26 Friends.

I drew a deep breath as my stop began to come closer and closer. Trying to keep myself from
darkness, I drifted away to the outside world. I was fixated on the sky radiating orange hue on
the wildflowers, laying on the landscape with vibrant colours. Apple red, royal purple, and
golden yellow. They glided together with tranquility. I could hardly sense my presence inside of
this taxi, until I heard the driver's voice storming me over into a frightening suffocation.

“Where do you need to get off mam?” He asked with his heartwarming smile.

I lifted my trembling hands and pointed out to the stop that was one minute away. I used the last
bit of my strength to display a bright smile on my face. The taxi slowly moved in motion with
other vehicles on the busy road.

I forced my eyes shut, while I gritted my cheeks in frustration. Bitter emotions rumbled in my
stomach with sorrow and desolation. It destroyed everything. My serenity. My glory. My
existence. I felt the darkness dig deeper into my fragile soul. My legs bounced uncontrollably, as
the goosebumps enveloped my body. I let the agony tear down my last bit of hope. I let it
crumble me into a heartache, until the vehicle halted abruptly in front of the stop.

I covered my sorrow with a gentle smile displaying to the driver as a thank you. I took a deep
breath, as the cool breeze secured my lungs with relief and solace.

The pleasantly sweet scent of freshly cut grass covered the field of the park. I sat on a pebble
bench, as the giggles and laughter of the toddlers played a soothing rhythm into the atmosphere.
It obstructed the loud horns from the bustling streets. The cool aroma wrapped me around into
consolation, as I shuffled inside of my bag, until my hands creased over the hard surface of my
diary. I pulled out the book, and the pen connected to the book with a prolonged chain.

The blank page rustled against the screeching sound of the pen, frantically moving on the page. I
scribbled down every emotion, every thought, trapped inside of my throat. I let the pen cover the
emptiness of my voice. I let it be the power of my voice.

****
“Sometimes I swallow the words away into tears. Tears that show my anguish. Tears that show
my helplessness. It's like a rock trapped inside of my throat, blocking the words coming out of
my mouth. Sometimes I take deep breaths to keep myself afloat with the desolation. Terror
floods every nerve in my body. It floods every second. It floods every time I try to put my words
together and speak, but they still break into tears. They break into trembling lips and blurred
vision”.
 ****
“Excuse me?”, I was interpreted by a tall brunette lady. Her hair is slicked back into a high
ponytail and flawless skin shimmering to the radiance of the sun.
I smiled with warmth and joy as she stood in front of me.
“Do you know the route to a nearby bus stop?” She requested.
I abruptly ripped out a page and scribbled down the directions for her. Turn right and go straight
within a few metres you’ll see the bus stop sign. I handed the note to her and she grabbed it as her
eyebrows furrowed into confusion.

“Why don’t you just speak?” She rolled her eyes with irritation, as she flounced away to the bus
stop.

Those brutal words shattered my smile into a sudden dismay. I tried not to let those words trap
me into misery again. I took deep breaths to calm myself down. I felt the negative thoughts
stream over my serenity. Though I looked at the toddlers running around with their joyous
laughs, I felt the disappointment wrapping its blanket around me.

I looked up to the sky and I thought to myself that 26 letters is all I need. I have 26 friends to tell
myself about. I have 26 friends to share my emotions with. I have 26 friends to indulge me. Even
though I'm unable to comfort others with a reassuring voice, I'm also unable to hurt others with a
cruel voice. The words are aware of their meanings but the voice expresses themselves too
easily.

Reflection
In my imaginative piece titled “26 friends”, I aim to explore the question ……
My piece explores the concept of how writing can bring one's solace and realisation how one
doesn't need a voice to speak but all they need is 26 alphabets on a book and a pen. In my piece,
the protagonist struggles with two situations where she's unable to talk to a taxi driver and with a
lady which reveals to the reader that she's mute. However the protagonists overcome her anguish
of not being able to talk by expressing her emotions by writing in her diary with her 26 friends.

While planning my piece, I was notably drawn to stimulus 2 as it pertained to my idea of the
protagonist sitting on a pebble bench at the park and writing in her diary. Furthermore, The
Reading to Write Module allowed me to engage with a variety of stories that influenced my
writing. One story that I was particularly drawn to was “The necklace” by Guy de Maupassant,
the author’s use of visual imagery “She imagined silent antechambers, heavy with Oriental
tapestries, lit by torches in lofty bronze sockets, with two tall footmen in knee-breeches sleeping
in large arm-chairs, overcome by the heavy warmth of the stove”, this quotes has inspired me to
interpret sensory imagery into my piece. “The pleasantly sweet scent of freshly cut grass covered
the field of the park”, this lets the reader create a vivid image of the setting and the sudden relief
that the protagonist is feeling and gives the reader a deeper understanding of the story and
envelopes a connection between the text and them.

Furthermore, By incorporating the literary feature of foreshadowing, I was successfully able to

show the significance of the protagonist being mute. Through the use of this technique I was able
to give clues in two situations where the taxi driver asks where she needs to go and a lady asking
her a route and she wasn’t able to talk to them, conveying to the reader that the protagonist is
mute. I was mainly inspired by the author Guy de Mauuspant by his use of foreshadowing
throughout his text, “Madame, I’m not the one who sold this necklace, I only furnished the case”.
Additionally, I was able to effectively use foreshadowing to create a sense of curiosity and give
hints of how the protagonist is mute for the readers to be engaged with my piece.

Ultimately, I have overcome my challenge of choosing which stimulus to choose by thinking of

four pieces of writing for each stimulus and choosing the best one. Furthermore, This unit taught
me the importance of literary devices allowing me to implement such significant techniques to
craft my own writing and reach my targeted audience.