Isabella Jiménez

Survival Project

My friends and I were invited to my best friends country house, which was a few hours
outside of the city, to enjoy the long weekend. I took a long stroll in the woods to clear
my mind because of all the caos that was going on in my friends property. Despite the
fact that it was freezing outside, the only thing I could think about was how angry we
were all with one another. My phone's battery eventually ran out of charge, but I stayed
very calm and continued to jog because I believed I knew how to get back. I found this
to be quite therapeutic, and as the hours passed, I started to feel much better, so I
decided to make my way back. However, it felt like I was heading in the wrong direction.
I was in the middle of nowhere, didn't know the way back, and had no way to contact
anyone, so I was getting impatient and very desperate.

I kept crying nonstop for what felt like hours, and I didn't even notice when I fell asleep. I
woke up as the sun rose and I was very hungry, confused, cold and dehydrated, but I
had lots of hope that I would find my way back. After lots of walking and thinking, I
realized that I had to come up with a plan in order to survive, so I started looking for a
lake or a pond, as well as sticks and dry leaves. I eventually came across a small pond
and I was so thirsty that I started drinking water without contemplating how my body
would respond. I spent hours trying to start a fire with a few sticks and leaves, and
although one of my problems was solved, I still had other worries to solve. So, I
grabbed a long stick to use as a fishing rod, and just as I was ready to give up, I
managed to catch a medium-sized fish and I placed it on top of the fire. Until all of the
sudden I began to hear people’s voices, so I ran until I heard the voices closer. It was a
young couple, so I spoke with them and explained the situation to them. They let me
use their phone to call my friends and when I got in touch with them, they told me that
my  friend's country house was quite far from where I was, but they got to where I was
as soon as possible. I was extremely happy to see my friends and they were equally
happy to see me, even though we were only apart for a day.

This tragic experience taught me that it is extremely dangerous to just run away, and it
also changed the way I view life, making it less materialistic. I now understand that
everything else in life is simply a luxury and that the only things I actually need to
survive are water, shelter, and food. Huge amounts of clothing and technology aren't
nearly as necessary as the other things I've already mentioned. This also made me
value more the moments I have with my loved ones because being on your own is very
challenging. It’s very shocking for me to say this knowing that before, I wouldn’t put my
phone down for a single minute and when I did, it felt like I was going to die.