Write time

Here are some interesting poems and stories from readers in response to the writing ideas given. Other contributions will appear on these pages next fortnight.
- The writer is a freelancer based in Hyderabad, India

Right on time

"Kelly, I'm going for a walk." Anna called from the bottom of the stairs. She contemplated whether it was better to leave a note. Her daughter, Kelly, was probably in her room listening to loud crashes and bangs that she called music. The "music" that threatened to break down the walls of Anna's sanity.

However, this wasn't the reason she was going for a walk. Anna loved to wander off to places in town or retreat to her favourite spot where she could sit for hours, thinking.

This was a small wooden bench on the edge of the promenade. Anna first sat on the bench when she was seven. The bench was a true friend and a great listener. Come to think of it, that's what benches do.

They are always there for you. Even now, at 32, Anna loved to sit there and think of complex plots for her books.

It was a sunny day, birds sang in the trees, dogs barked playfully and children's laughter could be heard - a perfect day for a walk. It seemed that nothing could go wrong.

She reached the bench and sat down. Her fingers ran over the grooves of one name, carved deep into the wood.

"Steve." Her husband, her mentor, her saviour. Anna sometimes went for walks because she couldn't stand being at home without him. He worked long hours at the nearby insurance office. She understood that they needed the money, but she still missed him.

Anna placed her bag by her side, taking out the notes that made up her latest book. Anna looked down at them like a mother looking at a new-born child. When she realised that she hadn't made copies, she slid the notes into the black rucksack. "Get them copied," she told herself.

A bird landed right next to her, on the metal armrest of the bench. It was a beautiful house sparrow. Its deep, dark eyes looked at Anna's, taking everything in.

All of a sudden, Anna could swear that she saw a flicker of fear in the bird's eyes. A warning. She spun around just in time to see a man grab her bag and start running. Panic took over and it took her a while to give chase.

He was fast, but she pursued him and to her surprise, she gained on him. He turned in the direction of the town center. A clever man. There were far more people there, so his getaway would be easier. He looked back at her and smiled. Big mistake.

Suddenly, the man doubled over and fell on the pavement. Someone had struck him with a briefcase when he was looking back. A cold shower of relief hit her when she saw the man lying flat, gasping for air.

She ran up and retrieved her bag from his grasp. So much adrenaline was pumping through her that she didn't notice the man standing next to her. Anna caught a glimpse of his shoes and a smile touched her lips. They were the shoes she'd bought Steve for his 35th birthday. She jumped up and threw her arms around him.

"I finished early today," Steve whispered.
"I noticed," she replied, happiness running through her veins. Like she knew, he was her saviour. She smiled again and looked up into his eyes as they walked home together to their daughter.
— Pawel Karas, Grade 11, School: Cambridge International School, Dubai

A LUN-ALIENATIC DISCOVERY

"So you were not dreaming! It was real!" said Horner.
Tabitha rolled her eyes and said, "I told them I saw the UFO falling to the ground and they said "Nooo…..!"
Horner and Tabitha were interns working at NASA.

A few days earlier, when Tabitha was in NASA's control centre, she noticed an object falling to earth on live satellite images. Excited, she broke the news to the people around her.

The scientists held a meeting, but to her astonishment, after bizarre scientific calculations, they concluded that the object had returned to the moon! Tabitha was sure about what she had seen and so she and Horner, a long time friend, went back to NASA headquarters.

They studied the stored satellite images and evaluated all the latitudes, altitudes and whatever tudes there were in science. They calculated that the object had landed in a nearby town.

They went there, loaded with emergency equipment, and after hours of hunting, they finally found what they were looking for.

Horner saw the huge hole first. It was covered with bracken.
"Go," instructed Tabitha. "Why me?" Horner asked, nervously.

They didn't have to go in because the inhabitants of the hole came out! Two green men came up to the astonished humans and said, "Look, kids, don't give away our hide-out."

"Why shouldn't we? Thought that you'd land on earth and be like those monstrous aliens in the War of the Worlds?" Tabitha asked.
"Hey, how'd you know that?" one of the green men said.

Quickly, Horner and Tabitha threw the nets over them and packed the struggling creatures into sacks.

They went back to NASA headquarters and declared, "Look what we've got!" and opened the sacks in front of many amazed pairs of eyes.

The next day, while the aliens were undergoing physical examinations, Tabitha and Horner related their adventure at a press conference. Tabitha hardly gave Horner a chance to talk.

He, however, managed to put in a few words, "The green men must be missed back home, send them back. Oh, and by the way, do you know they watch movies?"
— Papia Hasanat Siddique, Grade 12, Arab Unity School, Dubai

I WISH , I WISH, I WISH…….
I see a sea
And as I see it,
I see my hopes, wishes and dreams
Sinking into it.

All I have to live on are
My fears, doubts and pessimistic thoughts.
Oh! But what is that there,
A scent of hope, a part of my dream
Or is it a genie come to make my wishes come true.

It is none of these
But a green bottle made of glass.
As I grab it out of anger, out of pity,
With my sweaty palms ready to throw it into the sea,
Back where it came from.

When suddenly,
It whispers, " You are my master and I am your genie,
I will grant you any wish that you desire.
May it be the Moon, the Galaxy or the Sea,
it shall be yours and yours it shall be.
So close your eyes
Wish wisely and make all your dreams come true."

Shock slowly turning into excitement
Thrilled at the offer made to me,
I think and I think.
I wish to wish
For something great to come to me.
Something unique,
Something extraordinary.

But what is power and money without happiness and health?
Thus I wish, I wish, upon my genie
I wish for my family to be safe and satisfied.
I wish for me to do what I love and love what I do.
I wish for you genie to be free,
Free from your prison,
To grant your own wishes
And be as happy as can be.

As the day goes by,
As the sun sets under the sea
My hopes, wishes and dreams are no longer sunk under the deep dark ocean,
But are here with me
And are here to stay,
Come what may.
- Megna Kalvani, 2nd Semester, 1st year, Media and Communications
Manipal University-Academic City