"The Island of Hope" by Knox Brown (Washington County)
In the beginning, there was darkness, and a bitter cold that would bite your tongue and gnaw on it. There was no light; there was no happiness, nor was there any scrap or piece of food to be spared. It was full of hatred and despair. Evil spirits filled the air. But in the dusk of it all, there was a boy called Hope.
Hope was a child of wonder and courage. He would often explore the island catching food but mostly looking out and enjoying the world he was in. Like I said before, the island they lived on was bitter, and cold and mean but Hope, being the child that he was, tried to look for all the good in it.
In the warm times, the folk would hunt for fish in the water. They didn't have anything to catch the fish, so they’d catch it with their bare hands. Often, the fish would slip right out of their grasp. The people were hungry. When Hope saw this, he knew he had to help, but he didn’t know how. At least not yet he didn’t.
One day while wandering the land, he stopped to admire a big beautiful tree. While looking at it, he saw what looked to be another boy climbing through the branches of the tree, but the boy looked different. He didn’t look...physical. He looked as if he were made of a dark mist. At first, Hope didn’t know if what he was seeing was real. Then suddenly, he heard a snap! Some branches came tumbling down with the mist boy. Hope could see him clearly now. He was made of mist, but had all of the features of a boy. He walked closer; the mist boy didn’t move. His white phantom eyes stared at him for a moment. The mist boy was still sitting on the ground where he had fallen. Hope was a generous child. Finally, he helped the mist boy up.
Hope wasn't sure if a boy made of mist was going to be able to grab onto his hand, but when he did, his hand felt cold. He had no skin, but still Hope could feel the pressure of it. The mist boy stood up, and bowed to Hope. Hope bowed back.
A boy made of mist…
Hope looked at the branches that fell. He was a creative child. An idea struck him like lightning! He knew how to solve the fish problem!
The next few weeks, Hope and the mist boy, who Hope had named Mist, worked hard to try and make something they called a basket. After trying and failing, and trying and failing again, it was finished! When they tried it out in the water, it worked like a charm; the basket was full of fish! The folk saw this and though they were unfriendly, they were fascinated by Hope’s work, and wanted one for themselves. Hope promised to make them all one, and they cheered in excitement that they would finally have something to eat. That was just the beginning of Hope and Mist’s discoveries.
During the time of hunger, a.k.a, winter, the water froze, and no fish could be caught. The folk starved, and many died of hypothermia or hunger. Hope was a child of courage, and again he couldn’t bear to see these people freeze and go hungry, so he devised a plan. He would climb to the tippiest top of the biggest mountain, and grab the brightest star he could see. The light of the star would bring grace to the folk, and no one would be cold anymore. The folk would be happy.
He put on his warmest coat that was made from sheep's wool that he and Mist had crafted, and for a full day they both climbed the mountain. The snow and wind blew strongly down on them. It was so cold that Hope’s skin turned as white as the snow. He would’ve given up before he even reached halfway, but when he remembered the folk freezing cold and hungry, he got right back on his feet and climbed some more. The star would make the folk warm. It would make them happy.
His hands, numb and raw, slowly grabbed onto the hard and sharp rocks. They were scraped and bruised all over. He cried out from all the pain. Mist couldn't feel the pain, nor the harsh temperature; alas he was only mist really, but he did feel Hope’s agony. He put his hands on Hope’s and warmed them with all the power he had. His hands were still scuffed, but Hope knew what Mist’s intention was. He was helping him, because he was his friend, and Hope was ready to reach the top.
He brought forth all the courage he had and finished the climb. They had done it; they were finally at the top! But there was a problem, they were not high enough to reach the stars. Instead of whimpering and giving up, Hope sought out a way to reach up. He took sight of his friend, that’s when it hit him. You see, they weren’t high enough to reach the stars, but they were high enough to reach the clouds, so in a moment of bravery, Hope took Mist’s hand and jumped off the mountain to a nearby cloud. Hope shut his eyes tight, and when he opened them, there they were, standing on a big soft cloud! Then they jumped to another and another, until finally, they could almost reach the stars. Hope took one more big leap, reaching for the brightest star in the sky. Wind danced under his feet, and he squinched from the brightness. He almost didn’t make it, but then, in a moment of a striving attempt, Mist grabbed his reaching arm, and raised it up higher. Then Hope felt it. The warmness of it healed his entire body. Hope had grabbed the star!
