'I don't think I can make it,' she moaned as they pushed on. Each step tightened the chains that were constricting her chest. Breathing heavily, sickness crept through her stomach. When would they be let go? How much longer did they have to endure this pain?
Laura and Mel could not cope. For over 10 years they had endured sessions of this complete horror. The heat intensified and a trickle of sweat down Laura's pale cheek.
Mel adjusted her skirt. Lead rubbed onto the cream fabric, staining the sack-like dress for the millionth time.
'Twelve more, don't stop, doesn't this mean anything to you!' His deep voice growled, employing fear into their souls. They grasped desperately ahead, dizzy from the concentration.
The insanity set it. A malicious grin swepted across Mel's face, her white teeth gleaming in the sunlight through the grimy window. Laura joined her. It didn't seem to matter, they were distraught. They weren't going to survive, it was never going to end.
Hysterical laughter filled the sullen room. He errupted in anger, his bloodshot eyes piercing into their hearts. Suppressed by his anger, they composed their aching, longing bodies and focussed as hard as possible.
Suddenly the moment came. The sound of the school bell elated their hearts and they slammed shut their maths books with glee. The lead on Mel's dress was now the only remaining evidence that she had held that pencil in pure boredom, gazing at the steps on the blackboard.
Their aching bodies stretched out and a beautiful breeze cooled their faces as they stepped into the freedom of lunchtime.
Tuesday, November 28, 2006
Saturday, November 25, 2006
Bird Watch
For some reason, from the moment i awoke this morning, myself, matt, steph and emelie had an unusually high number of encounters with situations involving birds. Here is our birdwatch timeline:
7am - Matt awakes and goes outside, to find a kookaburra and a koala in the tree out the front.
(We know koala's aren't birds but it is kind of cool so i had to add it in).
7.30am - Mel talks to Emelie, who has a picture of heaps of birds in her display picture.
7.30am - Steph reads a fact that states, 'Emu's are the only birds that can't walk backwards'.
7.35am - Mel is explaining to Emelie how people shoot some kinds of birds to protect vines.
7.36am - The type of bird people shoot is on Mel's front lawn and her dog barks it away.
7.40am - Emelie starts her essay on birds.
8.00am - There is bird poo on Stephanie's mum's car.
8.25am - Mel walks past two girls at school who are talking about their pet bird.
10.30am - Steph sings Daydream Believer, 'Oh, I could hide 'neath the wings of the bluebird as she sings'.
10.35am - Mel tells her friends how horrified emelie was that people kill birds.
12.05pm - A bird sits on the window of the second story at school, Mel says hello to it.
12.10pm - Matt, Steph and Mel realise they are in the room where the birds nest is, in the roof.
12.15pm - This reminds Steph that she ate a bird for dinner last night.
12.30pm - Matt and Steph are watching the cricket and they see the 'kookaburra' sign.
3.00pm - Ms Lind attempts to save a dying bird.
10.20pm - A bird lands outside Mel's bedroom window as she is trying to sleep, it makes a loud noise.
That is the end of our day but we believe that was a particularly unusual day, perhaps a conspiracy?
7am - Matt awakes and goes outside, to find a kookaburra and a koala in the tree out the front.
(We know koala's aren't birds but it is kind of cool so i had to add it in).
7.30am - Mel talks to Emelie, who has a picture of heaps of birds in her display picture.
7.30am - Steph reads a fact that states, 'Emu's are the only birds that can't walk backwards'.
7.35am - Mel is explaining to Emelie how people shoot some kinds of birds to protect vines.
7.36am - The type of bird people shoot is on Mel's front lawn and her dog barks it away.
7.40am - Emelie starts her essay on birds.
8.00am - There is bird poo on Stephanie's mum's car.
8.25am - Mel walks past two girls at school who are talking about their pet bird.
10.30am - Steph sings Daydream Believer, 'Oh, I could hide 'neath the wings of the bluebird as she sings'.
10.35am - Mel tells her friends how horrified emelie was that people kill birds.
