An African Adventure

           This is a short story that I have written for the coolest kid I know. Mark is a kind and caring second grader who unselfishly assists others whenever he is able to help. I hoped to capture his interests, tallents, and dreams in a piece that portrayed him as the hero he is destined to be.

 

 

           One beautiful, spring day at Moorwud Elementary School, Mark was sitting in his second grade class after finishing his math test. Mark always finished fairly early and often spent his extra time gazing out the window watching the warm breeze brush across the tree tops. His teacher, Miss Egan, had just finished their lesson and was about to move on to science when suddenly a tall man wearing a white coat burst into the room.

            "You will have to excuse my interruption of your class Miss Egan, " said the man apologetically, "but I need to speak with Mark about an urgent matter." He turned to Mark.

            "Me?" Mark looked intrigued by this turn of events.

            "Yes, there are some people in Africa that desperately need your assistance." explained the man.

            Miss Egan, a little flustered by all of this, decided to call Mark's mother to let her know what was going on. She explained the situation over the phone and his mother told her that the man was a friend of hers and that he knew what he was doing.

            Looking to hear what his mother had said, Mark asked his teacher, "Did she say I could go?" He was becoming more and more excited.

            "Yes," she replied. "But you have to stop by home to pack your things and say good bye to your mother and sister."

            Mark said good bye to his friends and turned to Pranave, "I will be back soon," he promised.

            "Have fun,"  replied Pranave. "And be careful!"

            "I will," assured Mark. Then he and the man, whose name turned out to be Doctor Wizzle, hurried home to pack and catch a flight to Africa.

            Once at home, Mark hurriedly packed his favorite green suitcase making sure to take his favorite blue T-shirt and his Woody and Buzz action figures. Once he finished packing, Mark said goodbye to his mother and sister, Yareny, giving them both big hugs before he departed with Doctor Wizzle.

            It was a long plane ride over to Africa and Doctor Wizzle snored throughout the whole flight but Mark didn't mind too much as he played with Woody and Buzz for the majority of the flight.

            Once in Africa, Mark was amazed to see all of the wondrous animals that lived there. There were all incredible, from the massive elephants to the prowling lions, and from the lanky giraffes to the bounding rhinos: they were exquisite. However, the people of Africa needed him and he did not have the time to simply admire the marvelous creatures.

            When he and Doctor Wizzle finally reached the people that desperately needed their help, Mark was astounded to see what had happened to all the men, women, and children. They were covered in bright purple spots and their tongues had turned to a shade of greenish yellow. Mark and Doctor Wizzle immediately set to work finding a cure for these people.

            A few days passed without any success of finding a treatment for the curious disease that continued to spread.

            "I don't know what else to do," stated Doctor Wizzle, who only had trace amounts of hope left.

            "There's one more thing we can try," replied Mark with one final trick up his sleeve. He remembered his mom's minestrone soup. He made his mother's recipe, the one that always made him feel better whenever he was sick. Giving a large bowl to a patient, Mark began to see the spots disappear before his own eyes as the man was rapidly cured of his disease.

            "You've done it!" exclaimed Doctor Wizzle. "You've cured him!"

            "Quick," Mark said, "make as much minestrone soup as you can."

            The two of them began making as much soup as fast as they possibly could. Within hours of their success, the entire population had been cured of the mysterious illness and began to praise Mark for his ingenious idea and delicious soup. As a token of their gratitude, they gave Mark a new puppy, a poodle, that he could play with whenever he wanted. Thanking the people of Africa and saying their final goodbyes, Mark and Doctor Wizzle began their journey home.

            Once back, Mark rushed into his house and gave his sister and mother a huge hug, the biggest one he had ever given them, and told them all about his amazing journey and how he had cured the people of Africa from the purple polkadot and yellow tongue disease and how the people had given him a new puppy.

            Doctor Wizzle was so amazed by his actions that he had made him an Honorary Doctor. "You've raised a true hero," He told Mark's mother. His family couldn't have been more proud of him.

 

 

            The End.