Το γυμνάσιο του εκπαιδευτηρίου μας συμμετείχε στον πανελλήνιο διαγωνισμό δημιουργικής γραφής στα Αγγλικά για μαθητές γυμνασίου που διοργάνωσε το κολέγιο «ΔΕΛΑΣΑΛ» της Θεσσαλονίκης.
Ο τίτλος του φετινού διαγωνισμού ήταν «A trip not taken…». Οι διαγωνιζόμενοι/ες μαθητές/τριες μπορούσαν να συμμετέχουν σε μία από τις παρακάτω δύο κατηγορίες: α) συγγραφή ποιήματος, β) συγγραφή σύντομου διηγήματος.
Το γυμνάσιο μας δήλωσε συμμετοχή στην κατηγορία σύντομου διηγήματος, στην οποία η μαθήτρια της γ’ γυμνασίου Μαρία-Γεωργία (Μελίνα) Τσιάμπα κατέκτησε την 3η θέση. Θερμά συγχαρητήρια για την επιτυχία της!
Παρακάτω μπορείτε να διαβάσετε το σύντομο διήγημά της.
The Trip Not Taken
In my classroom, there was this sign someone had put up on the wall. It read, “Make each day count. Seize every opportunity that presents itself to you!”.
I had always hated this sign, since I knew I was never going to listen to the message these words convey.
I was blankly staring at my history textbook, thinking about the French Revolution and yearning for summer, which was so close yet so far away, when the ringing of the bell was heard. I continued to sit there, frozen, for a moment.
“Ivy!”
My classmate’s exclamation caused me to abruptly look up at her. “Did I frighten you?”
I shook my head.
“Very well then,” Maya replied, leaning on the desk. “You and I are friends, right?”
This girl’s definition of a friend must have been very loose. Then again, she was probably the closest thing I had to a friend. Maya would smile at me in the school corridors and ask me how my day was sometimes, so perhaps that’s what friendship is. I wouldn’t know.
“Yes,” I said faintly.
“Well, after exams and all, a few other friends and I are going on this trip. It’ll be lots of fun, I promise! Would you like to come along?”
No. No, absolutely not! Summer’s for sleeping in, not going on trips with a bunch of people. I would not like to come along!
“Sure,” I murmured.
“Wonderful!”
There I was, sitting in a crowded bus while listening to the chit-chat of my classmates, whom I honestly didn’t know that well. I didn’t want to be there. I would much rather rot in my room all summer. Yet…there I was.
“I know you two are excited, but I never quite understood the concept of ‘camping’,” Elliot admitted, gazing out the window. “Using all the principles of logic, one can conclude that nobody would want to spend nights in the wilderness, surrounded by bugs, all in the name of fun.”
The boy who was sitting next to him, Hugo, nudged him before glancing at Maya and me.
“Did you hear that? Elliot here uses the principles of logic!”
Hugo was one of those awfully energetic young men who are perceived to be “charismatic” when, in reality, they are simply witty and far too sure of themselves. Elliot directed his smile— which expressed annoyance rather than joy— to his friend.
“I was being sarcastic.”
“Let’s not tease one another. We’re going to have the time of our lives, you’ll see!”, Maya told them.
I wondered what I would do if I were ever offered to switch lives with her. I imagined being a tall, friendly blonde who was liked by most and often smiled at shy girls in the school corridors. However, I probably wouldn’t accept this due to the fact that I would pity her. I reckon most people wouldn’t want to live a life like mine.
Fate had different plans for us that day. Soon, we encountered a roadblock. A fallen tree had obstructed the road, preventing the bus from continuing any further. I would be lying if I said I didn’t feel relieved in a sense. As frustration and disappointment was murmured around me, I noticed something. On a seat, an envelope lay, the words “To whomever,” penned on its exterior. I’m not sure why I bothered opening it. I’m not sure why I bothered to do anything.
The Trip Not Taken
With a timid heart and pessimism as a guide,
This someone lets opportunities pass by,
Through days and nights, like sand slipping through hands. The scent of adventure in the air,
Ignored by this someone,
They don’t care.
This someone watches others dance in life’s embrace,
Envious of trips they would never take,
Today this someone takes a step forward,
The hourglass is the threat they shall face,
For only with action will this someone escape.
I merely stared at the piece of paper. This anonymous poet had just forced me to confront what had been lingering in the back of my mind. A bit like that stupid sign. Though the envelope didn’t only contain a poem but what appeared to be a map.
“Ivy!”
