phrase “Life flashes before your eyes at the time of death.” was a rubbish. If my life was my family, why couldn’t I remember their faces filled with laughter and joy at the time of my death?
I felt like screaming, crying, and bellowing because of how unfair it was. How could death come towards me when I am just a mere child? I hadn’t seen the world yet. I hadn’t done anything. I hadn’t left my mark. It felt like God had betrayed me; committed an art of treachery towards me. Nothing came out of my throat though. Not a simple shout, a plea or a prayer. It was of no use. I couldn’t escape death. I was not a God, not a superhuman. I was merely a human.
As it neared me more, I felt like tears would swell up in my eyes, my vision would be blurred. It didn’t happen. I could still see the flames of candles that surrounded my house. I could see the faint movement of my mother as she descended the stairs. I could hear my father talk on the phone. I could see my sister reading a book under the fluorescent light, out by the front porch, waiting for me to get back.
Suddenly, all I wanted was to hear my mother speaking to me, my father asking me how school was, my sister screaming at me for wearing her clothes. Tears did swell up in my eyes this time. I felt it fall down my cheeks yet I made no motion to wipe it away. I knew it was close; closer than ever.
My first words ever since I laid down in the grass left my mouth unknowingly--“I wonder if I will make it to dinner.”
I felt it engulf me. “My sweet child,” it said. “I am afraid not.”
It consumed me. It took me away and finally I could see it. My family—smiling.
