Stones of the Diamonds

How can anyone forget the most adventurous and important moments of their lives? Some examples would be the day you broke the world record, traveled all around the world, or found treasures buried in your own backyard. But for me, my most important moment hasn't come yet. However, I can feel it's close, very close. In fact, it might happen just tomorrow…

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A voice whispered in my ear. It was so silent, at first I couldn't even make out the words. But as it grew louder, I could tell what that voice was trying to tell me and who it belonged to.

"Dalki, wake up! Come on, Dal, wake up already!"

"Five more minutes...no, five more hours..."

"Dalki, come on! You've got to see this, quickly!"

"What, Carine?!" I grunted as I got up from my hammock in my room made out of safe leaves of all kinds, mostly from banana trees. A girl my age stood in front of me with strawberry blond hair, blue eyes, and a friendly grin. She was wearing a casual dress made out of silk and flowers, some bracelets and bangles made of cattails, and faded sandals. This girl is my best friend, Carine Foxtails.

"What on Earth was all of that about?" I complained, rubbing my eyes, yawning at the same time. "Did you really have to make such a racket, Carine? Why are you in my house, anyway?" This was our usual morning.

My name is Dalki (pronounced Dal-kee) Sunstone. Dalki means "Strawberry" in Korean, so you can say that my name is Strawberry Sunstone. I know my name is not the best name in the world, with unusual words, but because my ancestors were Korean, my parents named me Dalki, meaning "A strawberry is small, but it has mighty powers and can handle anything with pure faith." I can often be found wearing similar clothes to Carine's and maybe some rock anklets or T-shirts and jeans for a new look. I have blue-black hair, dark brown eyes, and always have on a silly mood.

"You are so cruel!" Carine joked. "It was just a prank, not even a prank! I do it almost every morning, you know!"

"Blah, blah, blah blah blah blah, blah, blah, blah!" I yawned again. "Anyway, what was that thing you wanted to show me?"

"Oh yeah, I almost forgot!" my friend cried, slapping her forehead dramatically. "I found something at home I want to show you; it’s really mysterious."

Carine and I walked out of my small house in a few minutes after I got changed and grabbed a quick snack. I left a small message on a post-it alerting that I would be at Carine’s place, then went up to her house together.

The village I lived in was very small, with little houses made up of clean wood, lots of shady leaves, and several boulders and stones, supporting the weight of the structures. Many people first gathered together and became good companions, then formed a clan. The reason why our clan doesn't live in an urbanized area is because we do not like the busy streets, people, and traffic, and we find it easier to make a village of our own as well. So our grandfathers and the elders, who believed that living peacefully in a group together, would prevent quarrels and arguments, found many places for us to live on the Earth, but none of the places seemed quite right. However, the place we were staying, right here, was the perfect place for us, I could tell. It had a magnificent glow of happiness and liberty embracing the village with love, protecting us. As far as I know, there hasn’t been a home for a clan as wonderful as this one for nearly a century.

Our village was quite small, but I guess some people could say it was pretty large. It was made up of many townspeople, the elders, some of our oldest ancestors, babies, children, doctors and nurses, teachers, dentists, merchants, and numerous others with great occupations who are very important in our lives. Together, we were like a family – we support and encourage each other in devastation.

Our special home looked very modern, believe it or not; some may even say it was sophisticated and lovely. The village was very clean and healthy, the people who live here are kind and caring, and the teachers and doctors are generous, always trying their best to help us. There were several small waterfalls surrounding the place as well as a lot of handy plants and weeds nearby we could use for medicine and food. There was also a big pond with a variety of animals my friends and I likde to play with and investigate. Although our home was more rural than urban, many of the homes had various electronic devices – computers, television, and of course, phones. However, many children and teens preferred to use our natural world as games, analyzing the many creatures upon the earth and just learning from our experiences.

Carine and I walked into her house, which was right next door to mine. We went up a few wooden stairs to Carine's room, which, almost like mine, had a collection of unique items, and sat down on her strawberry red bed. Carine’s open closet, I could see, was filled with a jumble of clothes including colorful hoodies, skirts, and tops while her desk lay cluttered with our homework from school the previous night, as well as an assortment of writing supplies. Many glass figures, which my friend collected, also lay neatly in order on top of her tiny cabinet with a small lock.

"So, what have you got to show me?" I asked casually, but my heart hammering with excitement. It wasn’t everyday Carine found something rare.

"You'll see," Carine giggled excitedly. “It’s just so cool! I mean, I can’t believe it’s actually one of my possessions now!"

My best friend swiftly opened up her wooden cabinet with a key she took out of the pocket of her dress and pulled out a battered looking notebook. It had small creases of folds on the inside paper, I noticed, along with a small signature placed upon the cover of the book. Furthermore, there was a golden chain attached to the notebook as well, which appeared to be a peculiar bookmark, and it looked so glamorous against the leathery brown cover of the book, shimmering slightly. I had no idea what it was about that notebook, but the small object took my whole breath away, leaving an expression of awe upon my face. Carine seemed to notice, as she smirked triumphantly.

"What is that?" I wanted to know, still staring at the old notebook.

"It's a diary I found near our special hiding spot behind the biggest waterfall. You know, the one where all the villagers go to when there's a meeting and stuff? Well, I was just walking around in there, taking a walk because I was bored, just watching the waterfall crash onto the rocks when I spotted this journal in a corner!" Carine whispered, her eyes wide. She added for good measure, “Don’t worry, I was as shocked as you were when I first laid my eyes on the book – you’re not mental. Something about it’s so enchanting, isn’t it?”

"Yeah, really mystical… so beautiful at the same time. Something about it just takes over your mind…” I murmured, bursting with curiosity. "Wow, I can’t believe it - when did you find it? Whose diary is it?"

"You'll never guess," Carine replied, grinning.

"WHOSE IS IT?" I was bursting to know.

"Shh, be quiet! I don’t want anyone else to know for now. But since you’re one of my best friends, of course I’ll tell you; this diary actually belongs to -"

Just then, we were interrupted as we heard a sudden shout from outside. After quickly rushing to the window, Carine and I observed a villager – we recognized him as the wood cutter – sprinting towards our town as fast as possible, shouting about something. He was practically yelling his head off when he at last reached the elders' houses. We saw our wisest elder, Roundel, come out of one of the homes and listen to the villager, his expression unfathomable. A few minutes later, we heard theRoundel’s booming voice over the murmuring of the crowd that had gathered.

"We have dangerous news!" the elder shouted to the crowd. "There is a hazardous forest fire coming our way. We have plenty of water from the waterfalls and the pond to put off it. We need everyone's help! Villagers, you must warn the others; warn everybody! We all need to pitch in and save our village, the most precious home we have ever had!"

Carine’s and my eyes got wide. I could see fear in hers and felt it in mine. Surely there could not be a forest fire, absolutely not where our home was planted? What was this all about? Our village has never, ever had a wildfire before. Was this a warning? Or was this a blessing in disguise? The only thing I could think of right now, though, was this: We have to save the village, and fast, for time doesn’t last forever.