This time, Hugo was the one who exclaimed my name. It was then that I realised that I had been completely zoned out and that the four of us were now sauntering along the pavement.
“What are you holding?”, he asked. I directed my view to the envelope in my hands.
“An envelope.”
“I know, but where on earth did you find an envelope?”
The loudmouthed boy proceeded to snatch it from me as I stood there dumbfounded. Hugo read the poem with a smirk on his face before saying, “Who wrote this anyways?”
I glimpsed at Maya.
“Leave the girl be. You needn’t ask so many questions.”
“I’m simply curious!”
He finally noticed the aforementioned map. It was a map of the forest nearby and had red “X”s marking two particular spots.
“I say we go!”, Hugo instantly suggested. Elliot commented, “It might be interesting, I guess.”
“Yeah, it’ll be an adventure!”, Maya happily added.
“I’d rather not join you”, I murmured.
A short silence ensued.
“How come?”, she wondered. “You agreed to go on the trip.” “I just don’t want to.”
“You don’t want to do anything, do you?”, Elliot pointed out.
Annoyed, I responded, “Fine.”
Spruce trees covered nearly the entire area, and in my mind, I pictured all of us getting lost and meeting our demise.
Before us stood Hugo. Without hesitation, the boy strode into the forest, and foolishly, we followed. Elliot couldn’t help but voice his concerns. “Do you even know where you’re going?”
Hugo turned sharply.
“I know exactly where I’m going!”
At some point, the path split into two, prompting us to halt.
“Alright!”, Hugo said. “What do we do now?”
“We could split up. You could go with Elliot, and I can go with Ivy”, Maya suggested.
“Brilliant idea!”, he remarked.
And just like that, they took off, leaving me alone with Maya. “Isn’t this lovely?”
No, it wasn’t.
“Aren’t mysteries fun?”, she continued.
All I could muster was a shrug. Maya grabbed my arm and steered us towards the left path.
“Think about it this way,” she began. “I’m the great detective, Sherlock Holmes, and you’re my trusty sidekick, Doctor Watson. In this novel, we’ve taken to the woods to investigate a decades-old cold case. They said it couldn’t be solved, but we’ll prove them wrong!”
I lowered my eyes. She let out a sigh.
“You can’t stay in your little bubble forever,” Maya unexpectedly stated. “Sorry?”
“You have to connect with people and let them help you!”
“You would never understand,” I retorted.
“I could try!”, the girl countered.
Then she went on and on about how concerning my lack of a social life was. I hated this lecture, so in a desperate attempt to stop it, I shouted a loud, “Maya!”
The intensity of my voice caused silence. I looked around.
“We’re completely off track, and Hugo has the map.”
“Oh.”
“Oh,” I mocked. Surprisingly, Maya smiled at me, proceeding deeper into the woods.
“What are you doing?”
“I’m following my instinct!”
After what felt like an eternity, I was certain that my prediction would end up being accurate. My breath was heavy and…
“Eureka!”, Maya exclaimed.
In a tree, there was a barely noticeable envelope. Perhaps this was one of the marked locations on the map.
“I’m going up there,” I decided. She looked at me as if I was speaking Swahili. “Pardon?”
“I may not be the best at socialising, Maya…” I told her, slowly but surely making my way up the spruce. “But I am a master at climb—”
Just as I had gotten a hold of the envelope, I lost my balance, and fell into a bush. A pause ensued.
“Are you alive?”, Maya asked.
I lifted my trophy (that is to say the poem) in the air.
“I’m more alive than ever!”
“Hugo, with all due respect, you’re an idiot,” said a voice in the distance. “At least we found a poem,” responded another voice.
Suddenly, Elliot’s face poked out from behind a tree. As for Hugo, he dashed towards us.
“Bad news, you guys. We’re lost!”
His friend replied dryly, “What a genius observation, Mr. Holmes…” “Good news!“ Hugo interjected, his voice still awfully loud. “We found another poem, but it’s incomplete.”
Maya showed him our poem, and he grinned from ear to ear.
When we finally returned to the town, we connected these poems like the missing pieces to a puzzle.
The Trip Taken
The trip that was taken was filled with new beginnings, I felt like I was winning,
I danced in life’s vibrant embrace, no longer held back by doubt, With new friends by my side, and optimism my guide, I faced the hourglass.
The trip taken was a journey of transformation,
From a someone filled with sorrow,
To a someone filled with hope.
Το επίσημο ιστολόγιο του γυμνασίου 