Amina

The first thing I see when I wake up are children lying dead around me. We're inside a house. Dad gets up and locks the door. Mom is lying down without any movement. I hear young children crying far away. Suddenly I hear a bomb. What's going to happen now? "Mom, mom." She does not wake up. My little brother Omar has his eyes open, but he is lying on the floor. I can 't do that. He has lost an arm. Is this really happening? Dad looks at me. He is wearing a white sweater that appears to have drowned in red paint. "It's too late". Suddenly someone knocks on the door. It sounds like two men. Dad takes and carries both mom and Omar. He takes them out the window and asks me to jump out and run fast. "What about you?" "We're coming running!" I'm running out. I do not stop and think. I'm starting to look around. I hear someone shooting. I look around. "Dad!" I hear him scream. "Amna run!" He reads the creed. I'm alone... Dad's dead.

I'm hiding. I'm sitting in a little shed, but I know I can't be here forever. Even though I'm drowning myself in tears, I know it does not help. Should I go or not, should I ask for help or be alone? I can 't decide. I'm only eight years old. I can still hear Dad's voice in my head. I sneak out. Suddenly I hear the same men. I do not know if I should run back into the shed or not. I run the fastest I can while I turn. I can not stop. After about five minutes I stop. "Welcome" is written on a sign. It usually says if you have entered a new city. I can not believe I ran so far! I can still hear something, but I do not know what it is. I keep running and turn around in the meantime. I do not think I see anyone. "Oh!" I crashed. Wait a minute ... I'm screaming loudly and screaming for help. It's the man who killed Dad. He keeps my mouth shut. Is this all? Should my life be over like that? I pull his hand away from my face. I cry and scream. "Im going tell everything to God!" I actually will! Suddenly another soldier comes and shoots him. "It's the same red paint my dad was wearing that comes from him. The soldier asks me to come to him. Should I go to him? I'm taking a step forward. "Is your family killed?" I nod. He looks around for a while. "Come with me." He walks towards a shed. He turns and looks at me. "Aren't you coming then?" I look back at him. He comes and asks me to join him. When we enter, I see two other children sitting in the corner together. I'm still standing. What should I do now? Why did he save me? Is he not the enemy? I have so many questions. He takes three bowls of soups and gives them to us. Who are you I ask him. He spends time answering. I start to breathe loudly. Take it easy, he says. I will not do anything against you, he says. "I'm here just to help." I look at the other children. They nod. I look back on man. He is wearing green military clothes. His boots are brown covered in mud. The eyes are as blue as the Atlantic Ocean. The hair is bushy and black as charcoal. "I will take you to a safe place," he said. "I want to go home." The girl next to me seems to be three or four years old. He comes and comforts her. "Sorry, but your home is ruined." Why do you help us when you are really the enemy? " He observes my face before opening his mouth. "I'm here for peace." "I just undressed." I stare at him. "What now?" He asks everyone to stand up and follow us to a place he only knows about. I see someone. There's a man on the tree! "Look up!" He looks up. "What is it?" Suddenly he is shot by the man upstairs. "I we home!" The girl starts crying and so do I. "Run!" As we run, we can hear the man jumping off the tree. Suddenly he shoots the others. I'm running. He grabs me and shoots ... Im screaming.I will tell God everything ...