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ESCAPE
FROM VIETNAM Page 13 The
sixth day at sea God must have heard my and everyone's prayers on the boat. Early in the morning of the sixth day, it rained moderately for about an hour. Everyone who still had some energy grabbed every container they could find to collect the rain water. I was quick enough to collect four large cups of water to drink. I never knew rain water could taste so good. After satisfying my thirst, I brought the cups to my cousin and her children. The rain last just long enough for everyone on the boat to get something to drink. We were also able to collect about 5 gallons of water to save for the rest of the journey. The
seventh day at sea The optimism of the previous day faded quickly as the food started to run low. The share of rice everyone got just became a little smaller. After the thirst was satisfied, the hunger became more dominant. I tried hard to not think of food, but found it was impossible to get the thought out of my mind. We started seeing some ships in the horizon but could never got close to them. At noon, we came close to a very large ship. As we approached it, I could see the name "Skyline" painted on the side of the ship. The people on the boat became extremely excited. The captain gathered some white rags, and stood on the roof of the boat signaling to the ship. He was trying to signal SOS to the large ship. I didn't know if the people on the large ship saw us or not. It was almost impossible for them not to see. Nevertheless, the ship just nonchalantly passed by our boat without stopping. The size of the ship was about fifty times the size of our boat, and the waves created by its movement nearly turned our boat over. As the ship disappeared into the horizon, dejection and desperation were written on everyone's face. There went our hope for rescue and survival. There was no way that the sailors on that ship could not see us and not recognize that our situation was desperate. I finally brought myself to the realization that these people didn't want to be burdened with us. They were willing to leave us to die on our own rather than taking us in. Instead of thinking about the incident any further, I went back to sleep and conserve my energy. The
eight day at sea By the eight day, I was surprised that I was alive at all. My body felt as if someone had taken many needles and pierced every muscles that I ever had. Most of the people had given up hope. People were laying very still, quietly praying for a painless death. The atmosphere in the boat was extremely depressing. As I worked through my shifts, my arms felt as if they already lost all sensations. There was no words that I could find to describe the pain I felt every time I raised my arms. In the afternoon, the captain ran down to the cabin and excitedly told everyone that he was able to see with the help of the binocular what he thought was an island. It was the first good news we had heard in the whole week. I strained my eyes to look in the direction that the captain was pointing to, but I could see nothing. No one else on the boat could make out anything either. In addition, it was getting dark quickly. Nevertheless, the captain insisted that he saw land and he would head the boat to that direction. He estimated that it would be another eight hours at our current speed before we get there. No one argued with him. Everyone was trying to conserve their last reserve of energy, and while they were skeptical of the captain's sighting, they were too tired to argue or object to the new course. As usual, I went to sleep as soon as I finished my shifts. I wasn't in a hurry to find out whether the captain was right or not. I was more concerned about whether or not I would open my eyes the next morning. |