Chapter Two

I jolted up like a lightning bolt when the announcement came on.

“Five minutes, 五分钟,” the booming voice said. I had been dozing off on the long trip. I could hear sounds in the distance, distinguishing the crying and yelling at the island. The boat smelled like something had died. Maybe it was our spirits. I was sitting on a wooden bench, alone. The faded walls of the ship reminded me of the plates we used to eat out of, flooding memories into me. I recalled the taste of my mother’s cooking. But those were just wisps of memories. I was starting a new life now, hopefully. I could hear mere parts of the conversation.

“Do you think he will get cleared?”

“I hope so. It's been a long journey to get here. Now we must start a new life.”

“I just wish it would be last year again.”

I had a bad feeling in my stomach. It was a feeling I had only had one other time. It was when the leaders of our small village had said the once plentiful fish had been dying out, and we would need to survive off other foods. I was only seven, and, for the first time, I had been struck with reality.

The strong voice came back, saying, “One minute.” I was getting off soon, just like the other people on this cramped ship.

The strong scent of the salty sea tingled my nose when I walked down the creaky old steps. The sky was painted a soft grey, the water a deep rolling blue. I could barely hear the crashing of the waves through the booming noise consisting of sobbing and screams. Many saddened people drifted past me, slowly, carrying small woven baskets and overflowing bags.

“为什么将我们离开彼此永远,” a muffled voice close to me said. I couldn’t tell what they said exactly, since I spoke a different Chinese language, yet I figured they said a few words about leaving forever. Sadness flooded into me, knowing the desperation in the tone of voice. And I thought of my brother, hoping he would arrive soon. A slight drizzle started. It was like the mood of the Island, a dark sea of depression, the sorrow dripping out of the clouds. A weeping child rushed past me, tears dripping down like a light rain. I knew with the new act being enforced recently it would get worse. The large building ahead of me was where I needed to go. My future depended on what happened in there. I could start a new life in America. People in my village told me America was a cruel place, but I thought it was just the hatred between us.

Now, looking at the place in person, it gave me a feeling of anxiety. I stood outside, blankly staring at the oversized doors. I knew that I had to be strong, but the solemn sadness was towering over me. I thought to myself, Why does it have to be like this? The mere thought of entering the building was undesirable. I wanted to be invisible.

I knew though how I needed to enter, welcome my fate. Quickly, I stood up, glancing at the stretching dock that was like a smear of brown on a canvas. I thought of how the world was changing. I wished the government would have given us a chance, thought of how it would affect the world. But there is no way to change the past.

I looked over at the building. An immigrant I had talked to on the ship approached me slowly. I knew who she was; we had met at the fishing dock one a few times.

“It will be okay,” she asserted. Her name was Na, from my village. And then she was gone, telling her family something I couldn't hear. The rain was heavier, steadily hitting the ground like a beating drum. The waves of the sea were louder. It was like I was in a storm of emotion, and the weather was corresponding.

But I had to push on. The problem of fear would not solve itself. 

-Nic Castillo