Hello From The Other Side
- Raaghav Chapa
- Dec 27, 2018
- 6 min read
Hello All. Today I wanted to share a small story I wrote in my school.
The Aston Martin rounded up around the corner and we got into the car. Rick has expensive tastes. The car, with its leather upholstery, controllable lighting, auto-drive, and the LED TV, is truly a luxurious experience. One look at Rick proved his tastes. He was wearing a suit. It was charcoal grey, silk, with a Miu Miu label. There was a white shirt to go with it: Armani. He had worn a new watch today, a Baume & Mercier with a polished steel bracelet. He was wearing a C&J Clarke shoe. It must have cost thousands of pounds. Anyway, we got into the car and started to Sam’s house. After we picked him up, we looked at our itinerary and pondered over it. We were going to a felicitation ceremony being held by WACA. Rick was driving at 100 and we were waiting to face cameras. We were crossing a beautiful jungle en route to the ceremony. It was here that all trouble started. While we were going on the main road in the jungle, the car slowed down and made creaking noises. Then suddenly it stopped, not budging an inch more. The car broke down in the middle of the jungle, and we had no idea what to do. Our “smart” phones were also of no use as there were no signals in this remote area. We were all thirsty and decided to go and explore for a waterbody. While we were going deep into the jungle, we noticed a small smoke rising above the canopy a bit further away. We were curious to find out about the rising smoke and started moving towards it. When we were nearing the smoke, we could hear voices. On moving closer, we realized that there was a tribal festival going on. The children of the tribe spotted us and ran towards us. They pulled us to join them in celebrating the festival. We were welcomed with the warm greeting of all the people on reaching the place. Rick, who is the son of the mayor of Nashville, had breathing problems. He was asthmatic, and inhaling the smoke, worsened his state. We were scared as to what to do, but the eldest of the tribe calmly took him to a tent and applied some herbs. We were shocked that only a couple of herbs got him a huge relief of his persistent breathing problem. If we were at home, the private hospitals would have charged us thousands of pounds and would have given him numerous tablets, and as the condition got worse, put him on inhalers!
Meanwhile, in another part of the world, people panicked. Information had just arrived that Rick, the mayor’s son, had gone missing. He hadn’t shown up at the felicitation ceremony held by WACA. Local police had found his car on the road unlocked and believed the car was robbed. The media was going frenzy and said that unknown tribes had kidnapped the three friends and threatened to kill them if their needs-which means a ransom- were not fulfilled. Another channel said that hungry animals had hunted the friends when they got down for a break. The people were terrified hearing all these freaky stories.
Rick was gratified to the tribal people who had helped them. The tribal people also arranged a dinner for us. They made many new dishes which we did not know about. They used traditional cooking methods and used simple ingredients, but the food was still far better than most restaurants. As we were very hungry, we wolfed down the food in record time. As the sun was setting, the tribals were generous enough to provide us a separate tent to sleep in.
There was a nation-wide search for the missing trio, but it ended in vain. People were scared to go deep into the jungles, as they were afraid of being attacked. The media too were not cooperative, making up spooky stories for the sake of TRPs. This caused a national panic, and there were awards for finding the trio. People feared the fact that some tribals or animals might have caught them and slain them. The media believed that tribals were, in a way, progenies of the Ogres that used to haunt the jungles.
The tent looked dilapidated from outside but turned out to be a haven of luxury in this thick jungle. The tent had in it every amenity we could ask for in this isolated area. There was a pot full of cool water to drink. There were some fruits kept on a small makeshift table and there were two double cots built out of strong logs found in this part of the world. The cots were made of reeds woven together and filled with leaves to make it comfortable. We all were tired and slept like a log that night. We were all very grateful to our friends and wanted to repay their kindness.
The news made headlines. It's official that Rick was kidnapped by robbers because “sources” said so. People now freaked out even more and not even the police were able to trace them. The Prime Minister had to turn towards MI6 and the SAS for help. Armed with weapons and forensic experts, the SAS set out to find the three golden boys.
Sam thought how funny it was that this tribal habitation had no restrooms. So, he decided to repay them by building them a couple of toilets. Rick thought about how we had struggled for water on the first day and how the women in this tribe must walk miles for water. So, he decided to build canals for the locals. I thought it would be fun to teach the kids how to play some sports. Sam put four poles in a rectangular pattern and covered it with a large canvas, then dug a hole in it. Rick decided to dig the ground to a certain height from the river and explained the tribals the plan on how to do it. He told them about how beneficial having a canal was. He told them they would not have to walk so much for water. The tribals were clearly impressed. He had succeeded in planning a reservoir. Later, we put two tall bamboo stems on one side of a clearing that we had made, and two on the other. These would be the goalposts. Then, I pulled out the football I always used to keep in my backpack.
“We have found matching fingerprints. Over.”, said Ian to Mr. Alan Hunt, head of MI6. This was true, the SAS officer had found fingerprints that matched the original ones. He and his teammates – Alex and John – had finally found a clue to solve the nation’s single biggest question. They were only slightly shaken by the fact that the robbers could launch an attack at any time.
We were amazed at how well these kids understood the game of football and played like they knew football all their lives. They were prodigies and we decide to build them a professional training center once we get back. We gifted them the football, so they can play at any time. Though this was a very nice place, we were starting to feel homesick and wanted to return home. So, we decided to go back on foot, without realizing how far away the jungle is from the nearest town.
The SAS was very sharp – auditorily and visually – and they heard sounds from not very far away. They moved towards the sounds and came face to face with humans. The others screamed and started yelling, “Help! Help!”. The SAS was calm and smiling, as they had achieved the mission they were given. “Targets located.”, Alex radioed back home. The three young lads realized what happened and were happy to be rescued.
We finally reached Pittsburg and slept for a couple of hours after a heavy lunch. The media was holding a press conference to know what happened. We sure did expect to face the cameras, but not in this way! When we settled in the hall, we were bombarded with questions about our escapade. They all wanted to know if we were robbed or kidnapped, and what the criminals did to us. They wanted to prove to the common man that their stories were real. We smiled and told them, “First thing, we were not thieved or kidnapped. Second, we had a very pleasant stay.” We then told them the whole story and advised, “The media is not always right, and people have to stop blindly believing the stories cooked up by the press for TRPs. Just because they were tribals does not mean they are harmful, and as we told before, they taught us to never back down and always help the needy. They taught us to love and be loved. Thank you.” I signed off. And hence, ended my adventure of fear of being lost and realization of the popularity-minded media.
See you guys till my next adventure!!!
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