* Yo u n g A u t h o r C l u b * Yo u n g A u t h o r C l u b *
Heartwarmers
War and Peace
Dejoy Shastikk Samantha Samuel Kumaran
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War and Peace
Written and Illustrated by Dejoy Shastikk Kumaran
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1. Ms Catherine Khoo and the rest of my teachers, for assisting me 2. My parents, for signing me up for the course and printing drafts 3. My thumbdrive, for giving me a copy of the doc. when the desktop copy had vanished
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Prologue As Raymond Jones’ eyelids desperately struggled to close, he ‘pushed’ them back up, knowing that he might not live if he allowed his eyelids to close. As he continued trying to open his eyelids completely and fully, dreams and visions of breaking Usain Bolt’s 100m sprint record of 9.18 seconds flashed in his head. However, Raymond knew that he would never fulfill his long-awaited dream. His doctors had told him when they were inspecting him that he would remain a cripple forever. With only one emotion; sorrow, Raymond’s parents and Jeremy, Tom’s best friend, heard of the ultimate verdict on Raymond’s life. Raymond could have cried when the doctors had told him that he was not to even walk as his limbs could break and he would not be discharged from the hospital for another five years. To Raymond, this was like the doctors had just given him a life jail sentence. He would not be able to run! As he heard the conclusion of that fateful verdict, Raymond let his eyes close and fainted……
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Chapter 1 Winning a prestigious race in England Raymond was not a typical eighteen-year-old boy. He was one of the best athletes in the country of England. The sporting aspirations that the country had lay on him. He was the Diego Maradona of soccer, the Roger Federer of tennis, the Lin Dan of badminton, and last but not lest, the Usain Bolt of running. Being equally amazing at all these sports, Raymond could have become professional in any one of them. However, as the son of the famous runner Carl Lewis, he felt it his duty to continue his father’s legacy. And that determination showed. He was one of the fastest runners in the world, having broken the Under-18 sprint record with an amazing time of 10.16. He had won the bulk of the races in Britain and one of the few remaining races that he still had to win was a prestigious race in his county. Even though he had not won for three years, he still wanted to win that race. It was a sunny day in Surrey, Raymond’s village. He went to the Celtic Boys School, a school for aspiring young athlete. However, it also gave a good all-round education, as seen by the number of its graduates who went on to university or “U” in short during those days... Anyway, on that sunny day, Raymond was crouching on the starting line of the running track on his way to win the county’s most prestigious I have to win this, he told himself. He knew that he had to win the county’s most prestigious race to establish himself as a quick runner. Raymond felt that everything was in slow motion as he crouched down a centimeter from the line. He knew that five centimeters could make a significant increase to the timing and positions of the race. Suddenly, the starter’s gun fired a blank. The race had started! Raymond started to sprint. He flexed his legs tirelessly. Within a second, he felt, 4
he had pulled away from the rest of the pack. He wanted to rest but he knew that he would lose if he did so. He badly wanted to win. Suddenly, he spotted the finishing line just ahead of him. He sprinted like a madman towards the finishing line. Just after he crossed it, Raymond fell onto his knees. He pumped his fist in the air with all the strength he could muster. He had won the race! Everybody clapped for him. As he took his medal from the principal of his school, he felt like he was on the top of the world. This event only served the fact that Raymond was a magical runner. He became a famous runner in his county and country as the country’s brightest prospect en route to winning the prestigious race. However, no one, not even Raymond knew that something was going to happen two years later that would almost kill Raymond’s chances of ever becoming a runner.
