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My grandfather's lotion
MY GRANDFATHER’S LOTION
I still remember that 31st of August of 2001, I walked into my grandparent’s house and looked for my grandfather. I ran into the room, jump into his arms and as loud as I could a “Happy Birthday” came out of my mouth. I had been waiting anxiously for that day, my mother and I had chosen a new lotion for his 70 birthday since one week before. My mother and I went to the mall and between about 6 different lotions that we liked, this one was absolutely the best one. Since that day by grandfather didn’t used or bought any other different lotion than that Perry Ellis we gave him that day. I remember his words “You and your mother will now be present every single day”. It was awesome that in every graduation, every party, every special occasion, even every Saturday night in his house, my grandfather’s smell was present. When he walked into the room I would immediately knew he was there, that scent was unique. I remember when I dance in my fifteen party with him, he came close and kiss my forehead…he had used his lotion. I knew that since that August 31st, my grandfather had turned that lotion into one of his most important possessions. Maybe it was something that he had to constantly buy again, but he decided to buy the same one over and over again. He decided to keep using the one my mother and I had chosen for him. The fact that he used it daily made me feel really good, so every birthday since then we gave him the same perfect gift. I’m very glad that this possession is now mine since July 1st of 2011. When my grandfather passed away, I asked my grandmother for that Perry Ellis lotion. I am sure it’s the greatest and most important possession I have ever had. It’s like sharing something still with him, like keeping a bond between us. Maybe my grandma didn’t understand why I wanted to keep that lotion so badly, maybe no one understand the importance and the meaning of having it with me. I knew my mother did. Now I
have it in my room and every time I smell it a lot of flashbacks and memories ran through
my mind; every hug, every kiss, every moment spend with him. (400 words)
The end of the new beginning
The end of the new beginning
Do you imagine living in a world different than the one you know now? Have you ever thought how would it be when all this comes to an end?
Our story begins many and many years ago, before many of the lands we now know were discovered, even before the first human being was born. It was the ninety six day of the year, the temperature was about 70 degrees Celsius.
-“Wait what? 70 degrees? In April?” –asked the baby rabbit.
-“That’s not all, these temperatures started marking the beginning of the end! That had been the average temperature for the last month in Earth!” -said the old turtle.
-“More than 70 degrees! Wow! Tell me more about it!”
“We had really hard times. Due to the high temperatures, all the lakes and the rivers we knew, started to dry! Months with no rains! Can you imagine?” –the turtle said wistfully.
-“And how would you drink water?” –asked with great surprise the rabbit.
-“If we were thirsty we had to walk miles until we arrived to the Yellow River, there we had to make very long lines just to get some drops!”
-“And what did you ate?”
-“Well, all the vegetation was devastated, no trees, no plants. Just imagine, herbivores needed to eat meet in order to survive!”
And so the old turtle continue telling the little rabbit how the world had converted into a heater. He was narrating how all the animals contributed into the destruction of the world. All the contamination they produced ended with their own habitats, with their home.
-“Suddenly one day,” –continued the turtle- “the sun started raisin, this dawn was the fastest we had seen. The sun started growing and growing, it was so big I could even felt I was going to touch it. I could also felt like I was burning!
That day animals were running everywhere, dogs barking, birds trying to fly…the Earth felt like exploding! It was burning up!
I remember running below that big rock you can see over there, I hid in my shelf and heard nothing more. When I came out I was amazed, it was a whole new world in front of my eyes! I could heard birds singing, unknown birds but I could see them, I could also see new kinds of animals, many types! Heard the flow of the rivers! Trees and green colors everywhere…we were counted the privileged ones, the ones that had the opportunity to re-birth in this new world, new era, the survivals!”
The rabbit couldn’t believe what he was hearing. How could one world end and another start from day to night? There was no concordance with the story. Then the turtle showed him the scars he had in his shelf due to the sun rays that had burn him.
“You must teach your brothers and sisters how to take good care of Earth, otherwise my time here with you had been wasted. The eternal life of this, our new world, our new home is in your hands.”
Shocked and very worried the rabbit asked: -“And how will I know how to teach them? How will I know what’s right and wrong?
“You’ll just know son, I trust you will”.
The End
Karla Ibarra
Adrian Velázquez