We just wanted to let you know about this great achievement. In October 8GS submitted stories to Portsmouth Museum’s city-wide competition. Huda has won third place.
Huda was invited to the prizegiving ceremony but her family weren’t able to attend. They are dropping off her signed book and £50 book voucher to us here at Charter, and we are hoping to celebrate this success as a school.
This is Huda's prize-winning story.
“Please give us some food!” I sobbed as my brother trembled next to me. The woman had chips. The woman had something that I wanted. We looked so fragile and sad anyone would feel pity upon resting their eyes on our small faces and maybe -just maybe- I would feel bad for us as well, but why should I? It’s not like we were hungry. In fact, I hate chips!
This ‘woman’ I speak of had something else my heart desired. Something beautiful, something shiny, something anybody could proudly display in their house and everyone in the neighbourhood could compliment it and ask where you got it and maybe even try to steal it. That’s how precious it was. That’s how precious the thing that we had unrightfully robbed from us had meant to our family, and this woman had just stolen it from us before our very eyes. Anyone would try to get their priceless belongings back, right?
“Oh no! You poor babies, you’re so young to be so hungry, of course you can have food!” the woman exclaimed, setting down her half-empty chip box.
“Awh she’s so nice… are you sure we can’t let her keep our treasure?” my brother whispered. Ugh, did I really have to come with him? For a second, I almost gave in too. She said her words with such kindness and grace but there was no way I would let her off that easily. We would be looked down on, given disgusting looks, perhaps even kicked out of our house and told to never come back to the country if we had lost the neighborhood's pride and joy.
“Oh, thank you, lovely lady!” my brother exclaimed while I snuck around them both and went for the prize. I could see what I wanted in her back pocket. Ew! How dare she dishonour our family’s treasure like that. Something as valuable as that should never be shoved into a disgusting, cheap place, only carried in the cleanest of hands. Why would she- ugh! Why was I even wasting time thinking about that? Not like she was going to have it for much longer. I had my eye on the target, and I needed to ace my leap. My heart was racing in my chest as I grabbed onto it, but I didn’t need to worry. Our family name was now restored.
Cool air rushed past our faces as we ran towards our house, where our mother was waiting with anticipation and fear in her heart. I was clutching the stolen item in my hand while my brother scanned the street for our house. Mother wasn’t in the pond, so she surely must have been at home. At last, we finally caught a glimpse of our house and practically broke the door down. A worried Brent goose was sitting on the couch, and I threw the item in my beak towards her as I opened my mouth to shout,
“I got our shell back!”