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Chapter 2 Listening to the start of the war It was 1 September, 1939. As it was a sunny and hot day, tiny slivers of sunlight managed to peep in through the curtains of the window in Raymond’s bedroom. The tiny slivers managed to wake Raymond up. As Raymond was still feeling lethargic, he decided to listen to the morning news on the radio before he resumed doing his daily chores like washing the cups and sweeping the floor with a broom. He switched on the old radio his family owned and started listening intently. This listening level of his waned well during the broadcast of the news as the best part of it made Raymond half-bored, such as news of a kitten stuck in a tree. Raymond was about to switch off and disconnect the radio when there was an announcement that an urgent announcement would be aired soon made him reverse his decision and sit on the sofa (again) and listen intently. (Also again.) Soon, Winston Churchill, a famous minister in Britain, said, “ All British, please listen to this life-or-death announcement. Germany…” When Raymond heard that, he perked up and wondered, “What about that horrible place?” He continued listening very, very intently. “...has declared war on Britain again! All men aged from eighteen to fortyone as of the next year, 1940, are required to go to the nearest police station to enlist for the BAF, which stands for British armed forces. Eligible people who do not enlist as a soldier in the next three days ending at midnight, September 5, face jail, and in worst-case scenarios, execution for treason, drafting, and betrayal of the state. Thank you.” With that, Winston Churchill signed out of the broadcast and the radio broadcasted nothing but boring news again. Raymond then switched off the radio and ran into his parents’ room to wake his father and tell 6
him the bad news that the war had begun and to call him to enlist as a soldier. His father was 40 in 1940, so he was still eligible to fight in the war. Raymond would be 18 then. Therefore, both of them were currently eligible to fight in the war, later known as World War II. Raymond managed to wake his father up by shaking him, something that Raymond would not have dared to do on a normal Saturday as his father liked to sleep longer on Saturdays and would be enraged that he (Raymond) had disturbed his sleep. When his father heard of the impending situation, he immediately said that he would go to the enlisting centre as fast as he could. He changed and followed Raymond to the Surrey police station to enlist as a soldier. Raymond wondered what would happen to both of them during the war as he and his father made their way to the enlisting center, which was of course Surrey police station, located in the heart of Raymond’s village, Surrey.
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Chapter 3 Enlisting for the war and meeting Jeremy Baker Fifteen minutes later, both father and son had arrived at the police centre to enlist as soldiers for the BAF in the war. At the enlisting centre, Raymond let his father do the registration for both Raymond and his father while he wandered around the police centre. As the police officers had not learnt that a soldier could not enlist for another person as the person could then escape and they had not adjusted to the fact that the war had started. As he was wandering around the packed police centre filled with men enlisting for the war, Raymond met another boy about his age. He started to talk to him. “Do you like wars? Are you enthusiastic that we are going to fight the Germans in the wars?” Raymond asked. “Yes and Yes. Definitely. Confirmed. Wars are my favourite subject by large. I wanted to take a course on wars and human conflict in university when I grew up at about twenty years old to twenty one years old but it seems that the war has started and we are being called up already! Apparently, the commander of France was right- it was only a twenty-year armistice, or a so-called Peace treaty at the war that will end all wars, or rather, World War I” the boy replied. “Why on Earth do you like wars such as this one? What good are they (the wars)?” Raymond asked. “ Wars help England win land, dumb! We always triumph against our enemies such as France in the olden days and Germany in the present times. Wars also serve as a reminder to them that the British 8
flags fly high. I used to dream that Jeremy Baker flies the British flag high and kills millions of Germans in the war. Germans, in my opinion, are quite bad to torture people so cruelly, as seen in World War I.” the boy replied. “So you are Jeremy?” Raymond asked, noticing that the boy was a little outspoken, maybe a lot, he didn’t know which. As a loner, he had always shied away from public. “Duh! It is obvious, dude!” The boy, whom we shall call Jeremy from now on, replied. “Hope you are in the same regiment as me!” Raymond said. He really meant it. “Me too! Maybe we will be in the 7th regiment. Many ‘young guns’ like us are called there!” Jeremy told Raymond. As Raymond was thinking of a reply, he noticed that his father was beckoning for him to go to him and back home to their cottage. Raymond saw the beckon from is father and told Jeremy, “Sorry, I have to go. My father is waiting. Bye!” “Bye!” Jeremy said and waved to Raymond. Raymond waved back and then only went back with his father to their apartment in Surrey. “Hope I can see you again, Jeremy.” thought Raymond as he entered his apartment and reviewed his regiment and the days when he would fight.
