My body was frigid and seemed brittle. I felt as if I was an ice cycle and that if I put too much pressure on myself, I would crack into a thousand pieces. I slowly made my way over to a tall tree that was a little ways away from the boats and sat at the base. The rest of the army moved further inland and more upstream compared to my position downstream. Almost as soon as I sat down, I fell into a deep sleep.
When I woke the next day, my feet were swollen and a dark rotten color. As I gently touched my foot, I was horrified to feel my finger go right through my flesh. It felt like poking a wet sponge except your finger went through the sponge. There was a fetid smell coming from both of my feet. Quickly I yelled for a doctor but no one came. I called until my voice hurt and I could barely talk above a whisper. No one showed up to help me and I felt deserted. I desperately wanted some water to help my voice but I could not even get to my feet. It hurt just sitting still but when I tried to even move the pain seemed to explode throughout my body.
Another day passed that I was by that tree. I really needed water so I decided that I would fight through the pain and go to the river. Gingerly I shifted my weight so that I could easily crawl down to the bank. Carefully raising my feet in the air, I crawled on my elbows and knees. It took the better part of the day to make it to the river's edge; I had to stop frequently to rest. At the edge of the river, I leaned in cupping up some water to drink. It felt so nice going down my dry throat that I leaned even further in desperate to get more. Before I even knew what was happening, I fell into the water.
YOU ARE READING
The Untold Story of Frederick Michaelis
أدب تاريخيA story following the experiences of a young man during the Revolutionary War.
