The latest selection in the Young Writers Project is The Note by sixth grader Abhi Dodgson in South Hero.
The Note
By Abhi Dodgson
Grade Six, Homeschool, South Hero
I was walking along the beach on Cape Cod when I noticed a blue glass bottle that had just washed up on the sand. I picked it up and saw a note inside. I tried to pull it out but it was at the bottom of the bottle. I stared at it and got an idea. I brought the bottle up on the porch of our house and dropped it. It didn't break. I looked around, grabbed a stick and poked around inside the bottle. I used it to drag the note up the side. I unfolded the note and read it. It said:
2 cups of saltwater
3 tablespoons of sand
1/2 teaspoon of sugar
Well, that's weird, I thought. Maybe it's a good recipe? I ran down to the beach, got the sand and and dumped it in a bowl. I ran to get some ocean water and then I went inside. My sister (still half asleep) stomped down the stairs.
"What on earth are you doing?" she snapped.
"Making something," I replied.
She glared at me and went back upstairs. I put the sugar in and stirred. Then I poured the revolting mixture down my throat. It tasted like seaweed and dead fish. My insides churned like boiling lava. I closed my eyes and threw up all over the stove. I gasped.
Then things started to change. Suddenly, a flipper shot out from where my arm used to be. Another flipper erupted from my other side. I felt myself shrinking. I tried to scream, but it came out as a screeching bark. I felt huge whiskers brushing my cheeks. A tail flipper appeared where my legs used to be. I turned gray and found myself lying on the floor. I butted the door open and flopped onto the deck. I toppled down the stairs and onto the beach.
I saw another seal coming out of the water. She stared at me and said, "So, you've come at last."