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Chapter 4 Starting to Fight Alongside Familiar Faces Raymond was packing his tiny suitcase. He was ready to fight in the war that was engulfing the whole world. Clothed in the British khaki disguising uniform with a gun holster and armour strapped to his wrist, he looked like a professional fighter who was experienced. Obviously he wasn’t, he thought as he put a photo of his family, a book which was on how to survive the war, a water bottle, utensils and other items into his bag. After that, he put on his badge that said, “Raymond Jones, 2nd level officer”. Raymond, as a man below the age of 40, had been instantly promoted to the position of 2nd level officer. To get into the highest level position, the third level office, you needed to have a lot of knowledge of the wars and also qualifications such as proof that you had studied it in university. Those above 40 were first level officers. It also consisted of women who wanted to fight. This army was called the ‘Dads army’ as it consisted of older fighters, like his father, who was 40. Thos fighters were also given less weapons and had to use weapons such as a bow and arrow like Robin Hood, stones like David when he killed Goliath. Thank god both father and Jeremy are with me, he thought. When he met Jeremy coincidentally at a café a week ago, Jeremy had told him that he was a third level officer and was in Raymond’s regiment. Raymond was overjoyed. Mostly a loner, he now had a friend to help him in the war. Then Raymond realized that Jeremy’s job wouldn’t allow Raymond to see him much. Jeremy’s job was to plan the location and timing of attacks. He would be one of the only people to know how the army would attack the Germans. Because of that, he was one of the most important officers as a 3rd level officer was at the highest rank. He 10
would also fight in the war. He must enjoy his job, thought Raymond. Strategy and Fighting are the things he enjoys, Raymond thought. The more he thought of it, the more he anticipated it, admitted Raymond to himself. He really wanted to see what war was like. Was it horrible or exciting? Thrilling or Gruesome? Thinking of that, Raymond called his father and both made their to the ‘War start centre’ where they would assemble to start the war. There, they would be given instructions and would march off in troops to either attack the Germans or defend Allies’ territory. What would they do? Raymond wondered as they set off to fight with equipment such as tents.
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Chapter 5: Beautiful Scenes in the War As Raymond marched through Normandy, a key British battleground in Western France, beautiful and breathtaking scenes of nature filled Raymond's young eyes. These sights were sights that Raymond's young eyes had not seen in his village of Surrey. He saw hordes of birds, rock jasmines, long horned beetles and even cavedwelling beetles. Cave-dwelling beetles had only been thought to exist in caves in forests in France. As Raymond adjusted to this rare spectacle of nature in the form of flora and fauna in an industrialized world, he thought, "Maybe I like war after all. There have been no fights and so many sights of beauty here!" After the army had marched through Normandy, he talked both to his father and Jeremy to pass the time other men used to bet and play cards. As you can see, Raymond detested playing cards and betting as he thought that it was only fit for people who liked to squander their money away. Raymond's father took the opportunities to remind Raymond that he had to be very careful of his actions during the war, having gone through World War I as a soldier for England for a year. He often said, “Raymond, you have to be careful during the war, you cold get killed by German or even by us!� Us obviously referred to the British. He could end up being executed by the British if he exposed the British camps to the Germans or killed by the Germans if he made even one wrong move. He had to be extra careful when he (Raymond's father) was not there to guide Raymond. Raymond decided to heed his advice during the war as it could save him from being a soldier who was a victim of World War II. From then on, Raymond was more defensive than offensive, always looking out for enemies. Raymond knew how tragic World War I had been and did not want this to be worse. He knew 12
that it could be wore and wanted to steer clear of trouble. However, he knew that he could not predict what would happen during the war. He knew that he had to let things take their course. "What will happen to me?" he wondered as he went to sleep. He just wanted to stay alive until the war ended but he knew that he needed to be very careful if he was to stay alive throughout the war.
