“Mother Im still thirsty!” I cried out, I don’t know why but over the last few day I’ve become very thirsty, very hungry and im been take far more trips to the loo than usual and now, im starting to get scared. Is there something wrong with me?
“Well you will have to go to the well and get some more water then. With all you’re drinking lately we keep running out.” My mother replied.
“But Im tired” That’s another think I’ve been very tired and it getting harder to lift the buckets of water im collecting.
“Don’t give me that you’re always complaining about being tired. You need to start pulling your own weight.” She snapped back.
I don’t think I would be able to pull my own weight I say to myself. Then I walk out the door picking up the water buckets as I begin the long journey to the well. When I arrive at the well I meet my friend who lives next door, we embrace in a hug as we always do but today he sniffs the air with a puzzled look on his face.
“You smell sweet?” He says looking in my eye.
“Is that a compliment?” I reply laughing.
“Yes,” He laughs “but it is odd.” He adds as the puzzled look returns to his face “Any way I must get back as father needs this water , nice seeing you” And with that he turns on his heel, waves over his shoulder, picks up the buckets and walks away leaving me to ponder over his comment.
When I have finished my struggle home with the water I feel hungry, worse than I have ever felt before. I crave food, anything, I’ll eat anything. I stagger into the kitchen telling mother of this craving.
“You can’t keep eating like this! We don’t have enough food or money !” she says half shouting and almost in tears as she hands over almost half a loaf of bread for the first time fully realizing that im sick, very sick and if I continue like this they won’t be able to keep me alive much longer. She watches in horror as I devour the bread and drink nearly half the bucket of water.
Even after that my mouth feels dry, something’s very wrong with me I think, wanting to cry but my eyes are dry too.
Im told to go and do my chores before tea but I struggle feeling tired and weak so I lie on my bed of straw. I need the loo but im too tired to get up so I go where I am. It’s now tea time and im already feeling hungry, I stagger to the table and eat my stew within seconds, Im still hungry, its all I can think of my hunger.
“More,” I cry, “MORE!”
My mother and father are shocked. My mother severs me the last of the stew along with some of hers, but she needs to eat to.
Again I devour my stew within seconds and realizing there’s no more I crawl to my bed still wet with urine but im too tired to care. I sleep a long restless sleep wetting myself as iv done every night for a while. My mother’s been getting me new straw every morning but we have no straw left and we have no way to pay for any more so when mother finds I have wet the bed again she sobs until I awaken again craving food and water.
I can’t walk or move, im too weak, I need food! I struggle to talk but mother understands, she stops crying and brings me food and water. As I eat she stares shocked at what her daughter has become, her daughter who only a few weeks ago was perfectly happy now forcing her to make one of the hardest chooses ever.
My mother picks me up and carries me to the shed out the back, its cold and dirt but there are no windows and no way for the neighbors to see what I have become.
