June 2006
Children's Stories
Sometimes Greg and I teach children. We recently set a task as follows:
Describe a scene where everyone seems to be having a good time, then somehow it goes wrong, at first for one person, then for others too.
Here is one of the responses, from a writer aged 13 years old. It doesn't seem like a children's story at all ...
Party
The reunion was going brilliantly and Fred looked around proudly. Fred was in his late thirties, had grey eyes, olive skin and a bulky figure. Mentally he praised himself. Like, it was a real brainwave to bring all of their college friends back together for a party and all that.
Fred waved at Jill who waved back. Yes, he was the man. Striding over to Bob, his best friend, a small man with watery eyes, he offered him a glass of sherry.“No thanks,” said Bob sadly, “the doctor said I'm not allowed any alcohol, sweets or fat.”
“Aw, c'mon,” whined Fred, “it wouldn't hurt to just get a little drunk.”
Bob shook his head and trotted away. Fred scowled for a moment and smiled again. He wasn't going to let that ruin his mood. The party was going brilliantly and he was pretty sure everyone was happy.He spotted Melanie and walked over. Melanie was a loner, most of the time. But at parties she seemed to be something else. Melanie was a pretty girl. Not the diamond in life's ditch but she certainly wasn't ugly.
“Have you been avoiding me?” she said with a fake indignant air.“It took all my control to stay away from you, your eminence,” Fred countered, flashing her a smile.
She smirked in return and walked over to someone else in the crowd. Fred didn't like the way she had just walked off like that but he was content to forgive her. Nothing would ruin this party. Strolling around like a teacher in an out of control playground he stepped on a bag of crisps.
The bag exploded and showed everyone with potato. People didn't care. Most just picked of the crisp pieces and ate them. Moving through the crowd once again, Fred spotted Belinda. Oh yes, Belinda the worrier, Belinda the shy. She had many names.
Belinda was very pretty. Dark green eyes, ginger hair that tumbled down in curls to the small of her back. Tanned skin. Despite this appearance she was incredibly shy. Fred moved towards her.
He stepped up to her.“How have you been Belinda,” Fred asked carefully.
She started and her head whipped around. Then she saw it was Fred and relaxed.“Fine, how are you?” She seemed more nervous than usual.
“Are you okay Linda,” said Fred using he nickname.
“I-I'm fine.”
“You don't look it”.
“It's my life,” she said suddenly. “It's falling apart, no job, no money, and no boyfriend!”
Quite startlingly she burst into tears and fled the apartment. The room went silent.
“I think I should go,” said someone.
“Me too,” said another.Soon everyone was leaving. Fred tried to stop them but to no avail. Soon the apartment was empty. Fred slumped in a chair and rubbed his face with his hands. A noise in the bathroom made him raise his head.
Bob stumbled in with a bottle of wine in one hand and a loo roll in the other.
“H-h-hello,” he slurred, taking a swig as he did so. “What I'd miss?”
With that he slumped to the ground.
*
The Labyrinth is somewhere we grow up.
