Bullet In A Bible

ZEKE Bullet in a Bible By: Exequiel Consolacion “I was born in a place that everyone trusts the supernatural creator and overseer of the universe they said to me if I will die my soul will go to the place of “no mores”. There will be no more tears, no more pain and no sorrow.” It is a sunny Sunday morning in the year 1938 of December in London. People are too busy; some are going to church and others going to their work. A generous, intelligent, religious man named Joseph is a mute person he cannot speak his ambition is to travel around the world. Joseph is come from a wealthy family. His father is an architect who designs the London Bridge. His mother is teaching in Oxford University. His parents died in a car accident since he was nine. Fortunately, he had lovely grandparents whom he lived. Joseph did not go to school because of his disabilities he just always go to St. Paul’s cathedral and pray. Besides, he works in a book publishing and shoe factory for part time job. To communicate with others; Joseph expresses his thought by sign language and wrote them to a piece of paper. Joseph is a tall, white man, with black hair, and is thin. In the next morning, he decided to pack his things up including his clothes, money, bible and his parent’s picture. Also his journal for his journey and he will flee to Philippines for his first destination. His grandmother told him “Joseph, are you sure you want to do this and leave us without any reason?” Joseph got a quill and a piece of rough leathery paper and wrote what he wants to say, “I will prove to you. That although I am disabled those impossible things that some people can’t do I will make it possible and that is my reason”. Joseph arrives in the seaport exuberantly. This is the first time he saw a huge, elegant ship and he was over taken with joy. He walked towards the behemoth and when inside he got his journal and wrote his first journal entry which describing the ship, ‘A magnificent towering \

iron that removes wrinkles from the fabric waves, inside was the built in foam bed, with blankets of bunny fur with a low rumble the ship started to sail, it runs seamlessly in the water. He smelt the see breeze and inhale the fresh salty air’. Joseph could not sleep. He decided on going to the figurehead at the front of the ship, and saw an old skinny man standing alone outside. His tattered, brown hat sat on his head. Under a broad-brimmed and wrinkled forehead that looked like rows of dirt in a farmer’s plowed field gleamed two eyes. Joseph approaches him and asked questions, he gets a paper, and starts to write, “Sir, what’s your name? And what are you doing outside in the middle of a cold night?” The old man answered in a trembling voice, “I could not sleep actually and I would prefer not to sleep rather than sleeping then waking up without seeing the glimpse of the sun. By the way, my named is Timothy. Why you don’t talked to me personally rather than writing them on a piece of paper.” Lyndon replied and still wrote them,” Indeed, I am a mute person I cannot speak and my reason why I will wrote them in a piece of paper because I want to keep it. My grandma told me, once the word is spoken it cannot be recalled again” It was already 3:00am in the morning when a fighter plane flying onto the ship and has a red circle and white square on the rudder and an image of the sun in the fuselage. The plane hits the ship and explodes in the ship’s cockpit. ‘A Japanese plane with a kamikaze pilot diving onto the ship’, the ship is burning and it has a leakage; it will soon sink into the middle of the Pacific Ocean near Formosa. The ship captain is dead while some crews preparing the rescue boats for the passengers. Joseph quickly helps Timothy and he takes him to the wooden, brown boat they are the only two who is in it. They escape to the burning and sinking ship. However, their boat has no paddle only the vast waves make the boat move and they landed in an unknown island near Japan. Timothy “Boy Where are we? You know where we are?” Joseph used sign language to communicate at him. He uses his hand and points at the boat and he demonstrates to Timothy that they were on the boat and the boat sails it own way to the island. Some of his things were remained on the ship except his pocket

book. Joseph nodded his head, which means he does not know where they are. They were tired and starving. There is no food around. Joseph decided to hitchhike to find a village on the island. Joseph has no pen to write. While walking in foamy sand he saw a wild plant, which has sharp thorns on it. Some thorns are long, small, and medium. He gets one, slashes his forearm, and takes a coconut shell and he drips his blood and put it to the coconut shell. His blood will be the ink for his writing. He tear one paper on his journal and write’Timothy, you have been a good friend to me But I need to leave you I need to find a safe place for us. I will return to you and I will take you with me. I am weeping last night while I writing this note, my tears trickle like a wax on a candle. I know it is hard to leave you but this island is not familiar to me. Hopefully, you understand me’

