https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xK6YhslbkHo
The gymnasium was dim and humid as the breath of children’s panicked whispers filled the room. The gentle tip toe of rain had grown into a march across the tin roof. Jay looked over to him. Even in the dark, Russell could see his brothers wide watery eyes. In a quiet excitement Jay said, “Hey, I bet we made it! Mom probably has dinner waiting for us right now!” Even in this floating prison, his brothers optimism never failed to make him smile.
Russel and the other boys sat silently on the same plastic bleachers they sat on for all school assemblies. He could feel another boy’s leg twitching nervously against his as they sat waiting for the principal to take half court. Suddenly, thunder cracked overhead and not even a whisper could be heard. The metal doors across the court swung open. Mr. Warren’s wet shoes squeaked across the linoleum floor. His usually brown overcoat, black with moisture. The principal approached the awaiting podium and looked out across the sea of two hundred frightened eleven year olds unaware of the situation.
“Gentlemen, your bravery this past week has been eve more than I could ask of men twice your age. As you know, we have been awaiting an open port for resupply. Well, HQ sent us word about new supply shipments coming in from Hawaii and after receiving clearance from Checkpoint Romeo, we set a course for Sydney. Well men, I regret to inform you that I’ve just received some troubling information. The wild fires have destroyed Romeo and the storm stopping HQ from sending any out rescue missions. We’re just going to have to wait out this storm a little longer.
“Food will need to be further rationed. Rations will now be provided every other day at noon. I suggest you make them last, Doc says the storm could last a little longer.”
We’re never getting off this boat. Russell thought to himself. He glanced over at Jay, his head wilted over. In the dim light, Russell could see as tears splashed between Jay’s feet.
Jay didn’t come back to his bunk that night. The next morning Russell knew what Mr. Warren would say. He shuffled into the gymnasium to hear the same speech Mr. Warren gives every time a kid gets too hungry and goes fishing.
Process: When I began writing this narrative, I wanted to try to bring as many similarities as possible between the walrus in the video and the characters in the story. I struggled to find a way people would relate to the effects never ending hunger has on an animal’s psychological state, but also put the characters in the same powerless situation these hungry animals find themselves in. The boys have no way of knowing if/when their lives will return to normal. Similarly, animals are not the cause for their hunger, people are. They have no way of saving themselves. The only way the characters suffering like this can be saved is from the outside (us).