Until the Time is Right to Cry

I was never a bad kid. I ate my vegetables, played with basic barbie dolls (when I was younger, of course), and loved my family. It never dawned on me that I wouldn’t have a home to go back to. Here’s where it all started. I had a magnificent Mom, a diligent Dad, and a sweet little six year-old sister. We were living in an enormous house in Colorado. It was as big as the Lincoln Monument. It was when all of a sudden I heard shouts. That was not normal, at least in our hushed house. We had a rule. No yelling. But there it was again, screams of terror. I ran to see what was wrong and found my kitchen on fire. It was usually filled with the smell of cookies baking in the oven, along with the sound of Jimmy Fallon’s voice interviewing celebrities on TV. Mom had buckets of water trying to put it out. She seemed like she was filling a thousand buckets per minute.

“Well don’t just stand there, HELP!”

My mother was super frustrated. I ran to a nearby cabinet and grabbed billions of bowls. I turned on the faucet and the water came out like a steady waterfall. I filled bowl after bowl. Even though I was twelve I had common sense. My mom keeps yelling at me and I ask her,

“Did you call 911 yet?”

“Of course Katie, do you think I’m dumb?”

I have no time to think since I’m filling bucket after bucket.

“Keep, filling, buckets…”

My mom says it over and over again like a chant. I wish I could have prevented the fire but I couldn’t.

I was useless.

My mom and I, are working our butts off only to give the ferocious fire more steam. I think of how unfortunate we are, and how we might not have a home anymore. And then I hear the roaring sirens. They sound painful because I know they are for us.
All of a sudden our door is kicked down and we hear, “Get out of the house!
We’ll take it from here.”  I feel like just bursting into tears, but I will wait untilthe time is right to cry.

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6 thoughts on “Until the Time is Right to Cry

  1. Hi, Katie! I really enjoyed your short story. It left me in suspense all throughout. They way you described your experience was very interesting. How’s Connecticut? I know some people that live over there. Greetings from California! I hope you’re having fun in Connecticut. 🙂

  2. I really liked your story. It caught my attention by just the title. I also loved how you described your family.
    How’s Connecticut? Is it really cold? I’ve always wanted to travel to the East coast to see snow. Here in California, it only snows up in the mountains. But, to go back on topic, great job on your article. (:

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