12.05pm - A bird sits on the window of the second story at school, Mel says hello to it.
12.10pm - Matt, Steph and Mel realise they are in the room where the birds nest is, in the roof.
12.15pm - This reminds Steph that she ate a bird for dinner last night.
12.30pm - Matt and Steph are watching the cricket and they see the 'kookaburra' sign.
3.00pm - Ms Lind attempts to save a dying bird.
10.20pm - A bird lands outside Mel's bedroom window as she is trying to sleep, it makes a loud noise.
That is the end of our day but we believe that was a particularly unusual day, perhaps a conspiracy?
Thursday, November 23, 2006
Butterfly
Spread your wings and prepare to fly
For you have become a butterfly
Fly abandonedly into the sun
If you should return to me,
we truly were meant to be
So spread your wings and fly.
Take your passion and make it happen.
The only way to know the limits of possibilities is
to go beyond them into the impossible.
I want to run free and I need you to be there
I'm going to take some chances I never took before
I've got to live my life and I'm going to risk it all
I look to the sky and suddenly I know
I've made up my mind, I'm never letting go
It's the power I want, it's the power I need
To make me run, to make me see for real
For you have become a butterfly
Fly abandonedly into the sun
If you should return to me,
we truly were meant to be
So spread your wings and fly.
Take your passion and make it happen.
The only way to know the limits of possibilities is
to go beyond them into the impossible.
I want to run free and I need you to be there
I'm going to take some chances I never took before
I've got to live my life and I'm going to risk it all
I look to the sky and suddenly I know
I've made up my mind, I'm never letting go
It's the power I want, it's the power I need
To make me run, to make me see for real
Monday, November 20, 2006
Agony
The only thing i hate about this weather is what my mum just did to me. To cool me off, mum decided to spray me with a pretty tea-tree oil, how sweet you might think. However, without warning, i find myself drowning in a sea of mist and my eyes have not stopped watering for the last five minutes.
Thanks mum, i love you xx
Thanks mum, i love you xx
Wednesday, November 15, 2006
Japanese News
Today in chapel it was announced to the school that i would be going to Japan. Also, it was announced that a girl called Erika is coming to stay in Australia at Tatachilla (my school) for a year. I am hosting Erika (from Japan) for the duration of Term One. This is great news because it means i have a chance to make friends and learn even more about the way of Japanese life. I don't have details and i am yet to confirm it with the co-ordinator, my teacher, Ms Wright.
In other news, only two weeks until exams. I have started to study hard for them. The year 11 work is going well, it is a bit difficult but i am getting good marks so far. I suppose i will just have to take it a day at a time and make sure i don't over look each day. I want to live and love every second, breath every moment and smell the excitement and glory of life.
This weekends plans:
- Relaxing Friday night, play a game of tag rugby.
- Working hard on Saturday morning from 8am till 12 noon.
- Take a nice walk around the flat on Saturday after work.
- Rachael and Gabriella's birthday party at 4pm.
- Pack Cambodian birthing kits for my Auntie's university work.
- Sunday afternoon, study for exams.
I suppose that was all a bit random but lists help keep my sanity.
Love Melissa xx ps. make sure you do something beneficial every day.
In other news, only two weeks until exams. I have started to study hard for them. The year 11 work is going well, it is a bit difficult but i am getting good marks so far. I suppose i will just have to take it a day at a time and make sure i don't over look each day. I want to live and love every second, breath every moment and smell the excitement and glory of life.
This weekends plans:
- Relaxing Friday night, play a game of tag rugby.
- Working hard on Saturday morning from 8am till 12 noon.
- Take a nice walk around the flat on Saturday after work.
- Rachael and Gabriella's birthday party at 4pm.
- Pack Cambodian birthing kits for my Auntie's university work.
- Sunday afternoon, study for exams.
I suppose that was all a bit random but lists help keep my sanity.
Love Melissa xx ps. make sure you do something beneficial every day.
