16 Island of Discovery

CHAPTER 16 Island of Discovery When I started feeling better, I made up my mind to explore the island properly. I wanted to get to know my surroundings. Maybe it would help me to think of the island as a home and not as a place where I was trapped. It was now the dry season. I set out toward the creek where I had first rafted in with the supplies from the ship. Once I

got there, I walked along the creek until I grew tired and made my way back. There were lots of plants I didn't know, so I took samples back to camp with me. I also found plants that I did know, like aloe. I was quite proud of my discoveries! I walked even farther the next day. The thriving green land turned into a thick wooded forest. There were large trees heavy with ripe fruit. There were melons and grapevines! I couldn't believe how bountiful the trees and vines were. I decided to camp out in the grove for the night, so up I went into a good, solid tree and fell asleep. The morning was bright and clear. I followed the same path and continued north. There I found an opening to a fresh, green, flourishing packet of land. It was magnificent. It looked just like a planted garden. The lime and lemon trees were in bloom, just like the melon trees and the

grape vines. There were cocoa and orange trees there, too, but they were bare. I picked as much of the ripe fruit as I could possibly carry. I walked back toward the first grove I found. I decided to take some grapes home, too. It took me a very long time to get back to camp. By the time I arrived, Shippy was barking—he was very happy to see me. After all, I had been gone for three days! Much to my dismay, I discovered that the grapes had gotten crushed on the walk home. The limes and lemons were fine, though. I poured a nice cool drink of water, and then added the fruit. It was truly wonderful. When I set out the next day, I carried two bags with me so I could gather more fruit. Instead of taking the grapes home, I picked them and hung them on the branches of other trees so they could dry into raisins. Then, I filled up my bags with more fruit and

made my way back to camp. My raisins turned out extremely well and they were quite delicious. I had even built a small shelter in the valley—I called it my summer home! I had now been on the island for one whole year. The anniversary was an unhappy day for me. I spent most of it thinking about all that had passed. The last sentence I wrote in my journal that year was: "How much longer will I be here?"