The Sandstorm

Hey Nike, I did it already

I had sand in my shoes

“This is about the struggles of a man stranded in the desert. The sentences listed above are the sentences that have to be included in this passage.”

Hey Nike, I did it already. As I walked through the sandstorm screaming, I realized how thirsty I was. I started looking for some water in my backpack and was disappointed to find none. I then remembered that I forgot to place it into my backpack, and screamed, not strong like you would if you were angry, but a weaker, more frail scream, like I was drained of my energy and could barely move. I had sand in my shoes. I had no food or water. And worst of all, I had nowhere to shield myself from the storm. My vision blurred as sand got into my eyes, but I kept looking into the distance. There, stood a building, not tall or short, not fat or thin, kind of similar to a hut. Attached to the top of the building was a large sign, tinted silver with a date on it, “October 9, 2083”. Desperate, tired, dehydrated, and on the brink of losing consciousness, I made my valiant effort to crawl to the hut. Energy left me with each crawl, leaving me winded at every movement of my body. It seemed close, and yet so far away. “5 more minutes” I told myself, “5 more minutes”. But as I reached to move forward, I didn’t touch the grainy sand that littered the desert. No, I didn’t even touch the brick that supported the seemingly close building. No, what I touched, was the nothingness and darkness that my exhaustion led me to. Overwhelmed with warmth, I felt every last glimpse of light disappear. The warmth enveloped me, and as my life dissipated before my eyes, I took one last, long breath, and collapsed.

Eric Gorner