The year was 2020.
Global warming was now a long forgotten myth, but the water shortage had
decreased seas to puddles. Liquid water was now a forlorn thing. There was a
water shortage on the planet earth. Seas were drying up. Now water was the most
expensive thing in the world. People were calling it the Apocalypse.
I was then living in
Karachi, a coastal area of Pakistan. The volume of the Arabian Sea was now half
of what it was before the shortage, but still sufficient. I had thought that
the Arabian Sea would soon fully dry up,
so I started saving water. I tried telling people to start saving water
rather than wasting it, but sadly enough, they arrogantly ignored my advice.
And soon I was proved right. The Arabian Sea was totally finished. There was no
sign of water anywhere.
The rich migrated to
other countries in search of water, and the rest were forced to find other
means of surviving – which meant that they had to live a nomadic life in a
constant search for water. I gave them all the water that I could. I was sure
that the travelers wouldn’t make it, so I refused to accompany them, and soon I
was the only life form left in the lifeless desert of Karachi. My reservoir was
enough to fulfil my requirements for a year or so, but after that, I too was at
the mercy of nature.
Days passed slowly. My
huge reservoir started decreasing. I would take a daily walk through the
streets of Karachi in search of a new source of water.
One day, while on my
routine round, I found a man half-dead of thirst. I dragged him back to my
reservoir and realized that I had only a few litres left. I could have ignored
him and let him die, but I just couldn’t get myself to think that way.
I went outside and
gave that man all the water I had. He slowly gained consciousness and told me
he was a traveler. As soon as dusk fell, he left.
Now I had no water
left and my body was going dehydrating faster than usual. I thought about what
other options I had left. I soon started feeling weak. I grabbed my water
bottle and went off once again in search of water. I knew full well that there
was no one except occasional travelers. After a while of roaming, I slowly
drifted to unconsciousness. It was peaceful, and blissful.
I saw lights. I opened
my eyes to find myself in a helicopter. To my surprise, sitting next to me was
the man whom I had helped. I learnt that he was a millionaire who had wandered
into Karachi in search of survivors, but had almost died himself. Now, he was
the one who was taking me to water.
He took me to the
northern mountains where most of the world’s water was stored as glaciers. I
was taken care of and was even given a home by the community there. I finally
realized that the good does get rewarded.
Abdullah Nawaz Khan
O’ Levels 2nd Year
PakTurk International
Schools
Chak Shahzad Campus
Islamabad
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