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Chapter 6: Fighting on the peak of Mt. Vaalserberg A few months later, Raymond and his comrades were fighting a large regiment of the German army. They were fighting on the peak of Mount Vaalserberg, Holland. The British army was badly outnumbered by the German's army. The Germans had twice as many soldiers as the British. The British were trying to defend Holland from the Germans, who were invading it. The British knew that the battle of Vaalserberg could be a vital win for the British. Germany was on the brink of invading Holland and just needed one more victory to justify it. The British knew that it was their last chance to stop the Germans from taking Holland, adding yet another piece of land to their arsenal. But the win was not to be for the British. The Germans were pushing the British back every minute. Raymond tried to help to push the Germans back. He fired his rifle wildly and his shield danced in and out to protect his body, from torso to head. With one shot, he hit a German on the head. The German dropped, pulling another soldier down with him. Raymond rejoiced as he had killed two birds with one stone. Raymond went over and shot both on the head to make sure that they were safely dead. Once that task had been done, he shot another ten German soldiers fatally. An inspired Raymond led the British to a very lucky victory at Vaalserberg, giving them time to call for backup and breathing space. Many soldiers praised Raymond for his bravery and accuracy. Raymond was obviously happy at these compliments by the other soldiers; it showed well on his face. Raymond told the soldiers that you just had to be motivated and try your best to win a battle. A trademark saying of his was “Be like Kitchener, be motivated and you will win wars!” They all said, “Thank you, Raymond! The soldiers thanked Raymond for his advice and walked away, very ecstatic, excited 14
and hopeful at the victory as they thought they could win more and therefore win World War II. But as Raymond looked at the charred, dead remains of the German soldiers he had killed decomposing, he realised that it wasn't good to fight and kill other people in war. Moreover, he noticed that the faces of those men looked sad, like they hadn't wanted to fight in the war and had gladly accepted the death sentence given to them. Raymond felt very sad that he had given the death sentence to these soldiers. Raymond repented his actions and was going to cry when his father's voice came to him, “Don’t cry. Just spare lives after this." Raymond was thankful to hear these words from his father as he really loved his father and listened to his advice. He whispered a silent thank-you to his father for helping him for his whole life and for taking care of him. As he must have looked a little weird when he walked back into the camp, Lieutenant Ray asked him if everything was fine. Raymond, looking a little dazed, replied, “Yes, everything is fine, thank you." Raymond went to sleep in his bunk in the camp where the British were residing in after that.
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Chapter 7: Fighting in Hungary and getting injured Another month had passed. This time, Germany had managed to invade Holland and the British were fighting to regain control and rule of an invaded country, Hungary. They were hoping to liberate it. The British and Germans were fighting in the heart of Budapest, Hungary's capital. German machinery such as artillery guns and dud bombs surrounded the battleground, a soccer field. Suddenly, Raymond heard artillery fire. He gasped heavily. Germany had committed a serious war crime and Adolf Hitler, its notorious leader, could be executed for it! Artillery fire had been banned for World War II ever since a boy had got blinded by it in the Spanish Civil War, which occurred during the period from 1936 to 1939. As his troops gradually lost ground to the Germans who were defending Hungary, Raymond wondered why they were losing ground. The allies consisted of 50 countries and 600 million soldiers, ten times the Axis, which consisted of five countries and 60 million soldiers. No time to think of that now, Raymond thought, as he fired down German soldier by soldier. He had been really tested in this war, or battle, being forced to kill more than 29 German soldiers to live. His father was doing the same beside him, having killed 10 soldiers. It’s a miracle how one shot makes all the difference whether a soldier is dead or alive or severely injured, Raymond thought lightly while concentrating on the heart of the battle. As he was still killing soldiers, he noticed that the British were pushing the Germans back and were gaining ground on the Germans fast.
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Suddenly, Raymond saw artillery guns firing at them. Many British soldiers fled from the battle ground, giving the Germans time to siege the city- again. As he saw that Jeremy was injured by the artillery guns shooting, Raymond went over to help him. As he was kneeling over Jeremy and asking him if he was okay, artillery guns aimed at him and fired. As he was hit, Raymond felt his limbs being pulled out from his legs. "Ouch! Help me, please!!!” Raymond shouted, as his legs’ pain was unbearable and he couldn’t stand up, let alone move. "Too bad, young boy, zis is war, not a place where there is peace!” a German officer passing told Raymond. Raymond was angry. Why did the British and the Germans have to be such fierce rivals that they did not even care for injured people? He told himself that he would become a peace advocate who would spread the message of peace around the world once the war was over. He would also try to make may types of tortures used in wars to be made war crimes. 17
As Raymond thought about that, his father and another soldier came up to him and Jeremy. His father lifted him, tears in his eyes, which Raymond could see on his face, while the other soldier also lifted Jeremy. As Raymond looked over at Jeremy, he realised that Jeremy had fainted and was in a coma. Not knowing it, he slipped into a coma too. He didn't know what happened to him after that as he was unconscious.
