Homework

A6. Improve your writing skills: Complete a piece of writing and
submit it for publishing in a Writing competition  

The survivor

The survivor

April 29

Hi my name is Jake and I’m 13 years old and I’m really excited about seeing my dad. I live in England with my mother but spend the summer holidays with my dad. This year we’re holidaying on the Greek Islands for 6 weeks. He said he would travel with me on the boat from Greece but unfortunately his plans have changed and we’re going to meet tomorrow on Corfu I can't wait. I’m a bit nervous because the boat trip has been very rough, and I’ve spent most the time in my cabin. There’s large swells outside and it’s very stormy. I’m feeling a bit scared so I’ve decided to go to bed.

April 30

I hear a loud bang as I wake up. I run to the nearest window to see huge waves coming aboard . After about ten minutes the boat starts to sink. I didn’t actually realize until the water reached my window. I run outside and find one lifeboat left. I hop on and paddle away. HELP! HELP! HELP! I desperately scream for help. I listen all I hear is the waves taking over the boat. I paddle and paddle for about five hours. It’s 10:30 pm and it’s dark really dark. My eyes slowly start to close but before I let them I keep them open. After a while I drift off to sleep hoping that the sea will take me somewhere.

May 1  6:00 am

I am woken by the sound of crashing waves on a beach. I look up to find an island. By the memory of the computer on the boat this was in the Mediterranean. I was shivering like I had been in a pool of ice cubes. This island has lots of tall trees and lots of big rocks and some rivers.I run to the shore line to find a fish a very big fish. I grab a couple of rocks to block off any escape route. After the dam is built I go into the island letting my knowledge of hunting guide me. I find a small tree and break off the a branch and grab the pocket knife from my pocket. Then I cut down the middle of the wood. Ten minutes had passed and my spear was complete. I go back to the fish slowly and carefully trap the fish with my spear. the fish squirms around for a bit then dies off. After it gets dark I build a hut in the trees to sleep in, then get a fire going. I chuck the fish on the fire and wait for it to cook. When it’s finished I eat up the fish then go to sleep.

May 2 5:00 am

I have kept my fire going and have gone off finding food for breakfast, when I see a small creature over in the trees. I go and grab my spear from camp and come back. It’s still there. I move round the back of it remembering it could be a brown bear or something. After I’m behind it I walk up crouching down so it can’t see me then run up spear it right in the heart knocking it to the ground. I examine the wild life then realize it is a pig. I grab it and head back to my camp. I put the pig on the fire and wait for it to cook.

When it cooks fully I start to eat the pig, ten minutes of eating I was so full that I couldn’t even eat a blueberry. I was hoping to celebrate my birthday with dad but not everything goes to plan. I go to a nearby stream for a drink and out of the corner of my eye I see movement in the water. I walk down to the movement to find ten fish and two eels. I run back to my camp and grab my bag, get out my net from the boat and run back, slowly put the net underneath the fish, get a grab of both sides then YANK!! On the top of the net,  get all the fish in the water. I go back to my camp and cook the fish, wait for about ten minutes then eat this delicious dinner, After that it’s off to sleep for me.

May 3  6:00 am

At the break of dawn I woke up and leave on my quest for breakfast. five minutes pass and I have  caught nothing until finally I find a pig in the bushes then a chicken. Another five minutes pass and I come back with the food I have found. Now I have to make a new camp to sleep in because in all my other camps I keep on getting wet. So this one I made stronger because I wanted to be dry when I sleep. Four hours pass and I have made a small hut to sleep in. I look out the door looking at the nice view when something catches my eye in the bush. The bush starts to move then slowly moving out of the bush comes a brown bear. I duck so the bear doesn’t see me because if it does I’m not going to see my dad ever again. I wait five minutes then the bear moves off in the distance. I walk back to the hut and as I close the door I see the bear running straight for me I start to get really worried and close the door. I think of options when one hits me, I’ve got it! I yell. I’ll throw some of the meat from the pig for the bear. I throw my pig meat and the bear goes over to the meat eats it up and walks off. “I think I better go to sleep” I say to myself. I wake up at 10:00 pm from the sound of chomping I grab my spear and go outside. I get outside and everything is pitch black and I see and hear nothing. I go back inside and go to sleep.

May 4 6:30 am

As I wake up with a yawn I stretch and get ready to go for a great day on the island. Whether its a run to warm up or even a walk, or even if it’s just going to find food. Running through all the vines is not at as easy I thought. It’s so hard staying on my feet and not tripping over. After about ten minutes of walking I decide enough is enough and stop. I go back to my hut grab my spear and go fishing. Five hours pass and I have caught nine fish and two crayfish. I decide I have caught enough to eat and I go back to the hut to eat it so I don't get hungry on my hunt to find civilisation. “Maybe”, I think to myself, “maybe I should stay I love it here.” “But if I want to one hundred percent live I should go find civilisation I mean I could die today or tomorrow. Six hours pass and I have done about fifteen kilometers of walking, with only having a bag with a spear and a water bottle. As it starts to get darker I start to cover more ground. After about ten minutes it is pitch black and I can't see much. I decide to go to sleep.

May 5 6:30 am

If only I had seen smoke or something had appeared. After about five minutes I smell smoke so I move towards the fire saying “Hello, hello. Is anybody there!” I listen - no response. Then it hit me, hard. On a television show I remember watching, it says to recognize how long a fire has been going for. I do exactly as the man says and say to myself “four mins” I grab my gear and off a I head. As I walk I spot something out of the corner of my eye. “ A HOUSE!!!” I scream. I run to the house and run up the stairs go to the door, knock on the door. Nothing happens. I knock again - still nothing. I run back to the edge of the porch and sprint to the door but as I get closer something appears from the door. I stop. The man says, “What do you want?”

I reply saying, “My ship crashed off the coast of here and I have spent almost a week out here by myself. I have had to search for food, water. I’ve done all the hunting by myself coming across some close calls.

“Like what.” The man says in a heavy voice.

“Well I have come across a brown bear, but luckily I hid in time.”

“Come in,” the man says in a welcoming voice. The man invites me into his home looking around I say “Wow do you like hunting?” The reason I asked this question is because most places I looked inside I can see bear heads or deer heads.

“Yes, I love hunting I usually catch pig or bear. Sometimes I even go down to the lake for a swim and a catch.”

“Have you ever come across some close calls?”

“Yes, I have actually. I was on my boat when a shark came up and attacked. Luckily enough the boat was high enough.”

“What’s the lake like? Is it nice and cold?”

“You have many questions.”

“Sorry I just haven’t seen people for so long. It’s just I sorta forgot what it’s like.”

“Drink? Excuse me do you want a drink?”

“Oh, yes, sorry, I was daydreaming.”

“Haha, its fine. What would you like?”

“What do you have?”

“I have orange. I can mix and make orange and lemonade,  What do you like?”

“I think I will have orange and lemonade.”

“Ok.”

“Would you consider me as your dad?”

“I never caught your name properly? What is it again?”

“Dave my name is Dave, what's yours?”

“Jake.”

“So, you never answered my question?”

“Maybe.”

“Because, if you do, you will get great things. You can go for swims and not have to pay and and the lake is only right there. I can teach you to hunt and fish.”

“ I guess I could”

              7 years later

I am now twenty and my new dad is awesome. He has met a lady called Carol and I love it here. We have done lots of things and I go to a football college In Brazil for two weeks every month. I train with the Brazil under twenty ones international squad as well. I will continue to live my life with my new dad. We have gone round half the world, like Brazil, Spain, Mexico, Italy, France, Germany and America. I have been to many famous sightseeing spots around the world.