The Forest

Chapter Three - Survival Skills

I looked around for some twigs and any large pieces of wood I could find to make a fire. The temperature kept dropping and my limbs were becoming stiffer. I started making a pile for the fire. I grabbed some of the larger sticks and start rubbing them together. I knew friction created heat so I did this for quite a while.

After what felt like hours of doing every stupid thing I could think of to get the fire started, I angrily threw the sticks on the ground. I stomped on the pile of twigs and leaves I made for the fire and kicked the broken pieces. I opened my mouth to scream, but instead I fell to my knees, defeated.

I gently touched my fingers to the dirt on which I was sitting and delved them into the earth. I started scratching at the dirt to make it loose. I kept digging and digging until I was about two inches deep. The dirt underneath all of what I dug up was hard as a rock. I tried scratching on it but nothing would come up. Tears began to fall down my face and I felt angry.

I buried my hands in the loose dirt for warmth and laid on top of my arms to attempt keeping them warm. My pant legs were becoming stiff from the cool air hitting the water soaked denim. I shivered and shivered until I finally fell asleep.

Though it wasn't a good sleep.

I woke up several times throughout the night, wanting to pull a blanket tightly around my body for warmth, but I had nothing.

But wasn't that a good thing?

I'm away from my horrible family. I'm free.

After falling back asleep for last time, it felt like s decent sleep. The sun was now shining, the water was flowing below my feet. My pants were now dried with a few water drops from the splashing river. I smiled.

I did it! I survived a night on my own! I-
I was interrupted by my stomach growling. Oh yeah... I thought to myself. I forgot to find something to eat. I wiped my eyes from any sand and crust that was glued to my eyelids overnight and got up. I started walking up over the hill. What if I can't find my way back?

An idea struck me. I walked back down the hill toward the river and got my hands on all the smallest, brightest stones I could find. I fit as many as I could in both of my front pockets. I remember reading Hansel and Gretel when I was young. I planned to do as what they did in the book: leave a trail.

I took one last drink before I left and I once again walked over the hill as I began leaving a trail. I continued my journey into the forest and found nothing but trees and plants and nothing that my gut feeling told me was edible. I kept walking until I ran out of stones. I stopped.

I found nothing and I'm out of stones. I looked ahead in the direction I was heading. I'm sure I'm close to something I could eat. What harm could it do for me to walk a little farther? I kept moving forward and it felt like I had possibly gone a little farther than I wanted away from my trail. Then I saw something. A berry bush! I ran over and picked off as many as I could and ate them until I felt full. I slid down to the ground against a nearby tree until my butt hit the roots.

"Mmmm" I moaned in satisfaction and licked my lips.

Now I've gotta go back to my trail. I picked a few more berries off the bush and put them in my pockets for later and went on to find my trail. I headed back into the direction I thought was my trail but it seemed like I was walking for hours trying to find it.

I stopped suddenly. My eyes widened. My mouth was full. My knees dropped to the ground and I began throwing up. When I stopped, I fell down on my side and cradled myself into the fetal position. My stomach was cramping. I could feel it in my throat. It was coming again. I quick sat up and puked again.

I dug in my pockets and took out the berries and threw them as far away from me as possible and I laid back down. I cried until I puked again and then I fell asleep in the middle of day.
Or at least I think it's the middle of the day.