Isabelle by Cleofangor
 
Chapter 1 “Hurry up! The party starts in one hour,” screamed my mistress, Fiona. “Yes, Ma’am,” I said without looking up from my work. I should tell you about myself and where I live. I am a servant girl named Isabelle, and I work for my mistress, Fiona, and my master, Robert. Robert and Fiona have three children: Jane, Max, and Shannon. I don’t know anybody else in town because I mostly work in the mansion. I work hard for my master’s family because it is the only way I can make money, and I need the money because I am poor. Every month I send ¼ of my money to my family (who are poor). “It is no time for daydreaming,” my mistress screamed at me. I ran over to the table and put a new tablecloth on it. DING! The timer on the oven rang, and I rushed over to take out the pie. “The first person will be here in thirty minutes, Isabelle, so hurry up!” my mistress screamed so loudly I thought she was going to have a heart attack. DING-DONG! The first person came early. “Oh, no,” my mistress wailed. I can’t blame her because the twentieth pie was just put in the oven, and I was not done setting up the living room. “Isabelle, hurry up while I open the door!” my mistress screeched at me angrily. Three hours later my mistress led the people to the ballroom, so they could dance before everyone left. I was so tired I could have fallen asleep standing up, but I didn’t because if I did I knew I would be in BIG trouble. Six hours later I finally lay my head down on my pillow. I was so tired, but I knew I was going to have to get up in the morning to do my regular chores and do last minute tidying up from the party. BEEP, BEEP, BEEP, BEEP! My alarm clock went off at 6:00am. I groaned and turned it off. The night was over and I had to get up and do my chores, cook breakfast, get my master’s children out of bed and off to school. Three hours later the kids were off at school and I had to clean up from breakfast. Plus, I had to make all of the beds, take the dogs for a walk, clean the litter box, and tidy up the mansion. “Isabelle, I need you to go visit Betsy and see how she is doing,” my mistress called up to me. “I’m going to the store, so you can stay at her house until I call.” I grabbed some of the leftover pie, so I could bring it to Betsy, and headed out the door. Chapter 2 After about five hours I came to a stream. I dropped to the ground and drank the cool water. I took out an apple and ate it in twenty bites. I found a big tree and lay down for a nap. When I woke up I heard beautiful singing, sort of like tinkling bells, and it was so close but also so far away. I followed the sound until I came to a big clearing. I became puzzled because I saw nothing but the clearing and I heard nothing but the breath of the earth, the wind, yet still this place seamed so calming. Suddenly someone was sanding in front of me. Then there were people and houses everywhere and it was a bustle of activity. The person standing in front of me said, “Come with me.” I was led to a big room and was told to sit down in front of a screen. I sat down and the person said, “You think you are poor? Well, I’m going to show you poor people.” I was horrified to see the people on the screen because they were so skinny and they didn’t have a place to live. When I was done watching the poor people I asked, “How did they get that poor and why are people not doing anything about it?” The person replied, “They got so poor because people didn’t pay attention when they were as poor as you, so it got worse. As for why nobody does anything about it, well people don’t care as long as they are not poor.” “Well, I am going to do something about it, ” I replied. I was so angry with all the people who didn’t care. I later learned that the people had been invisible when I first arrived. I also learned that I too, had magical powers, I just didn’t know how to use them. The people of the village arranged for me to take lessons on how to use my powers. They told me they used their magical powers to try and help the poor people, so I planned to do the same (once I learned how to use my powers). I learned a lot in just two weeks. Soon I was going to be able to use my powers to help the poor people. I had already helped a little boy find food for himself and his family. I was doing so well in my lesson that I was now in the most advanced group of kids. I had learned so many things and found out about so many things that I didn’t know were real before. Suddenly I remembered my mistress and master. What were they thinking about me disappearing one day? They probably already got a new servant to replace me and I would never get my job back. “What troubles you Isabelle?” my teacher asked me. I hadn’t known I had been looking frightened. “Nothing,” I replied trying to make it seem as if I was telling the truth. “You are lying, Isabelle,” my teacher said. I hated when my teacher could tell if I was lying or not. “I was just thinking about how my master and mistress will fire me if I ever go back.” “Soon you will be helping lots of people. Why not think about that?” my teacher asked. About five weeks later I had learned all that I needed to learn to help the poor people. My teacher said that all I needed to do was help the poor people. So I helped a poor family build a house, get food, and get medical care. Soon I would be able to leave the village and be an independent helper for the poor. Days later, I left the village to help the poor on my own. The poor people began to love me, and I forgot about being a servant. I became well known by the poor people. I helped them by doing the following: • Purifying water • Building houses • Feeding people • Washing clothes • Giving people baths • Buying people new clothes • Buying people beds • Helping people get jobs • Helping people find schools for their children • Helping people make money • Helping people start a new and better life Chapter 3 I later found out that my family was not poor anymore, because they won the lottery because they were very lucky. So, I sent them a letter: Dear Family, I am not working for Fiona and Robert anymore. I am now helping poor people all around the world. I miss you a lot, and love you very much. Your family member, Isabelle About a year later I got married to a handsome young man named Sean, and I wrote another letter to my family: Dear Family, I have recently gotten married to a very handsome young man named Sean. We plan to move back to your town and we are expecting a child. I hope you are all well and are living a happy life. I miss you and love you very much. See you soon. Your family member, Isabelle Sean and I had six children, and we built a house next door to my family’s house. We hoped our children would help the poor when they got older. The End Lesson In The Story LESSON#1: Don’t be afraid to reach out, act, and respond. LESSON#2: If you put things aside (like helping people) for to long it will get worse. LESSON#3: Pay attention to the poor people and try to help if you can. LESSON#4: Don’t be afraid to stand up for what you believe in (like people living in horrible conditions). LESSON#5: If you don’t pay attention to the poor people the world will be like Isabelle’s and people will have to do anything they can to make money (like Isabelle). Note From Author: Dear reader, This story contains magic because it is supposed to be different, because it is in the future. From the Author
Friday, March 9, 2007