Saturday, November 11, 2006
Random Events
Hello there,
It has been such a long time since i have written and just talked about me in general, instead of pretending to be my dog etc.
So here it is, just little things i have been up to. Well i took the day off of school yesterday, i just didn't want to go, i was a bit run down and my sister's school had a day off so i looked after her. I got a great deal done in terms of homework in comparison to what i would have done if i was at school! The weather is warmer now, and i felt it last night at tag rugby. I played my old team and they beat me! It was good fun though!
Dad has a new motor bike. The boys are going to take him down on their dirt tracks often, i hope they are ok! I am not a fan of motor bikes. I am working all day today, well, 11 until 5 which i think warrents all day. I am taking advantage of the fact that i can sit around in the morning and do nothing! My house is dead silent right now. Amelia is asleep in bed, there is a magpie outside the window that is making a lot of noise though.
Well, that is all that's happening at the moment. Bit sad really! I don't have any important gossip or worldly event that is going to shape the nation, so i'll head off!
Love melissa xx
It has been such a long time since i have written and just talked about me in general, instead of pretending to be my dog etc.
So here it is, just little things i have been up to. Well i took the day off of school yesterday, i just didn't want to go, i was a bit run down and my sister's school had a day off so i looked after her. I got a great deal done in terms of homework in comparison to what i would have done if i was at school! The weather is warmer now, and i felt it last night at tag rugby. I played my old team and they beat me! It was good fun though!
Dad has a new motor bike. The boys are going to take him down on their dirt tracks often, i hope they are ok! I am not a fan of motor bikes. I am working all day today, well, 11 until 5 which i think warrents all day. I am taking advantage of the fact that i can sit around in the morning and do nothing! My house is dead silent right now. Amelia is asleep in bed, there is a magpie outside the window that is making a lot of noise though.
Well, that is all that's happening at the moment. Bit sad really! I don't have any important gossip or worldly event that is going to shape the nation, so i'll head off!
Love melissa xx
The Horror of War
This is a new english assignment, i personally like it so i hope that i get an ok mark for it!
The gunshot pierced the still, silent atmosphere. Birds scattered, and a gentle wind swept through the trees, carrying the sound’s echo in its arms. Within seconds it was over and I was left alone with my heart beating heavier, my head spinning faster. Terror flowed swiftly through my veins, causing fright in every part of my body. The dense forest stretched for miles; giving me the feeling I was the only man in the world. I knew I wasn’t. I could hear him, crawling through the land, watching my every move. He was savaged by the war and trained to kill. I knew he wouldn’t give up, the Japanese never do.
I placed one aching foot before the other, moving as fast as I could bear. If I slowed down then he would creep closer, bringing my death with him. As I stumbled over the lonely, dense land, my thoughts flashed before my eyes, as clear as words on a screen. On the screen of my imagination, the Australian flag blew in the gentle wind, my girlfriend waved goodbye and the cries of fellow soldiers haunted me.
A twig snapped. A shiver crept up my back like a hundred tiny spiders marching along my spine. Stiff with fright, I convinced myself to turn quickly and face the noise. Knowing that hesitation would be fatal, I reached for my rifle, pulling roughly at the khaki strap.
It didn’t seem real. I felt as if the man standing in front of me was a painting, one I could gaze at for hours at a time. Breaking my thoughts, he hurried forward. In a rush of emotion, he surged towards me, screaming out in his native tongue. The sound was shocking after the hours of haunting silence. The muscles in his fingers tensed as they squeezed the trigger. Overwhelmed at the situation, I stood motionless. Our eyes connected as we gazed in awe. The dull click of his rifle had brought a miracle down upon me.
The longer I waited, the more I noticed. The flawless skin of his face was young and determined. It had life within it, a life I knew nothing about. I needed to do it. No doubt he knew where he was, he was not lost like me because he hadn’t fled the ambush, instead he’d followed and stalked. Staring at the helpless man, I raised my rifle with shaking hands. He had tried to kill me. I told myself this over and over, drowning out the look of helplessness in his eyes. He didn’t scream out, he didn’t spit or curse. He prayed, down on his knees he spoke to his God. Gently he reached into the pocket of his beige pants. Panicking, I fired.
