KENZIE Avey, 11, from Cummertrees Primary, pictured, was the winner of the Annan Rotary Young Writers competition for 2023/24.
Here’s her story, titled ‘Rebuilding’:
ONCE there was a forestry, a beautiful rainforest called the Amazima. In this rainforest was every animal, every plant to ever be known. Bright colours, tasty berries, it was almost magical!
A young couple discovered it on a camping trip and told people about its untouched beauty.
But because it was so pretty people wanted to go there. People from all over the world came to see this spectacular sight. At first the animals had never seen humans before so they got spooked easily, but as time went on they grew to like the company of the tourists.
Of course, not every animal liked the people but they were often animals like manatees, who could lurk in the water, or parrots, who could soar overhead.
But, as time went on, people did not want to see the marvellous rainforest. No, people did not want to only be there for an hour or so, they wanted to stay, make a life there, have a family there.
So, after seeing how many people wanted to stay there, builders came to make a small village. Few houses, no cars and a few shops. This went splendidly, the rainforest brought new life in the spring, warmth and humidity in the summer and a shelter for its people in the autumn. But, as the autumn turned to winter, a storm brewed, people were extremely cold and bored, the houses’ straw roofs flew off and the bicycles were iced up.
Soon the people realised that they needed more protection, straw and wooden houses were not working, they needed metal or bricks and slates for the roofs. So, the small village turned into a large town with roads, cars, pollution and jobs.
And, of course, as people saw the gorgeous, modern houses with a jaw-dropping view, they wanted to live there too. So, the large town turned into a city. But because most of the land had building on it, there became less and less of a rainforest.
Animals left due to the noise and lack of habitat, the plants stopped growing so vividly as instead of moist soil underneath them there was pipes and concrete. Without the view the city was just like any other, so the people, like the plants and animals, started disappearing. They had found somewhere better to go.
After a while the plants started taking over again, the animals realised the sound had died down, no-one was shouting on phones or noisily mowing their lawns. So they started coming back, not all of them at once, but if you listened closely you would hear the bees buzzing, the dolphins squeak or the monkeys chattering.
Soon the Amazima was back as it had been years ago, but this time it was more: more varied species of animals, additional types of plants, bright, light and dark colours, and not just tasty berries but delicious fruit and vegetables too!
The same young couple who had discovered Amazima came back to see what it was now. They were no longer young, but an old, joyful couple instead. They were incredibly delighted to see it was beautiful again, but instead of telling people about its resurrection, they kept quiet this time, realising their mistake from the first time, so all remained peaceful.
