As I looked behind me, I realised that the tornado was spinning closer towards me. Everything unfortunate enough to be in its path was grabbed by the powerful winds and thrown far away like dirty trash.

I was running tirelessly and as fast as my young legs could take me. The sky was pitch black, not a soul could be identified in my field of vision and the sound of my heart was like the stampede of elephants. Each time the tornado came closer, my heartbeat would increase. With each step I took, I suddenly started to lose my breath and energy — the lack of those two things were risky and dangerous, they were detrimental to my survival.

I started to search for shelter and noticed the old abandoned manor with no other house or shelter in sight. I took my chance, my only bet was to quickly make an expedition to find a shelter within the walls of the mansion where I could camp from the roaring winds. The house was as old as time, but I luckily found the basement. Although it was disgusting and rats swarmed the area, it was my only chance of survival. The gigantic rats scurried all over the basement floor. I frightened them, though not as much as they frightened me and rested on the ground and patiently waited for government assistance.

Before the catastrophic tornado swept across our harmonious city, it was seven in the morning when I emerged from my sleep. I usually wake up later in the day, but thanks to my alarm ringing, I woke as soon as it rang in order to turn it off. I felt like I wanted to destroy my alarm as I tried to carry on sleeping, but I am not much of a heavy sleeper, even the slightest noise will not go past me.

I was in between a very relaxing dream when I woke up. However, as soon as I woke up, the dream left my mind with the speed of light. Then as I was enjoying my cereal containing my favourite double chocolate pillows, I was interrupted by my mum, who expected me to be out for my daily morning jog. She was under the impression that I had become lazy these days so she commanded me to leave and she also gave me two dollars to spend in case I felt hungry.

I was done with my jog at the park at nine-thirty sharp, and purchased a meatball sandwich from a shop nearby. Soon after I left the shop, suddenly the sky turned green. The air was hot and cold at the same time, as soon as people noticed these strange effects, they realised that Mother Nature was sending a storm upon us.

As crowd of people ran past me, I felt I was caught in stampede of bulls and I fell on the ground. I was initially frozen, but I soon calmed my nerves enough to run before the tornado could form. Each second the tornado got closer, keeping my life on edge. All of a sudden, hiding in the fog, was the abandoned manor.

I was rescued a few hours later. The moment I saw my mum when I reached home, I ran to her and we hugged. She was also greatly relieved. Since that day, my mum tries not to let me out her field of vision as much as she can.

That day I was scared half to death and all I hope and want is that the remaining time I am spending in the United States of America, my family and I stay safe. Every time I reconstruct the scene that day, all I remember is the loss of precious lives and the misery the families must have felt.

Published in Dawn, Young World, January 25th, 2020