Stranded – By: Enis BardhiThat day was off to a good start. I was going on a trip with my friend Cagri to the Caribbean. We were eagerly awaiting our private plane to take us there. It was a plane that held 5 people. We had spent a fortune on it but we managed to get a good deal. As when entered the plane, we saw three other people seated in the front rows. They were called Leonardo DaVinci, Benjamin Franklin, and Jack Gates, although we didn’t know it at the time. We quickly sat down and waited for the plane to take off. After about 5 minutes, the plane took. We knew it was going to be a long flight so we got comfortable and did all we could to occupy our time. About half way into the flight, the plane started shaking. We didn’t think too much of it then, but it was really a big deal. The plane quickly started to drop about 100 meters at a time. I could feel the vibrations in my feet as it fell. Then, after about 10 seconds, the plane rushed down at full speed. Cagri started screaming like a snivelling girl. I was scared out of my skin but, I though this wasn’t the time to scream because it wouldn’t do us any good.
I woke up and found myself inside the plane. I looked around briefly and there was no one in there. I took my seatbelt off and went outside. There Cagri and the other three were sitting next to each other discussing something. I went to them and we had a brief introduction. We talked about what happened and what we were going to do about it. Leonardo proposed that we built shelters. So that’s what we did. Cagri and I looked for wood to build the shelters. Jack was a framer so he an expert at agriculture. He went around the island inspecting the wildlife and looking for seeds to bury. At that time, in the afternoon, Cagri and I would go fishing so we could eat for the first few days. We were also in charge of getting water. Luckily, there was a small pond in the middle of the island but it was quite a walk there. Cagri and I had a lot of work to do and we were generally very tired at the end of the day. Benjamin was the only one who didn’t do anything. In a manner of days, we had got the shelters made, a fair amount of fish, and the agriculture was coming along. The next day there was a storm. We all went inside and ate our dinner while Benjamin was still outside flying his kite. We tried to convince him to come inside but he just wouldn’t. The next day, we couldn’t find him. After we had done our chores, we managed to organize a search party to find him. We had no luck but he showed up later during the day. He told us he had found a way in order to get electricity. Now, we had electricity in our shelters. The next couple of days were quiet. We worked hard every day and managed to get by.
It had been 14 days on the island and we were still alive and well. We did our daily chores and by this time we had fresh veggies to eat. But we knew this wouldn’t last long. The winter was coming soon and we had to prepare food for then. If we didn’t, we wouldn’t be able to survive. Leonardo made a list of all the things that were needed in order to survive the winter. So off we went to gather those materials. The next couple of days were harsh. We did a lot of work and unexpectedly, we all got sick, Cagri being the worst. He couldn’t do his chores so I got twice the load. It was like torture. I worked 16 hours a day, squeezing in meal times. Sleep was the highlight of my day and I thought about it whenever I could. It was getting to a point where I thought it was meaningless to live like this. But I couldn’t abandon my friends. I knew we needed each other so I worked my hardest and did everything humanly possible for their well-being.
Cagri was getting worse and worse. DaVinci propsed that it was a new type of disease and went right away into finding a cure. Luckily, we had the first aid kit in the plane but it wasn’t much. Leonardo was the smartest of us all by far. The way he interpreted every situation in a win-win made him the leader of decisions. If it hadn’t been for him, we would have all been dead. The rest of us continued our work, hoping to get resuced. We tried to make the best out of all the situations we dealt with, good or bad. In a couple of weeks, we had gathered all the food necessary to live through the winter. We now took our daily chores as lightly as possible, still getting work done. Leonardo still worked on a cure and seemed very devoted to his work. We just did our chores and took breaks in the afternoon.
Unfortunately, in the days to come Cagri got very sick. We didn’t think he would make it and our assumption was right. Later, about 110 on the island, Cagri passed away. It was a very dramatic change for everyone. We buried him close to the shore because he always liked staying there. We said what we had to say and continued our lives in the island. It was especially difficult to continue our daily working with the lose of one of our colleagues. Nobody really noticed how beautiful the island was. They were so focused on their work, that they didn’t have time. The palm trees were tall and gleamed with the light of the sunset. You could the seagulls flying by singing their songs as if they were cheerful. The sky was a misty orange with thin clouds every so often. It almost made me not want to leave the island. I started to get doubts on whether life in the real world would be as good as this. Sure, this life was hard, but they go home knowing they had done an honest day’s work. Plus, they didn’t have to deal with the stress of everyday people in the real world. They had to worry about finance, their future, and a lot of other things while life on a deserted island was amazingly calm.
I opened my eyes suddenly. A noise was coming from the outside. I didn’t know what it was but it was very loud. I quickly put my clothes on and reached for the door. As soon as I opened it, a wind rushed me back two steps. I couldn’t see very clearly since the wind was in my eyes. Soon I realized that it was a helicopter. I saw some very familiar faces outside the copter. It was all my relatives! They had all come. I couldn’t help but scream in joy and ran to them. We got acquainted for quite a while and then they told me it was time to leave this island. I called the rest of my friends. I was very surprised by their answer. They actually wanted to stay on the island. I respected their wishes and departed soon after from the island. I looked back as we were leaving the island. My worst nightmare, yet something I missed was slowly fading away. I wasn’t sure how life in the real world would be like for me now.
As I left the plane, I looked around me. I wasn’t used to all these things around me, even though I had seen them before. When we left the airport, I felt weird with all the people around me. Then it hit me. I had lost my people skills. On the island, we didn’t have that much time to talk so I wasn’t used to it. Life moved so fast here and I didn’t think I could keep up with it. Life continued just as I left it. I continued school, met up with old friends, but it didn’t seem the same. When my friends were talking about movies, actors, and stuff all I had to talk about was the island. I felt like a fish out of see. I knew I couldn’t go back there and wondered if I would ever see my friends again.
Now if I had the chance, I would make a movie about this. I have the picture to show how exactly the island was so we could make an exact representation of it. I would get Shia LaBeouf to play me. The rest of the actors would be somewhat famous. The set will take place somewhere in the Caribbean and all the non-island scene will be at New York airport.
Now that I’m back to the real world, I’ll just have to continue my life here. I know I cannot go back to the island. It isn’t and never will be an option for me. I only hope that I get used to the real world again, like I used to be. I want to be able to interact with people but find it difficult since we didn’t have much time to chat on the island. I try my hardest to fit in and I think I’m starting to get used to it. Of course, I miss the island but at least I’m starting to get used to my old life and it seems like a good thing. I will continue on my life and try to get a job in this stressful world.