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Chapter 8: Realizing that he is in hospital The next morning, Raymond woke up with a start, but he did not know where he was. "Where am I?" he wondered wit a sense of questioning and looked around. On the top were lamps and and at his side was beds...beds? He must be in a ward in a hospital! Raymond quickly widened his eyes to scan his surroundings. He was in Surrey hospital, just a five-minute walk from his home! Raymond was shell-shocked. How had he even got to the hospital? With a flash, the happenings of the day before that came into his mind. Raymond winced when he thought of his legs being 'pulled' apart from his skin on his thighs. Raymond looked down at his legs. They were covered with a white, opaque cast so Raymond could not see the extent of which the leg had been broken. There was a television on the wall, Raymond noticed. As it was showing one of Raymond's favourite shows, Raymond watched it lying down. At that moment, Raymond's parents and a doctor whom he did not know came in. It was only then that Raymond noticed the sleeping figure of Jeremy Baker on the bed beside him. The doctor asked Raymond if he might have felt any pain on his leg or knee. Raymond said that he did not. The doctor explained to Raymond that the ligaments on his leg had cracked. Raymond might not be able to walk for the whole of his life not only because of that, but also because his hamstring on his leg had also broken. The doctor advised Raymond against walking without a wheelchair as his limbs could then break and Raymond would be paralyzed for life. Raymond's face saddened when he heard that news. To Raymond, it was like giving him a life sentence in prison as running was so important for him. Raymond was uncontrollable as tears rolled out of him as he cried. 19
That afternoon, as he was watching World War documentaries on TV, he realised that he would never be able to break the long standing record of 9.18 seconds held by Usain Bolt for 40 years. He knew that if he tried, he would become paralyzed. He did not want to make his parents unhappy too. But he decided to try.
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Chapter 9 Walking Again??? Two nights later, the perfect opportunity arrived for Raymond to walk unsupervised. I must do it, it’s the perfect opportunity, Raymond thought. The doctors and nurses of the hospital were busy attending on a new emergency patient who had just been injured heavily by a bomb that had fallen on nearby village Flamingo. Raymond wondered. Should he do it? Yes, he decided, he would do it. Struggling, Raymond put a leg of his on the floor. At that moment, his leg got such a cramp that he almost gave up. But he continued as he knew that if he gave up, he would never be able to muster enough courage to walk. As he thought of that, he put his other leg on the floor and heaved himself up with the help of the railings on his bed. As there was nobody else in his ‘B’ ward, he began to walk around the room with the help of the various railings on the various beds lying hitherto around him. As he walked, he thought that he felt a feeling he had never felt before, but he did not know what it was. As he walked some more, he realised what was the feeling that he had felt. It was hope. Hope to do something not thought possible in this world traditionally, such as the four-minute mile. Hope to run again after being presumed disabled by the whole wide world and chided for his ideals and determination. Hope to run like he had when he had run the most prestigious race of England just barely a year ago now. Last but not least, hope to run faster that Usain Bolt to become the fastest runner in the world with a time faster than his, a timing of 9.18 seconds. At the time he had been admitted into hospital, he had only thought that he could do this. Now, he knew that he could do anything. He just needed determination and his parents’ support. 21
Getting determined was supposed to be easy. After all, Raymond’s lifelong dream had been to break Usain Bolt’s record of 9.18 seconds. Secondly, he would also be determined to break the record in the name of disabled people. However, convincing his parents to support his was going to be hard. His parents always followed the traditional advice of the doctor, making them a little gullible, Raymond had always thought. Also, his parents would not want him to be paralyzed for the rest of his life. He knew that they would only try to force him not even to walk but to just sit down in the dreary hospital all day. Just then, he heard footsteps outside. As Raymond was near his bed, he quickly lied down just before the doctor came in and told Raymond that he would have to stay in the hospital for six months. Just then, Raymond’s parents came in, teary-eyed. Raymond exclaimed “Look at me! I can walk! Can you let me run?” and got up, started walking, and slowly went to his parents. His parents said, “Ok, sure, as you have proved yourself, but you may have to wait for about two years before we can let you run professionally or your hamstring might tear again.” Raymond was overjoyed. He had been given a chance! Just then, Jeremy came into the ward (he had been discharged) and said, “Don’t worry, Raymond, I will help you as you relearn the art of running.” “Thanks Jeremy” Raymond said. His parents waved goodbye to him and they, Jeremy and the doctors made their way out of the ward, leaving Raymond alone and wondering about his future in the ward.
