At last I was in Egypt, accompanied by my friend Tierra. The weather was fine. We were in Alexandria, on an educational tour of the Bibliotheque of Alexandria, the world's biggest library.
At a very quiet moment, we all heard a scream. I knew it was Tierra's voice. I saw an old man beckoning me. I went to him and he whispered, "Try to believe what cannot be believed."
I closed my eyes for a second and then he was gone. I called the police and they soon arrived at the place of Tierra's disappearance. I explained what I'd seen and heard and spent all night with them, searching for Tierra and the reason for her disappearance.
In the midst of my search I had a vision where only the old man was with me. I found myself sitting on a chair in Alexandria's library reading an ancient book, one where all the pages were blank.
Tierra was never found. For the rest of my life I dwelled on the old man's words. I am still certain that what I saw and heard that day in Alexandria did happen. But the question remains, should I believe what cannot be believed?
Tamtam M. is a 12 year old 7th grader from Alexandria, Egypt.
© 2009 Tamtam M. Original for CCF. Tamtam M. grants CCF first electronic rights for one month; CCF may archive the material indefinitely and include it in an eBook anthology.
* CCF does not publish students' last names on the work they submit for publication.