Family outings are supposed to be experiences filled with fun. However, a twist came into being with the following essay "The Family Outing - an incident to remember".
A family outing.
That is what we are going to do now – to
leave our house for our camping site at the East Coast Park. “Hurry up Amy or
else I shall inform Father to leave without you!” Evan, my little brother,
hollered at me impatiently at the top of his voice. I laced up the last of my
shoe laces and comfortably seated myself into my father’s ultimate driving
machine – his BMW 730i.
Just before the school holidays in June
started, Mother suggested that we ought to head out for a camping trip at East
Coast Park. She highlighted that this would not only bring us together under
the canopy of nature but also help us to bond as a family. It was not long
before Mother and Father began purchasing the necessary camping gear needed for
our upcoming camping trip.
Returning back from a collision to the
present from my thoughts, I noticed that Evan had ants crawling up his pants,
He just could not stop fidgeting throughout the entire journey to East Coast Park.
He must be awaiting this day for as long as I could remember. I thought to
myself.
At four in the afternoon, we reached East
Coast Park. Getting out from Father’s car, our faces as cheery as sunbeams,
Father and Mother looked around for a perfect place to pitch our tents. Like
obedient toddlers, we followed closely behind.
As soon as Father and Mother decided on
pitching our tents beneath a Yellow Flame tree, we sprang into action
immediately. When I had finished pitching my tent, I could smell the faint
burning smell lingering in the warm air and permeating it. Like a curious cat,
I decided to investigate into the matter. Standing rooted to the ground, I
froze. An Angsana tree was up in flames. Qhwn Father, Mother and Evan
discovered this matter, Evan stood as still as a statue, his eyes belying the
fear he felt. Fear, raw and immense, seemed to have clawed its way into Evan’
heart. Seeing Evan’s face turn as pale as death, I was convinced that he was
after all human. I had always thought Evan was like Superman, a man of steel –
until now.
As for Father, he whipped out his mobile
phone and dialed the fire department’s hotline.
Regaining my composure, like any
public-spirited citizen would do, Mother, together with Evan and I sent to fetch
buckets of water from the sea to try and douse the flames. At that juncture,
the smoke emitted from the burning Angsana tree was no longer a harmless cloud.
It was instead a thick black beast accompanied by heat and showers of sparks
with it.
However, after our first futile attempt, we
were still unable to put out the fire. Despite the odds, we pressed on
perseverance our source of inspiration.
Still, the flames of the fire, bright and
ferocious refused to be extinguished. Nevertheless, I was not to be
discouraged. I also informed Evan, who was about to give up. “Let’s do this, no
matter what the outcome is, we will be proud of ourselves for trying to
extinguish the raging fire!”
After a prolonged period of time, the last
of the crimson red flames had been successfully extinguished. Exhaustion nearly
rendered me immobile and wore me out. However, Evan soon went to rest in his
tent and moments later was in deep slumber.
By that time, the firefighters had arrived.
After narrating to them how we had dealt with the ordeal, one of the
firefighters commended us for our act of bravery. “You do not need to praise
us. After all, that is what we should do,” I said. Mother nodded her head in
agreement. While the firefighters continued praising us for being quick-witted
and public-spirited, a policeman was seen at the scene, gathering evidence as
to how the fire could have possibly started.
A few days later, it was reported that a
group of mischievous kids had deliberately set the tree on fire by throwing
lighted matches into a hole in the Angsana tree, which was filled our dead
leaves.
From then on, whenever I see a matchstick,
an instant shiver would race down my spine as I recalled the terrifying
incident.
If you like reading this, you may also like to read
- A Family Outing | Essay for 10 year olds | Elijah Wee | Singapore
- Fire in the kitchen
- Fire!
- A knock on the door in the middle of the night
Have you have had any such close shaves and heart-stopping experiences?
Talk soon,
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