HELP!!!!

I spoke with a brave and distinct tone” No one panic…A tornado is coming at us at around 180-190 kms per hour. If we all work together, we can make it alive. No one separate yourselves from the group and stick to your partners”.

I started jogging as fast as I could (the rest were slow…very slow). I could feel the strong wind now, pushing against us. Terror covered my entire face. I felt hopeless. Naomi waterfalls passed in a whir, like in a blurry picture. A village could be seen in the distance. As we ran, I was thinking of the vital things to do. “Keep everyone safe, warn others of the tornado…that’s about it”, I thought.

A shrill scream interrupted my thoughts. It was so loud I had to turn and shout. It was not until I turned around did I notice that the tornado was much closer. A fact worse than that, a fact which terrified me from inside out, a body whisked by and was lifted into the air in that fraction of a second. The wicked tornado bellowed loudly, clearing a path, and it was headed right towards us!!! It raced, leaving destruction behind it, wherever it went. Our group ran back into the forest, hoping that we could lose the funnel, but we couldn’t. It took a sharp turn in our direction. We had no hope now. We took a left, back to where the body was whisked. Marion was her name. We darted past the green trees.

She lay there, motionless, with no arms and one severely injured leg. Taking her to a nearby hospital would be impossible. It would take every last of our efforts and we had a tailing tornado, for goodness sake!

One heave and one ho and we were off! She was lighter than we thought but that didn’t mean it was easier. The path we came from in the jeep seemed like the correct route. All of us got in and Dan started driving like he never drove before. The wind blew against my face harshly in two directions. It was starting to get cold, a phenomenon which rarely occurred in Central Africa. It was possible, due to the sun’s movements.

Clouds began camouflaging the sky. A deep grey was all our eyes so see. In a normal situation, we’d be extremely ecstatic about a storm, but this was not a normal situation. It would only make our mission harder and above that, the rain could cause infection to Marion’s arms, so we had to choose between taking shade or we could drive the jeep as if we were psychopaths. Survival in our case seemed out of the question. Rumours were that a storm can lash rain like a whip. It thunder sounded like a bellow by a monster. Only one option was left: Make for the edges!

“Drive!!!

 We haven’t got much time!” came out of my mouth. We left behind a torn-up village with no help. It gave the impression that we did not care about them but I would not mind. The towering trees and the lush green bushes whizzed by. The scarlet hibiscuses and lavender bougainvilleas zoomed, like a blurry picture. It felt heart-breaking to leave the forest. Almost cruel. Who would take care of those animals and plants during the storm? Their sorrow was also mine. I shared a brother-sister bond with Mother Nature’s creations. They were my friends.

I did not have a choice. If I did not take them out of the jungle then my job would go and I would never be able to roam the forest freely. If I left, then I do not know what fate will fall upon God’s children. This thought lingered on my mind. The two angels told me this: “Come on Carter! Your job will go! How can you feed yourself? How will pay for all the bills?”

Another said: “Think of all the plants and animals. You are their only voice. Who else will look after?”

The first one: “Mother Nature created ‘em! She’ll take care of ‘em!” I thought to myself, “He’s right though.” I have to take a break sometime. This was my life.

“STOP!!!!” came out.

Everybody stopped to look at me. Worry was written on their faces so well I could read it like a book.

“Move over Dan!” I said. Nothing happened. They seemed so hesitant to do anything.

“I mean it, Dan, move over!”

A slightly scared Dan moved to the front seat that was to the side. I got out of the jeep and went to sit in the drivers’ seat.

“I’m driving this baby from here on. If anyone makes a single noise, then they’re outta this truck. Get it?” I said, with a thug-looking expression on my face. All nodded in unison.

          I started driving as if I never drove before. The speedometer hit the 100s in 10 minutes. Maybe we could make it. Maybe we had a silver lining on this cloud. What if we did not? What if it was too late for Marion? She was losing blood at a rapid rate. Could she make it in time? Would God spare one life?