Fateful Crossing
I stuffed everything I could into my small knapsack. This Mediterranean journey would determine my destiny. I left everything; my country, family, friends. But this wasn’t what I’d expected.
Men with guns grabbed my knapsack. “What? That’s my stuff! Why can I not take it?”
“Just documents—and you! On the boat—if you want to go.” I paid them fifteen hundred.
Old boat—too many people. The storm’s fury turned that twenty-four hour crossing into two nightmarish weeks. Five hundred died. My destiny? My Hope? It’s almost gone. I survived, but Hell continues.
by Linda K. Bridges
Pikes Peak Branch, CO
You summed up the plight of people who once had normal lives. The rest is unknown. Desperate feelings in few words.
Dayle
This story is so moving because it is told from the perspective of the refugees. It’s crafted so beautifully that the “real” author disappears and the voice is authentic.
I wrote Fateful Crossing after reading reports about the thousands of desperate refugees paying exorbitant fares to be taken over the Mediterranean Sea from Libya to Italy. I wept that day when I read about their plight and testimonies similar to my story. Based on true events.
You summed up feelings of a person who once had a normal life. Desperation transmitted in a few words.