It was an extremely hot and humid day. The sun was beating down our backs as we made the ascend to the top of the mountain. All of the kids, from ages nine to seventeen, were getting weary and parched. It seemed like we were baking in the sun! Our mouths were dry and our tongues stuck to the roofs of our mouths. Suddenly, from up ahead, we heard a painful SNAP! And then our mountain guide yelped, “My foot! It’s broken! The pain! It‘s utterly unbearable!”
I immediately dashed up towards the front of the group, and being assigned the job of carrying the first aid kit, I yanked it open, took out the gauze, and wrapped it tightly around the broken foot. It was already beginning to swell. Our guide, Robert, looked me straight in the eye, and said, “We are going to be stranded here for a while. My radio isn’t working, and there isn’t cell phone service out here in the mountains.” I nodded dumbly, and continued working on his foot.
A couple of hours had passed, and some of the older kids were becoming impatient. They thought that they could find their way back down the mountain without Robert. I told them to stop being ignorant and stubborn. Even though Robert couldn’t get us down the mountain, he knew how to keep us safe, and was experienced at what to do if something should happen that could potentially threaten our lives. My peers still weren’t convinced and the younger kids were looking at me eagerly, as if waiting for me to say more, but instead, I threw my arms up in the air, fuming that they wouldn’t listen to me, and stalked off, frustrated.
Later, I checked back to where I had left my peers, and discovered them missing. Robert was concerned about their safety, and was worrying aloud about being able to find them. As a last hope, he tried the radio again, and it miraculously went through. He the base camp about his broken foot, and how five kids had wandered away on their own, thinking that they could find a better way down. The base camp operator muttered something inaudible, and Robert hung up the radio.
“They are sending help,” he said simply.
The people from the base camp found us in record time, and we slowly made our descent down the mountain.
When we finally reached the base camp, the workers there got Robert some crutches for his foot, and gave us the news that the other five kids had still not shown up. Without delay, Robert scuttled inside the building, and came out with a rescue team. I told the rescuers where the kids had started down the mountain, and what direction I thought they might’ve been going. They thanked me, and started off to find them.
We waited in silence for the return of the rescuers, or some news of the kids. It seemed as though everyone was holding their breath, because when we heard the first twig snap, everyone sighed. A group of people emerged from the dark, eerie woods; the rescue team, and the five children who had gone off on their own. The kids looked exceedingly dirty, with grit, grime, and dirt plastered on their arms and legs. They had pieces of broken twigs tangled in masses of hair. Overall, it looked like they needed a long bath! They walked over to Robert, with their feet dragging the ground, and apologized for leaving. Then they came over to me, and told me that I was right. It wasn’t worth it to leave our camp, because they got hopelessly lost. I was smiling inside, but on the outside, I put on a grim face, and said, “I’m glad you finally see my point, even if it is a little late.”
I felt absolutely magnificent knowing that those kids had looked up to me whenever I was arguing with my peers. They had supported me the entire time and that felt good. It is important for people (especially children) to respect their elders. They, more than likely, have more common sense than we do, and much more wisdom. They know what we are going through, because they have been through it before, and know what advice to give.
A perfect example of this would be elephants. Their leader is the oldest female, because she has the most knowledge, and knows what to do in almost every situation.
But oh well, because I needed new shoes and some new clothes, sooo. Oh wellllll!!!! 
).