My Favorite Place

It was the month of December. The sky was overcast and not a star was to be seen. The trees were bare. I hoped to see children in the nearby park. There were none. The road was empty as no cars went by. The weatherman said it was 20 º F. But my room felt like 100º F. I tried to close my eyes. The light was too bright. I forced my eyes shut, but I could still see the blinding light. A loud metallic sound startled me. It kept getting louder and louder. It was like a million cymbals all at once. I knew it. My caetmass had arrived!

Wearily, I closed my eyes and murmured the familiar phrase. I kept saying it over and over again. Suddenly, I was swept off the floor. It seemed like a tornado had hit my room. I felt light and floated in the air. The tornado carried me for quite some time. The lights didn’t bother me anymore. The deafening cymbal sounds were gone too.

As I opened my eyes, I saw the familiar sign that read, “Welcome to Happy World!” Happy World is the most beautiful island in the world. Coconut palms swayed in the breeze. The sandy beach strips stretched forever. I saw Dr. Seal in the distance. He waved at me. I smiled. He was the best doctor ever. He could cure anything. When Mrs. Patrick, the starfish teacher had a heart attack, Dr. Seal cured her. She thanked Dr. Seal so many times.

Mrs. Patrick is a teacher in the Happy World Driving School. I always get a good grade of 90 or up when she gives me a surprise driving quiz. Over here in Happy World I can drive!

Dotty, my best friend, is a comedian. He always makes me laugh-even when I am in pain. I wondered where he was. I heard a familiar, “Boo!” behind me. Without turning back, I said, “Hi, Dotty! I know it’s you!”. “Oh, man!” he said, and went on to share his latest joke. It was hilarious!

“What are you both laughing about?” asked Sandy. Sandy is a pretty mermaid who works at FunBites. It is my favorite place to eat. They serve the best coconut milk. I get to pick my own coconut. They drill a hole in the coconut and let you drink the milk. When you are done, they crack it open and let you eat the soft kernel inside. “Hi Sandy!” I said. “I came by for a visit. It is so good to see you!”. Sandy gave me a hug. Together we went to FunBites.

Larry Fisher came whistling in his unicycle. He is the smartest kid in Happy World. He waved at us and ordered a snack and coconut milk. He can correctly answer any question you ask him. He figured out how much he had to pay even before it showed up in the cash register. I was so amazed! Larry asked, “So, do you guys want to go to the grand opening of the Carnival?” “The Carnival! Of course!” we all chorused. So, Dotty, Sandy, Larry and me went to the carnival. We rode in the giant wheel first. I felt dizzy when we reached the top. Happy World looked so beautiful from the view up there.

We tried several water slides. The scariest one was called ‘Boomerang’. We sat in a large inflatable tire and were dropped down to a large pool 50 feet below us! We could see alligators in the pool. They looked really hungry. As we splash landed in the pool, screaming and hugging each other, we realized that they were rubber alligators. But they looked so real from up there. Dotty wanted to try that slide again.

All the rides made us hungry again. We ate some oysters and coconut kernel. We bumped into Mrs. Patrick at the carnival. She gave me another pop driving quiz. Dr. Seal cheered as I drove through all the winding cones she had placed on the road. I drove very carefully. Mrs. Patrick gave me a 100!

I walked to Dr. Seal and said, “Dr. Seal, my caetmass is bothering me from time to time”. He placed his cool hands on my forehead. It was so soothing and I felt calmed. He snapped his fingers and magically produced a box. It said, “No more caetmass”. “Remember to say it sincerely several times and eat one of these candies if you get caetmass”, he said. I thanked him.

“Let’s play blind tag!” said Dotty. I was It. They blindfolded me and I tried to catch them. Suddenly I felt someone shaking me back and forth. I couldn’t see because I was blindfolded. The tugging became harder. “Did you go to Happy World again?” asked a loving voice. It was my Mom. Smilingly, I opened my eyes. “Mommy, I had such a great time at Happy World.”, I said excitedly. “How about your caetmass?”, my Mom asked. “No, no caetmass anymore.” I said.

I am sure you are wondering what caetmass is. Well, it is the name I gave for my terrible migraine headaches. I suffer from severe headaches once in a while. So, whenever my caetmass becomes unbearable, I whisper to myself, “No more caetmass, no more caetmass”. Then, magically I escape to my Happy World and have the best time of my life. A visit to Happy World cures me of my worst caetmass. Well, I hope you can all escape to your own Happy World when you are in pain or feel sad.

I looked out of my bedroom window. It was snowing! It was the first snow of the season. Some children were squealing in delight and hurling snow balls at each other. Others were making a snowman and carving snow angels. “Can I go out and play, Mommy?” I asked. “I thought you will never ask” replied my Mom.
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I won 1st place in our school and county for this entry (sponsored by National PTA Reflections Program). Hope you like it :)