As The Smoke Cleared …
As the smoke cleared for the briefest moment I could see a
clearing ahead. I pulled the scarf over my mouth keeping Chloe’s head buried
into my breast. I had to get her through the clearing, there was no other
escape route. If I hesitated, we will both die. This small window is our only
hope. With maternal determination and total fear, I flung us through the
burning eucalypt and ran and ran. My burnt breath was rasping in my throat;
Chloe was chocking. Would we be strong enough to survive this inferno?
My eyes could hardly see. The smoke was rising and cloaking
our escape. With a last huge effort I pushed through the charred scrub, my face
and arms grazing against the sharpness of the tea-tree bushes. I felt faint. I
couldn’t breathe. My chest hurt so badly, my child was silent. As life passed
before us, I felt strong arms grab us and haul us through the scrub. We were
safe, we had been saved. Oxygen was pushed over our faces; sirens screamed. I
could hear Chloe crying; she was alive, we were safe.
by Annette Arthur
