Lost in the Forest

"Forward march!" Sam called to his friends over his shoulder. They were in Bukit Timah on a camping trip. Sam, who had been feeling bored, had organised it. He had invited Zoe, Joe, May and Tim. Now, Sam regretted inviting Tim. Tim was an extremely mischievous boy. He was just like a tea bag, always getting into hot water. At that moment, a voice burst through his thoughts. Zoe hollered, "How far is the campsite?" as she leapt over a dead log swarming with fungi. Sam told her it was just nearby. They had agreed to camp at a particular spot. With that, they continued trekking through the thick undergrowth.

"Finally, here at last!" sighed Joe as he collapsed on the soft emerald grass. Sam barked out orders, "Okay, guys! Let's get to work. Zoe and May, you will pitch the tent. Joe, you will unpack our stuff. I will collect firewood. Well, what are you waiting for? Go! Go! Go!" As for Tim, he decided to have a nice long rest. He fished into his backpack and whipped out his sleeping bag and laid back to relax, occasionally getting up to fling a stinkbomb at the rest.

Out of the corner of his eye, he caught sight of a beautiful peacock butterfly. Being a butterfly fanatic, Tim snatched his butterfly net out of his haversack and chased the butterfly at a speed that would shame a cheetah. Back at the campsite, Sam, Joe, May and Zoe had finished their tasks and decided to go and fish. "Where is Tim?" May enquired. "Oh, forget about Tim. If he wants to play around, so be it," Sam replied. With that, they went fishing. Meanwhile, Tim finally caught the butterfly. He also realised that he had run too far away, chasing the butterfly that he did not know where he was. Tim tried not to panic and reasoned with himself, "If I came here by running forward, all I have to do is to go backward." He turned around and began walking forward. Tim roamed the forest for hours, trying not to panic. After a while, he realised it was inevitable, he was hopelessly lost! The sun was setting and its dying rays casted long shadows. Tim shivered and panic gripped him like a fist. He clutched the cage of his peacock butterfly tightly, it was his only company.

Back to Sam and his friends, they were having a whale of a time. They were roasting and eating the fish they had caught. Zoe had even caught a goby which she planned to keep as a pet. As they ate, they talked about teachers and school. Suddenly, Joe asked, "Where is Tim? I haven't seen him all day." "Yeah, come to think of it. I haven't seen him since he rushed off after that butterfly. I say that we should go and look for him," piped up May. Everybody agreed readily. Without hesitation, they grabbed their torches and began searching for Tim in the darkening forest. After half an hour of searching, Sam spotted a dark shape crouch in the shadows. He shone his torch on the dark shape. It was Tim! Tim was cowering on the ground and clutching a cage with a butterfly in it so hard that his knuckles had turned white. "Hey, Tim! Get up! It's me, Sam," Sam called to him. Tim looked up. When he saw Sam, he yelled with happiness and got up. They then went back to camp. They spent three more days at Bukit Timah before going home.

As for the butterfly Tim caught, it served as a reminder to him not to be so naughty again.