Without hesitation I rushed forward, kneeling down at his side. I took his hand, the hand that had reached for the pocket. Spilt from that pocket was a faded picture. His family surrounded him. His father stood straight as his chest swelled with pride while an elderly woman’s face beamed at her son. An elegant wife placed her loving hands upon his shoulder while his daughter, lovingly curled up in his lap, stared at her father with admiration.
I gripped his hand tighter; his eyes peered at me desperately. He had no hatred, he was simply frightened. Slowly his breaths grew shorter and my tears splashed down upon his wounded chest. His life ebbed away before me and I watched as he drew his final breath. I knew that somewhere, at that very moment, his wife longed for him, anxiously waiting the moment she could fall once more into his arms.
The gunshot pierced the still, silent atmosphere. Birds scattered, and a gentle wind swept through the trees, carrying the sound’s echo in its arms. Within seconds it was over and I was left alone with my heart beating heavier, my head spinning faster. Terror flowed swiftly through my veins, causing fright in every part of my body. The dense forest stretched for miles; giving me the feeling I was the only man in the world. I knew I wasn’t. I could hear him, crawling through the land, watching my every move. He was savaged by the war and trained to kill. I knew he wouldn’t give up, the Japanese never do.
I placed one aching foot before the other, moving as fast as I could bear. If I slowed down then he would creep closer, bringing my death with him. As I stumbled over the lonely, dense land, my thoughts flashed before my eyes, as clear as words on a screen. On the screen of my imagination, the Australian flag blew in the gentle wind, my girlfriend waved goodbye and the cries of fellow soldiers haunted me.
A twig snapped. A shiver crept up my back like a hundred tiny spiders marching along my spine. Stiff with fright, I convinced myself to turn quickly and face the noise. Knowing that hesitation would be fatal, I reached for my rifle, pulling roughly at the khaki strap.
It didn’t seem real. I felt as if the man standing in front of me was a painting, one I could gaze at for hours at a time. Breaking my thoughts, he hurried forward. In a rush of emotion, he surged towards me, screaming out in his native tongue. The sound was shocking after the hours of haunting silence. The muscles in his fingers tensed as they squeezed the trigger. Overwhelmed at the situation, I stood motionless. Our eyes connected as we gazed in awe. The dull click of his rifle had brought a miracle down upon me.
The longer I waited, the more I noticed. The flawless skin of his face was young and determined. It had life within it, a life I knew nothing about. I needed to do it. No doubt he knew where he was, he was not lost like me because he hadn’t fled the ambush, instead he’d followed and stalked. Staring at the helpless man, I raised my rifle with shaking hands. He had tried to kill me. I told myself this over and over, drowning out the look of helplessness in his eyes. He didn’t scream out, he didn’t spit or curse. He prayed, down on his knees he spoke to his God. Gently he reached into the pocket of his beige pants. Panicking, I fired.
Without hesitation I rushed forward, kneeling down at his side. I took his hand, the hand that had reached for the pocket. Spilt from that pocket was a faded picture. His family surrounded him. His father stood straight as his chest swelled with pride while an elderly woman’s face beamed at her son. An elegant wife placed her loving hands upon his shoulder while his daughter, lovingly curled up in his lap, stared at her father with admiration.
I gripped his hand tighter; his eyes peered at me desperately. He had no hatred, he was simply frightened. Slowly his breaths grew shorter and my tears splashed down upon his wounded chest. His life ebbed away before me and I watched as he drew his final breath. I knew that somewhere, at that very moment, his wife longed for him, anxiously waiting the moment she could fall once more into his arms.
Monday, November 06, 2006
Rachael And Me
1. When i first met Rachael, she had a wardrobe with mirrors on the front, her dolls were kept in a big box up on the top shelf.