Joseph leaves Timothy at dawn His footstep fading in the sand when a vast wave goes through it. He saw a narrow path he follows it until he reaches the riverside. He heard people speaking in a foreign language and a mocking bird in a raspy chjjj and a harsh chewk. Those people are washing clothes; some are taking a bath, while others are fetching water. He did not realize that he is in Japan. People just stare at him, and then a gorgeous woman with a kimono and long black haired came close to him and touches his face. The Woman said, “Are you okay? Who are you? Where you came from?” Joseph replied he saw a mockingbird’s feather and he gets his coconut shell, he start to write. “Can you give me food? I am starving and exhausted. I left my friend near the shore.” The woman brought him to her house and let him eat. Joseph− “What’s your name?” The woman replied, “My name is Andrea” Joseph− ”Well, I’m glad to meet you”. Andrea prepared sticky white rice in a conic bowl, a broiled fish with onions and tomatoes, and a delicious ramen noodle for Joseph. Nevertheless, when he came back to gets Timothy he found him hanging on the tree with bloodstain on his shirt and stab near the chest. Joseph is aware about the war going on. A Japanese army roaming around the shore murdered Timothy.

A Japanese truck went to the small village, which Andrea lived; the Japanese general ordered his men to take away the young boys in every family member to make them soldiers. Andrea let Joseph hide in an empty sack of rice. The Japanese are gone, Joseph went outside in sorrow and sat on a bamboo bench which lying in a ground and wrote his thoughts about the war’ A war going on is a dilemma; I do not want to be involved in a war like this. One bullet is scattered shot many innocent will be involved and die without any specific reason. This world is brutal; philosophically Christianity paints a devil in a wall of the world. A crow and a dove symbolize war and peace. The tiger and the lamb represent good and evil.’ Joseph went back to the hut. Andrea was sleeping and he mentioned it to his journal that he feels in love with her− ‘A beautiful woman that attracts me. Her lips which red as a rose, her skin as smooth as the bamboo, her hair as black as a squid’s ink, and her vivid eyes like a moonlight in the sky. She was like an angel that came down to earth to rescue me. I fell in love with her but I do not know what to say, I will just hide my feelings on her. Every time he talked to me my heart told me to tell her how I feel and my heart told me if she lets go it’s not for real.’ When Joseph woke up in the morning Andrea shouting for helped, he saw the Japanese holding her. Joseph looked at her nervously in a small hole in a bamboo window and they put Andrea on a military truck. The Japanese brought her on the leopard-bearded Emperor. The Emperor announced, “This lady betrayed her own country and she let an enemy spy to her house. She must be punished for her infringement.” They brought Andrea to the Mount Unzen in Nagasaki and tight her upside-down on a deep well and drowned her body. Andrea scarified herself; to save Joseph.

Joseph ran faster in the middle of the bush as the Japanese army chasing and shoot at him. Until he reached the end zone, he had a bullet shot to his right leg and now he is behind an enemy line. The Japanese captured him they beat him by their rifles, and kick him. They put bandana on his eyes and

bring him to the emperor. His body is dirty and full of scratches. The emperor commands his troops to execute him. Moments before his execution Joseph taken his bible and hold it in his chest by his palm. He was standing in an oval and surrounded by firing squad of Japanese infantry. The Japanese General in charge of the backup force hushed his men to silence. Later, the general ordered his men and shouted “Fire!” His last words were those of Jesus Christ:--“it is finished”. Joseph died with his bible. Joseph’s body was buried in Mount Unzen where Andrea died too. After the war, the Americans found the bible with the address and also Josephs pocket book. General McArthur send it to Joseph’s grandmother. The bible was put in to the Museum of London including his journal. In addition, it was enclosed in a glass box thing. There is a description written below ‘The impossible thing that this man did, is to die with no reason and sacrifices himself to heaven.’