Funday Times

Short Story Competition
A whole new world
It's a new day in the Red Planet. The year 2005 has just dawned. I click 'send' in my palmtop and complete my ritual of sending e-cards every new year. I didn't forget to send one to my alien friend A1269.

I came to Mars for my higher studies last year. We can either choose to learn in the normal way or simply insert a computer chip and feed data into it. I follow the old system as the modern one is still too risky. We are learning to design a humanoid at the moment. It's been quite some time since I visited my mother planet. I think I'll pay a surprise visit on my parents today, in my new spacecraft. I got it for my 18th birthday. I don't use it much as the fuel prices are quite high. It's new year after all. I get dressed and hop into my craft.

My space craft is not much bigger than a car in the olden days. History of Earth is one of my favourite subjects. It's amazing how our ancestors lived only on Earth and even thought it to be flat! I give the directions to the computer in my craft and sit back and watch the galaxy passing by. The space and space malls are quite crowded today. I bet everyone's going about visiting each other. I stop at a pet shop to get a robot tiger cub for my little brother. My mom doesn't fancy this space stuff. Especially as they sometimes start acting strangely in the atmospheric conditions of the earth. The man at the shop guarantees that the tiger cub to be is accustomed to all conditions. I hope it is!

After a few minutes I arrive on Earth. All space crafts landing on Earth have to go through a security check. This system was established after an alien colony nearly captured planet Earth. My house is situated on the 150th floor of a building. Long ago, living in the 150th floor would have been a nightmare but now, our house is as good as one in the ground floor or better, as we even have a good view of the city.

My parents are delighted to see me. My brother starts playing with Robbie the tiger cub. We all have lunch together. We usually take pills to get nutrition but today, mom has cooked a proper meal just to keep up with old traditions. After lunch, I take my brother for a ride in my space craft. We drop in at our granny's who got a plastic heart transplant recently. Then, I say my good byes, get back into my craft and start my journey back to Mars.

It's 8.30 p.m., Earth time when I come back to Mars. I get back into college before I get punished as we aren't allowed to go about after
9 p.m. It's a pity we still follow the time of Earth on Mars. I do my homework with the help of the internet. I check e-mail. I've got a greeting card from A1269 too. It's been a nice day for me. I plan a dream in my dream maker, connect it to my forehead and strap into the space capsule for a good night's sleep.

Nusrath Maharoof
Kandy Girls' High School

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