Day 7

Day 7
We only just got back to camp and have been worked even harder than before and now they want us to go into a major battle! At first I couldn’t believe what I was hearing, thoughts whirled through my mind. Would I have to shoot someone, would I go alone, where were we going, what would we be doing? All these thoughts and more just seemed to pile up. It was too much. When I found out that we would be going down to the river to hold our position for the others to get here the next day my heart sank even lower. My heart told me to be scared but my mind told me to be a soldier and stop this. The only comfort I found was that Lolo and Ignacio were in my group as well. Captain Mendoza called us and told us our mission. We packed quickly and we were off. I found another comfort on the road. Most of the men in the group were very experienced men. So I knew I wasn’t walking off with a bunch of newbie’s. By the time we actually got to the river it was to dark to see all the way across. Lolo and I got positioned together behind a log. The sergeant told us to watch the river and listen for boats that may be coming down it. We sat there for quite a bit of time before we heard anything. Lolo and I listened but it was only a jaguar. Only a few minutes past before Lolo heard some boats. My mind raced would I have to kill someone now or would I chicken out again. Time was running out the sergeant had told us wait for his shot then shoot. I heard the shoot and decided to shoot. Those few seconds, where I saw the black form I had shot fall into the water, felt like an eternity. But the sound of Lolo’s shot brought me back. I kept firing watching form after form fall into the water. When it was all over the captain took us off our shift to let us sleep. Lolo seemed to get to sleep so easily. But me I just laid there thinking about what had just happened.

Picture site:http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/2007-02-05-child-soldiers_x.htm