A mountain's way

       Sixteen years ago when I was nine years old, there was a marvelous spring season in our desert area. In all these years I have never forgotten that spring. The reason being is that an event occurred that reinforced my parents’ guidance and taught me to develop more patience.  

      My father decided to take us on a trip in order to spend a wonderful time at a beautiful desert location. The prospect of this trip made my brothers and I very happy. In early morning my father called us to get in the car. While my father was driving, he received a call from my cousin. He asked my father to take him with us to the desert. My father agreed and then drove toward my cousin's home so we could take him with us. The trip was amazing and the weather was fabulous. But the road was scary because it had one lane and it was packed with people. After three hours of driving on that horrible road, we reached the dessert. The place had many mountains and they encircled us. Though most of these mountains were similar, there was one that stood out. Its appearance was special, resembling a pyramid. The older generation knows this mountain well and they appreciate its beauty. My cousin remarked:  "Wow, it is a wonderful place, let's play a football there!" We then asked my father to take us to that mountain but he refused.

      However we did not accept no, and secretly proceeded to go to the mountain. My cousin further suggested taking two of my brothers with us on this trip. I told my little brother "do not tell anyone about our trip especially father." We then left him in the tent until we came back from the mountain. After that, we walked toward the mountain. There were four of us and we walked for a long time until we reached  the mountain’s base. Its shape was as spectacular up close as far away. We then devoted ourselves to playing on the mountain and then climbing to its top. It was a very joyful time. Afterwards we organized ourselves to return early because my father had no idea about our trip to the mountain, and we didn’t want to encounter any wild animals.

      My cousin was the oldest one. We had confidence in him because he knew the place very well. Unfortunately, he had forgotten the right way toward our tent.  I said "let's go through this way" but my cousin said "I am better than you in finding our way, and I know this place better" Then, I said "ok, let's go". We walked back following my cousin's directions. After walking for four hours we still hadn’t found our camp. The situation was made worse because we didn't find any one who could help us to find our tent or give us a ride. It was also noon and the desert sun was very hot. In addition, we had finished all our water. We were lost and we didn't have cell phones to call for a help. This escapade was becoming a horrible situation with potentially bad consequences in terms of our very survival. My brothers were crying while I was trying to figure out a solution for our problem. To make matters worse, my father was also looking everywhere for us but he couldn’t find us. He then called my uncles to get help. They proceeded to search for us everywhere while we continued to look for help.  I happened to see a car a distance away and then I told my brothers to scream to get the car’s attention. Finally the driver of the car noticed our sounds and he headed to us. We then felt very happy for we were going to be saved. However when the car arrived, I was shocked to discover that the driver was my father. At that moment, I got a weird feeling, which was a mix between the happiness and fear. My father was angry and very disappointed in us. He wanted to punch all of us as a punishment but one of my uncles intervened.  

  In conclusion, this event was truly awful for me but it also produced a positive outcome. Although a lasting bad memory, I learned from the experience and feel it has made me a more responsible person.