2. We played cats often and slid down the slippery dip on all fours.
3. Rachael and I created a collection of gum nuts, getting them from the roof of our shed. I swear Rach almost died that day, the day she bravely jumped to grab hold of the roof and didn't quite make it.
4. We played cars with Josh. Rachael always managed to get a truck from Josh... i only managed cars.
5. On Tuesdays after school we would sit in Rachael's room and play Uno and eat pringles.
6. Ballet classes on Saturday morning started with a game of chasey, the bars on the wall were the safe area.
7. Lining up for the Mobile Library was entertaining because we would fold our cards and put them in our mouths, pretending we were ducks.
8. The famous lion king performance. I was Simba and Rachael was Zazzoo, we sung, "Oh I Just Can't Wait To Be King". The next year i convinced myself i was dying from stage fright and Rachael saved me, performing solo.
9. Swan Lake ballet with mum and Louise (Rachael's mum) was awesome. We laughed as Mum and Louise made comments about men in tights.
10. We wore matching outfits to Disney on ice. A black top and pants with a fury white spotted collar.
11. We made a house from books for Rachael's cat. We spilt milk on the floor and tried to disguise the smell with perfume.
12. Netball was our (and is still) favourite sport. Through all the rainy days, hail storms, heat waves, we have almost always been on the court together.
13. We chased Ben up and down our street trying to catch him in the darkness.
14. We went motorbike riding through the vineyards and almost drowned in the puddle of mud that seemed so small to start with...
15. Swimming in the rain. The warm water of the pool contrasting with the cold rain drops. The air is thick and the skies are black.
16. Casual clothes days are a routine where i call Rach or vice versa so we can work out what is the cool or normal thing to be wearing.
17. Eating icecream by the river on camp.
18. Hawaiian Party night where Rachael kept 'spilling' her cocktails. We had so much fun dressed up and dancing.
Thousands upon thousands of more memories are in my mind however it would takes years to write them here. That was just a small sample into the life of Rachael and Me.
2. We played cats often and slid down the slippery dip on all fours.
3. Rachael and I created a collection of gum nuts, getting them from the roof of our shed. I swear Rach almost died that day, the day she bravely jumped to grab hold of the roof and didn't quite make it.
4. We played cars with Josh. Rachael always managed to get a truck from Josh... i only managed cars.
5. On Tuesdays after school we would sit in Rachael's room and play Uno and eat pringles.
6. Ballet classes on Saturday morning started with a game of chasey, the bars on the wall were the safe area.
7. Lining up for the Mobile Library was entertaining because we would fold our cards and put them in our mouths, pretending we were ducks.
8. The famous lion king performance. I was Simba and Rachael was Zazzoo, we sung, "Oh I Just Can't Wait To Be King". The next year i convinced myself i was dying from stage fright and Rachael saved me, performing solo.
9. Swan Lake ballet with mum and Louise (Rachael's mum) was awesome. We laughed as Mum and Louise made comments about men in tights.
10. We wore matching outfits to Disney on ice. A black top and pants with a fury white spotted collar.
11. We made a house from books for Rachael's cat. We spilt milk on the floor and tried to disguise the smell with perfume.
12. Netball was our (and is still) favourite sport. Through all the rainy days, hail storms, heat waves, we have almost always been on the court together.
13. We chased Ben up and down our street trying to catch him in the darkness.
14. We went motorbike riding through the vineyards and almost drowned in the puddle of mud that seemed so small to start with...
15. Swimming in the rain. The warm water of the pool contrasting with the cold rain drops. The air is thick and the skies are black.
16. Casual clothes days are a routine where i call Rach or vice versa so we can work out what is the cool or normal thing to be wearing.
17. Eating icecream by the river on camp.
18. Hawaiian Party night where Rachael kept 'spilling' her cocktails. We had so much fun dressed up and dancing.
Thousands upon thousands of more memories are in my mind however it would takes years to write them here. That was just a small sample into the life of Rachael and Me.
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