The folk awoke from the brightness, and looked up to see Hope in the air, a star in his hand. It glowed so brightly that they had to cover their eyes. At first they couldn’t comprehend it. Hope had made baskets from branches that were once used to hit someone with when they were trying to steal your food, now they’re used to collect food. How could Hope have climbed the rough and snowy mountain all by himself?
“People of cold and hunger, hear my voice,” Hope yelled loud and proudly from the sky, the shimmering magnum opus in his hand.” My name is Hope. With my friend Mist, we have climbed the mountain to retrieve the brightest star in the sky to warm you and fill your bellies. You will never have to live in the dark again as long as you’re able to embrace the beauty of the light!”
The folk all cheered, “Hooray!” Hope floated down with Mist and the star. The heat, so warm and wonderful, made the folk see things more lightly. From there on out, things were a lot different on the island. For starters, the folk were a lot kinder, and Hope and Mist’s idea of a wool coat made it easier for the folk to hunt in the wintertime. They shared their food with those who couldn’t always get some, and they opened their eyes to see all the possibilities that could happen.
The summer after Hope and Mist had brought the star to land, the folk had decided to build a temple for them. It would be placed on the top of the mountain that Hope and Mist had climbed. Seeing a new angle of things paid off, and they found a way to make stairs so they didn’t have to climb the mountain every time. It took back-breaking labor, and every time they had thought of giving up, they remembered Hope’s story. They kept building until it was finished.
The temple was called the Temple of Hope by the folk, because though Hope had sworn that a boy made of mist existed, nobody but Hope could see him. Nonetheless, in the invention of stained glass, the builders had made a colossal mosaic at the front. Painted on the window was a hand reaching for the stars and another hand holding it up.
Years after the journey for the star, Hope and Mist said goodbye to the folk to travel the seas and find new civilization. Years went by, but Hope and Mist never returned. The folk feared that Hope had abandoned them, but one day, while an astronomer was mapping the stars, he found a new constellation that he had never seen before. Up above, streaked across the sky, there laid a constellation of a hand reaching up high. Holding onto the arm was a helping hand of grace. Perhaps from a boy with a misty face.
Hope was gone, never to be seen again. No one knows how he died, because they never found his body. Some people speculate that the dust of his bones rose to the sky, and that’s how the constellation came to be. Mist on the other hand, lived on to see another day. Maybe he was only here to guide the boy for a while until someone else came. A podium was built in the temple of Hope. Roses, the favorite flower of the boy, were placed on it. People grieved, but when they looked up at the sky and found the constellation, they remembered. They remembered that there’s hope. Not just a boy with a friend made of mist but hopefulness in a dark time.
The story, of course, does not end there. There was a girl who sat on a beach with a friend made of fog, and a boy with a mind only the haze could respond to. When the folk traveled through boats, they found new people of different shapes and colors. They too gave them a new way of thinking. New inventions were made; people made violins for the bliss and harmony of music, and then they came up with plays and dances. Centuries passed after the journey of the star. A lot of things had changed. People still don’t know if the boy, Mist, was real or not, but some people reported seeing them. People made of shadows, mist, and dark hues walked through the village, living life just like the rest of them.
Off the coast of Greece, there lies an island called Hope. That’s because of a boy named Hope and his friend who was made of mist. They decided to do what no one else could, and the island was never the same again...
KNOX BROWN is an eighth grade student from Perry, Maine. For a few years now, Knox woke up with the same question on their mind: “What do I have hope for?” It’s a simple question, really. Usually the answer to that question would be, “I have hope that the stories I write will one day have an impact on someone.” Knox thanks all the days they didn’t have hope, for inspiring them to write this story, and their good friend, Roy, for being their Mist that they most definitely needed.