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Chapter 10 Recovering from a bad knee For the next few months, Raymond went through intensive surgery procedures to heal his knees. Every day, Raymond walked for a few kilometers with Jeremy, who was now his mentor who was always there for him. Raymond enjoyed these walks as they gave him time to have a chat with Jeremy. Jeremy always had a ready mouth to talk to Raymond during their walk. As Jeremy had also been severely injured during the war, he was no longer needed by the British Armed Forces, as stated in a letter to him. Even though he was heartbroken at first, he recovered from the initial sense of loss and spent the free time he had mentoring Raymond and telling him how to adjust to his rise in fame. Raymond had become famous in the last few moths because of is bid to break the sprint record as a disabled person. Many people laughed and jeered at Raymond, but Raymond would never give up. One day, Raymond and Jeremy were happily walking on the mountainside of Mount Surrey, a 780 meter tall mountain, when Raymond suddenly fell down. He had had a terrible knee problem. Raymond whispered to Jeremy,” I can’t do it, why do you waste time on me?” Jeremy told him that he should not give up as he was a great runner and could do anything in the world. He also immediately called the ambulance. The ambulance came after a few minutes and lifted Raymond onto a stretcher. Within a few minutes, Raymond and Jeremy were at the hospital and were mobbed by Raymond’s parents, who asked Raymond if he was all right. Raymond said that he was all right and that incident was remembered by only Raymond after that. But Raymond never forgot how Jeremy saved his running dreams on 23
such a big scale. After that incident, Raymond continued practicing walking. He became fitter, much fitter, and by end of 1940, he was able to start running without fear, and fast, too. He soon became the fastest disabled runner, or Paralympian, ever in the history of this world. Probably, it was also the record of all other existence in the universe as well.
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Chapter 11 Clocking faster and faster times As the months passed by, Raymond became a world-famous runner for his determination. He was also becoming gradually faster. On 6 August, 1940, his 19th birthday, he clocked 21.17 seconds, a record for disabled runners. However, much faster running was going to come from the youth. On Christmas the same year, a trained Raymond improved by 3.08 seconds to clock 18.09 seconds at the Manchester United stadium, Old Trafford. The next year, he improved yet some more. He clocked a time of 17.93 at the February 4 games in Sri Lanka to celebrate its 92nd Independence Day. Raymond eventually lost, but he gained a lot of experience from that meet. On 21 April, he went to another meet which was to celebrate Queen Elizabeth’s birthday. There, he improved yet again with a good time of 15.16. As the race was for Paralympians, Raymond won easily. All this time, the condition of his injury was getting better fast. He had been told by doctors that it would cure by April 1945, just in time for the Peace and Pace meet to be held in May ’45. He wanted to break the world record in that race to promote peace. On his birthday, he went to the Children’s Day meet for Under-21 runners and got Bronze with a time of 15.64 seconds. In 1942, Raymond set even faster times, setting a personal best of 13.76 in the St. Patrick Games held on 8 June 1942. He continued his hot streak with another personal best in the Christmas Games in Madrid with a time of 13.34. He was under heavy pressure both to perform well and not to injure himself. However, Raymond was still doing well at all his meets. His source of inspiration was Jeremy and his parents, his most ardent supporters. To Raymond, only their cheers 25
could be heard. Jeremy would encourage and advise him after every run. Raymond’s parents went to every meet their son went to. They never missed a single one as they knew that their son needed their support. Raymond considered himself very lucky to have such nice people to help him. In 1943, Raymond went on a blitz, clocking times such as 12.95 for the Bali games, 12.56 for the Parisian games, 12.31 for the New York Games, and 12.08 for the Singapore games. Doctors told Raymond that his injury had almost cured and he could start running as fast as he wanted to. That year, he also won his first marathon at the Belgium marathon. He won the marathon with a time of 02:04:51, while leading the marathon by 30 seconds. In 1944, Raymond went on a streak in running as his leg had cured. He clocked 10.34 at the Summer Olympics cancellation event, winning bronze. In the Berlin games, he clocked 10.10, and in the St Raymond’s games, he clocked a miraculous time of 9.86. However, as he was clocking all this, he still did not know if he would ever break the record held by Usain Bolt. He decided to let things take their course and decided that he would follow that cause and not try to change his destiny in life.
