Page 43 - Images Literary Magazine 2016 - 2017.pdf

Now, he stares blankly at her picture, puzzled. Alexei will never know his parents, he?ll never get to
Th e I n n ocen t Fish I n a Sea Fu l l of Sh arks - A W W I I N arrative experience a mother?s love, or his father?s sacrifice to ensure a bright future. Lex lost the most, an
innocent fish in a sea full of sharks.
By Th om as Goodwin , Grade 8
?KATKA! Stop standing there, and do your chores, or you?ll be out on the street!? Sister Tatiana

bellowed.
?K ATKA!? Sister Tatiana screeched through the cold air in
?Yes Ma?am,? I quietly replied.
the walls of the Mother of God, The Queen Catholic Church
in Brest, Poland. I groaned as I awakened in a dirty crowded I couldn?t argue with Sister Tatiana and go back to the little comfort I had in the crowded bedroom.
room full of young little children, most of whom were crying Usually, sixteen-year-old women like me aren?t considered children anymore. But there was no way
because of the coldness or their starvation. I?ll admit, I was that I would be separated from my family. I begged and pleaded with the Reds to let me stay with my
starving too, but if I cried like these little ones did, Sister family.
Tatiana would probably throw me out on the streets, where
?Please, Sir! They are little children! They need their big sister! My parents are dead and they have
there was no food at all. My tired blue eyes barely could
no one!? I remember crying out to General Putinov, the bulky and intimidating Soviet general. His thick
open up in the candlelit church. My blonde hair was in so
eyebrows hid his eyes, and his heavy Russian accent was evident in his rusty Polish.
many knots, it could have been considered locks of ropes
instead of hair. I stumbled out of the room in a tattered ?Your family will survive without you. Women of your age and physique are more useful working
white nightdress, and thin socks that barely insulated any than watching over their filthy Polish kin.? Putinov retorted at me.
heat that my body radiated. When the words hit, they stung deeply. A worker? How could someone be so cruel? I tried to not to

Sister Tatiana met me in the hallway. What a bitter old react, because if I did, I knew all hope would?ve been lost.
nun! With eyes like ice and a face that could turn men to ?General Putinov, please. I will do anything to be with them. Whatever it takes,? I begged.
K a t k a
stone, Sister Tatiana sometimes scared me more than the
The Russian looked at me with despise, and his goons were laughing at me behind them, probably
Soviet Army! I guess I understand that she is scared and
thinking of things that shouldn?t be thought of in a Catholic church.
hungry too, or maybe she is just hormonal, but if I wanted
to stay here, I?d have to work for her. The year was 1941, and Poland had been occupied by both the ?You filthy Poles never give up, do you? I will allow you to stay with your family if you work all day at
German Reich and Soviet Russia for over three years. I was sixteen, the oldest out of four siblings, this garbage excuse of an orphanage. You will listen to Sister Tatiana and if you do not, there will be a
and after the Soviets killed my parents, I assumed the role of guardian over my three siblings. Darius, train going to Siberia with your name on it?s first ticket.? Putinov snarled. His goons looked surprised at
my first brother was twelve years old and is probably the most hopeful out of all us. ?We will be their general?s mercy. If I ever get out of this place, those fools are the first on my list to spit on.
home soon! Mama and Papa are working too! Just like us!? Darius constantly told me. I just wish I had
So, I can?t escape Sister
the courage to tell him what really happened. How I could I just lie to him like this? Instead of
Tatiana, one mess up with her,
confessing the truth, I told my brothers and sister that our parents were working for the Red Army.
K a t k a I?m on a one-way trip to Siberia
The thought of telling them what really happened, the brutal murders that occurred, haunted me to
to become frozen meat.
the point of horrifying nightmares that kept me awake all night. After Darius was my only sister
Valentina, or Vali. She was 10 years and 68 pounds of pure and fiery determination and wit. Vali is ?Sweep the floors. Wash the
the only reason why I laugh nowadays. In the worst of times, she can make them just the slightest bit pots. But first, take this and go
better. She too is unaware of what happened to my parents, but she?s too busy coming up with plans buy new rags for you and those
to kill Stalin to remember. filthy Poles upstairs.? Sister
Tatiana snorted.
?All we have to do is just take Sister Tatiana?s homemade porridge and feed it to him! I?ll tell you
Katka, a piece of me dies every time I eat that concoction. Stalin will be gone within minutes!? Vali Did I forget to mention that
exclaimed to me one day in the kitchens. she?s Russian too? She handed
me ten z?oty.
I laughed so hard, my stomach ached for hours afterward. Thank the Lord Sister Tatiana didn?t
hear us, that woman can?t hear a bomb exploding even if she tried. Finally, there was our precious My surprised look of
little Alexei or Lex for short. He was only four years old, and already his short life is full of fear and disbelief was noticed by Sister
pain. My poor baby brother doesn?t even remember our parents anymore. When he heard my Tatiana who meanly said, ?Oh
mother?s voice, his eyes popped out of his head and a smile as wide as Sister Tatiana appeared on yes I forgot, you Poles have
his face. never seen money before,
NOW GO!? Art by Allison Levenduski, Grade 8