Village E3: Survival of the Human Spirit Read Online Free

satisfied.
    Walking over to where his clothes
were hanging, John checked his shirt and pants again. While he slipped his arm
into one sleeve of his shirt, he remembered how quickly the rain started
yesterday. While they were mostly dry, he wanted to make sure they stayed that
way. He took his arm back out of the sleeve, and carried his shirt and jeans to
his shelter, placing them on his bed.
    If it starts to rain, at least my
clothes will be dry, he thought. He retrieved his bag, and placed it near where he planned to have
his feet tonight. He felt a sense of relief, because feeling vulnerable was
something that he never wanted to experience again. I need to start using my
brain. I better go get my poncho, he thought.
    He started back toward the beach, to
the place where he had left his poncho. Without even pausing, he grabbed it and
started back. On the way, he gathered a few bird nests, and callously dumped
the eggs on the ground. Tearing them apart, he tried to find as much dry
material as he could, to aid in starting a fire later. After all the rain, he
knew that it might be a challenge just to get one started this time.
    Arriving back in camp, John placed
his poncho with his clothes, and then set about trying to catch a familiar
source of food. Flipping rocks for crayfish was harder this time. They weren't
as easy to find. Maybe the rain has something to do with it, he thought.
He worked harder and longer than last time, and only came up with three
crayfish, but three would have to do. He would have to dip into his reserve of
fruit, which he had been saving.
    I'll try the fire starter this time, he thought, as he prepared to start a
fire. It was a struggle to keep the fire going once it was started since all of
the wood was still wet.
    Thinking about the day before, John
looked up at the sky, just to get a feel for what the weather was doing. The
clouds building overhead made him decide to wait a bit on the fire. He decided
to do some exploring while he waited to see if it would rain again. He could
see what he thought might be another clearing on the other side of the water
pool. Once he broke through the vegetation on the far side, he was able to see
that it wasn't just a clearing, but a very large clearing.
    Off in the distance, he could see
some animals grazing. Even though he wasn't close enough to tell exactly what
they were, it looked like there were several dozen of them. From this vantage
point, he could see the clouds above much better, and didn't like what he saw.
Without wasting any time, he headed back to camp. As he neared the far side of
the pool from his camp, a light rain began. He only had his boxers on, but he
didn't want to get them wet, so he took them off. Folding them into a tight
ball, he then shoved them up into his armpit. He cupped his hand around the
bottom side, and tried to protect them from the rain as much as he could.
    As soon as John got to his shelter,
he headed into it. Now would be the moment of truth. It was still raining very
lightly, but so far, so good. There were no leaks that he could see. He put his
boxers back on, then his shirt and jeans.
    After getting his clothes on, he
slipped his poncho over his head. There were still a few hours till dark, so he
thought this would be a good chance for him to relax, and take a break from the
never ending job of trying to stay alive. I might not have a chance to build
a fire today, he thought. His only option for food, without fire, was his
stash of fruit. He got a couple out, and cut them into sections with his knife.
Hunger was his constant companion now, and this light meal of fruit wasn't
going to change that.
    Free from thinking about what to do
next, John let his mind wonder back to his home in Colorado. He thought about
the people back home, and wondered if anyone was missing him yet. Will they
form a search party, he wondered. He knew Amy would be upset. He and Amy
had been dating for over three years. She came out to his place,