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Chapter 12 D-Day operation an the declaration of peace One night in the summer of 1944, Raymond was watching BBC news. The news reporter said that D-Day had begun. D-day was an operation targeted at invading all the countries Germany had invaded to liberate them. It was also to invade Berlin. The reporter announced that the project had been a great success in France, with England invading France in just ten days. While 100000 German soldiers had been killed, only 5000 British soldiers had been killed in the battle. British people had reason to celebrate, the BBC reporter announced. Raymond was once again enraged. Why did people rejoice in other people’s suffering? He knew how it felt to be hurt first-hand as he had been injured by artillery guns in the knee 5 years ago. Raymond vowed to be a peace advocate and spread the message of peace around the world. To him, peace was two things: sacrifice and agreement. War was also two tings: Refusal to give in and disagreement. With this formula, Raymond aimed to spread peace around the world. He knew that he would succeed. Raymond watched the news for a little longer. After a while, there was a report about Mahatma Gandhi, the Indian patriot who was trying to get independence for his country using non-violent means. Raymond was very impressed by his work and decided that Gandhi would be a role model to him. The next day, he published an article on the front page of the newspaper. The article requested for peace between England and Germany. Two hours later, Raymond was detained for treason but was released hours later with permission to continue doing work for peace as he had managed to persuade the government with words of is peace-centered ideals. The government saw that he meant what 27
he said and had let him go with the permission to continue his peacecentered work. The detaining of Raymond only led to his wanting of peace in the world. He was disappointed at how the Germany army had brutally invaded Poland and Hungary with no declaration of war before that. That, he thought, was unfair. His heart was with the Jewish men and women, whom, he had heard, had had been gassed in a prime torture location, the Holocaust, by the Germans. He was going to appeal for it to be declared a war crime, he decided and was going to ask the Holocaust’s masterminds to be executed.
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Chapter 13 Training for the race and the surrender of Nazi Germany Raymond trained intensively day after day. He flexed his muscles unstoppably and tirelessly. He put weights under his legs to make sure that he would try his best when h trained at the track in London. Even though it was hard to run, Raymond ran with all his might. He ran as fast as a plane from USAir. He knew that he only had one chance to snatch the world record away from Usain Bolt. He had to take that chance as he might never get another chance in his entire career. I must do this, he thought. He thought. Today was 7 May. The race was tomorrow, 8 May. “Could I do it?” he wondered. Could he break the record? He wondered. Suddenly, Jeremy came running into the room. He said, “The Germans have surrendered! We have won! Now you can become a peace advocate and spread the message of peace all around the world.” Raymond was ecstatic beyond words. To think that just before a peace-centered meet in Germany, peace had been granted to Europe by the surrender of Germany and the European Axis powers. He was so happy that he hugged Jeremy so tight that Jeremy could hardly breathe. “Excuse me, Raymond, could you stop hugging me? I am being suffocated by your constant hugging and embracing.” Jeremy asked, nevertheless a little sarcastically. Raymond immediately let go of Jeremy so Jeremy could breathe. Jeremy heaved a sigh and Raymond thanked him profusely for bringing that piece of news to him as it motivated Raymond to run very fast. The next day, Raymond crouched on the starting line, putting one leg in front of the other. He knew that he had to speed. It was the most important race of his career. Everything seemed to move in slow 29
motion. He checked to see that he was only a centimeter behind the line. The line judge checked all runners’ starting positions. All of them were starting in the right place. The starter fired a blank. Raymond took off and flexed his legs. He flexed his legs tirelessly. He put foot after foot in front of him. Every foot he put forward seemed to make him faster. Within 6 seconds, he had pulled away from the rest of the runners who were already slightly panting, as seen on their faces. He still dashed. Suddenly, he saw the finishing line ahead of him. He made a mad dash for the finishing line. As he was crossing the finish line, he tripped. As he fell, he crossed the line. His body hit the ground like a carcass, with a thud. As he slowly got up, with the help of a few paramedics, he noticed he only had a minor scratch and could still run. He glanced at his time. 9.12 seconds, it said. Raymond fell to the floor. He punched his clenched fist in the air. He had broken the record! He was the fastest man in the world!
