My Journey

Jonas’s sled reached the bottom of the hill and smashed into the side of the house.

            “We made it,” Jonas rasped to Gabe.

            Jonas stood up slowly and tried to orientate himself. He squinted at the house and realized it definitely was the house from The Giver’s memory, but it looked different. It was old. In fact, Jonas thought, it looked so old that it seemed the memory must have been from over a hundred years ago.

            What little paint was left on the house looked as if it would disintegrate with one touch. The windows were all broken and part of the roof had caved in.

            “No,” Jonas whispered with disbelief.

            He tried to run to the door but could barely manage a slow limp. He was going to die. And then Gabe was going to die. But what was the light he had seen before he descended the hill? Jonas was desperate to find out. There had to be someone around somewhere that could help them.

            Jonas made it to the old wooden door and looked down at Gabe. He must have fallen asleep because his eyes were closed, but his body was still shivering. 

            Jonas tried to grasp the doorknob, but missed. He forced his eyes to focus; it was getting hard to see. There was no doorknob. He tried pushing at the door with his hand and it barely budged. But barely was enough for Jonas. He and Gabe had made it this far and he was going to save them. 

            He turned around so that Gabe would be safe and slammed his back into the door as hard as he could. The door flew open, and since Jonas was so weak he fell onto the floor.

            It took him a moment, but he returned to his feet.

            “Hello?” he asked. 

            There was no reply and he realized it was just as cold in here as it was outside.

            But there had been a light. What was the light? 

            Jonas took in his surroundings as quickly as his failing eyes would let him. His vision kept blurring and going black. There was a couch, but it was filthy and old. He saw the fireplace that he had seen in the memory, but it was not lit. 

            Jonas was sure that family with the grandparents would still be here, so he put Gabe down on the dusty couch, covered him with what was left of the blanket, and went to search the rest of the house.

            There was no one in the kitchen, no food either. And the sink faucet didn’t work. No water. 

            He walked past a mirror and saw the light out of the corner of his eye. His hope quickly evaporated as he realized it had just been the moon reflecting in the mirror.

            “Hello,” Jonas called as loudly as he could, but there was no response. 

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