Читать книгу Haibu Lost in New York - Blake Freeman - Страница 10

THE JOURNEY

Deep in thought, Haibu reached over and grabbed the Shookia given to her by Mr. Toko and the other village elders when she was younger. A Shookia is a bracelet, made to remind villagers that they can achieve anything they want, as long as they work hard and are true to themselves. It is a beloved piece of jewelry in the village of Montooka. The Shookia is made from yellowish rock crystals, and between each crystal sits a small, brown, flat stone. Each stone has a letter carved on it. On this bracelet, the letters spelled out HAIBU.

Haibu slipped it on her wrist and repeated the mantra that had been passed down for generations, for each person to use their name at the end: “I can do anything I believe I can do. I can be anything I believe I can be. I can achieve anything I want to achieve. I am Haibu.”

Haibu’s eyes opened wide, “I can do this! I’m going to do this! I will show all of them!” She quietly gathered a few things into a backpack and slowly opened the bedroom window for her escape. Quiet as a mouse, she dropped into the snow, brushed herself off, and headed toward the shed in the backyard. As she crept past the side of the house, she stopped to peek into the kitchen window. There she saw her mother still cooking dinner.

Haibu carefully etched a heart into the frost on the window and whispered, “I love you, Anana.” Then she sprinted to the shed, where she grabbed the fishing tools and bait and placed them on a sled.

Haibu headed out, pulling the sled loaded with her supplies behind her. Haibu braved harsh weather as she traveled through the snow toward the frozen blue sea. The wind was howling and the snow made it very difficult to see, but she pushed forward.

“Come on! You can do this, Haibu!” she yelled to herself.

After hours of pulling the sled through the fierce storm, sleet and snow stinging her face with every step, Haibu finally reached the place where the land met the sea. She stood on the shallow ice and looked around for her father and brother. They were nowhere to be seen.

“Good!” she thought. “They would just send me home.”

With darkness setting in, she began building a snow shelter to keep her safe while she slept. Haibu cut block after block from the snow and stacked them perfectly to make the igloo. This was a difficult task for three villagers, much less one small one like Haibu, but she was determined.

Haibu continued working until the igloo was finished, then crawled in and fell immediately to sleep.