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The whole audience clapped. Smiling ear to ear, Raymond went up to the podium to collect his prize. As he collected it, he spoke, “I have dreamt of peace ever since this war started. I was injured by artillery fire, an injury that threatened to erase my entire career. I was lucky to have the support of my parents and Jeremy, my best friend. Thank you, guys. You helped me a lot.� With that, Raymond bowed to the audience. The audience applauded Raymond. Raymond, very happy, headed back into the changing room with the world record title.
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Chapter 14 Retiring from athletes Raymond became a famous peace advocate after his retirement from athletics. No one had managed to beat his running record, although several had come close. Raymond spread the message of sacrifice and agreement around the world. Many prominent figures welcomed his proposal to create the 1978 peace treaty which ensured that no country would use the hydrogen bomb to cause mass destruction. 210 countries agreed to the treaty, which was signed in 1979 and activated until 2034. This treaty forbids countries to invade another country and to use nuclear bombs. He became a famous leader due to his peace-centered proposals. He became the first prime minister of Barbados when it became independent from France in 1982. H led the country to become an economic hub greater than that of China just 17 years into its independence, in 1999, as it overtook China to become a Top Five economic centre. When the country was at it prime, in 2005, Raymond retired at age 84. After writing a few books centered on peace, Raymond died peacefully in 2010, aged 89. He had just written a book oppressing terrorist attacks suck as the 9/11 ones. He criticized terrorists and asked them to do good things if they wanted their movement, or jihad, to be successful. As if they did good things, they would then be noticed. 70 years later, in 2015, Raymond’s grandson, Raymondny, a young man in his thirties, taught the value of peace to his children. As he did so, he finally accepted the long known fact, that his ancestry was a great one, as his parents had been trying to tell him for many, many years. Deciding to continue the legacy of Raymond, he spread 32
the message of peace around the world and the family of Raymond became famous again. The End
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W h a tthe is
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To find out more about the Young Author Scheme, please contact Catherine at Experiences & Experiments Tel 6336-8985 Fax 6348-8375, or visit www.catherinekhoo.sg
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The 20th century was ravaged by two of the most devastating wars ever in history. In the second world war, a young aspiring runner has to apply as a soldier. The record-holder for the Under-18 100m sprint, he thinks that he can break Usain Bolt's sprint record. But after he is severely injured by artillery fire, he wonders if he can break the record. As Raymond recovers from his ravaging injury, he learns many lessons. Can he break the record? Can he reverse the effects of the war? Can he show the world that disabled athletes aren't slow? Read on to find out!
The author is an eleven-year-old who studies in St. Hilda's Primary. He is a boy who likes to read popular books such as Big Nate. He also likes to play games such as Poptropica and Pandemic II. Both are excellent and cool games. He likes watching F1 and soccer and tennis, They are cool! He also enjoys playing cricket.
An Experiences & Experiments Books Pte Ltd Imprint ISBN No. 978-981-4320-42-9
Tel 6336-8985 / Fax 6348-8375 www.catherinekhoo.sg 36