A Fortunate Escape

“Truth or Dare, Ben?” Max questioned. Max, Ben and I were walking home together while I took small bites of the beef burger I had grabbed from a shop nearby. “Truth or Dare” was a game we usually played to amuse ourselves on the lengthy, boring journey home. Ben wanted a dare. “Well, Ben, I dare you to carry my bag all the way home!” Max commanded as we laughed at poor Ben’s trouble.

As Ben pulled the heavy bag up his shoulder and adjusted the bag straps, he noticed that Max’s bag was partially open. When he hurriedly put it on his back, an object flew out of the bag, and over the fence of our neighbour’s house.

“Oh, no,” Max cried, “I think that was my English assignment.” Stretching his hand out and trying to crawl(爬)under the fence to save the paper, Ben found that it was just out of reach.

“Well, I guess I’ll just have to climb over the fence to get it,” Ben said. He was barely able to climb up, using the small gaps in the wooden fence as handholds as the fence was nearly as tall as him(which was not very tall), and low enough for something to be thrown over it. Sliding down the fence, Ben grabbed the valued piece of paper, complaining about injured dignity. Just then, a loud and frightening bark cut his words short.

“Woof, Woof!” Our neighbour, Mr Mason, owned a German shepherd(kind of dog), well-known for its fierceness, which guarded the house. It was something we had overlooked, too focused on bringing back Max’s assignment. Ben’s legs trembled like jelly and his face turned a deathly white as the German shepherd advanced slowly on him like a wolf moving towards its target.

Max and I stared at it in fear.

Just then I caught sight of my half-eaten burger on the path.

James Bradley had developed a strong passion for skiing. On a freezing cold Sunday in 2019, James, then a 16-year-old boy, headed to Aspen Mountain with his father to go skiing. They took a cable car to the top of the mountain and conquered the most challenging part of the long trail. Afterwards, they decided to follow different trails to go down the mountain respectively. That was when everything started to veer off course.

In the late afternoon, after finishing the final run through the side trial, his father arrived at the parking lot. Anxiously, he had waited here for his son for several hours. However, James never showed up.

It turned out that a fierce snowstorm had swept into the area as James was on his way down. Unable to see far and clearly, he turned off the path by accident and got lost. The dreadful snowstorm coupled with strong winds gained strength and enveloped everything, blocking his way back to the ski trails.

Before long, James slid down the mountain slope on his skis and stopped at the bottom of the mountain in the valley. Thanks to the thick snow, James didn’t get hurt and the winds weren’t as strong in the valley as they were up on the mountain. Looking around, he saw nothing but the branches of trees and the pure white snow. James had no idea where he was. Worse still, the sun began to sink and he was getting colder by the minute. Most worrisome of all was that he didn’t have any food or water with him, let alone his mobile phone or other supplies.

Standing alone in the wild and holding his large skis, cold and thirst, he couldn’t help thinking about the survival show Man vs. Wild that he used to watch. In the show, Bear Grylls was abandoned in a wild area like this and had to help himself out by using all sorts of survival skills. Yes! It was time to put the tips he had learned to use.

Without hesitation, James took action immediately.

Two days later, James saw several figures approaching his shelter.

Linda was very excited, “Dad. I am going back home for Thanksgiving. Can you pick me up after school tomorrow?”

“No problem.”

It’s been over three months since Linda moved to board at school. She missed her mom and dad so much that she couldn’t even wait to pack and leave for home.

The class was over at 3 and all the after-class activities were cancelled. The minute the bell rang, all cheered and disappeared from the classroom immediately. So did Linda. Within 20 minutes, she made it to the school gate and waited there. Linda heard people hilariously talking about plans for the coming holiday. What’s awaiting her?

Linda waved them goodbye as her classmates left one by one. Crowds became scarce when Linda got anxious. Her phone was dead and she forgot to charge it. Dad had never been late! She had to borrow a phone to make a call before she was the only one left.

“Hi, dad? What’s holding you up?”

“I am sorry, Honey! The car broke down halfway and it was more serious than it seemed. Will you wait up for me there?”

“OK, but when can you come?”

“I am not sure. You shall find yourself a place to stay as it is so cold outside. I will be there as soon as I can"

“Where could I go?” Linda wondered. She needed a drink and what’s more important, to charge her phone. There was a fast food restaurant nearby, only 10 minutes’ walk. Yet, not until she walked a few yards did she realize she had to drag such a big and heavy suitcase. What’s worse, the severe cold numbed her hands. It was getting dark and Linda became worried. But she didn’t stop.

Suddenly, a car pulled over in front of her.

On Thanksgiving Day, Linda decided to do something to show her gratitude to the driver again.