10/22/96
                                  The Enemy
      Need to hide. Hide. Where??? Where could I hide? Searching  wildly,  I
saw nowhere safe to go. Dadump. Dadump. My heart thumped faster  and  faster
as my time dwindled rapidly. Dadump. Dadump. Forcing my legs to move, I  ran
with everything I had left. I was losing. I couldn't hide,  and  I  couldn't
run. Ahhh. It was surrounding me, seemingly teasing me. I had nowhere to  go
and it was laughing at me! Cursing it, I prayed for my impending doom to  be
quick and painless. Unfortunately, I knew that it wouldn't.
      Dadump. Dadump. It seemed harmless enough. And that  is  exactly  what
it wanted everyone to believe, but it didn't fool me. No! Even  my  parents,
my teachers, and everyone I knew had been  lying  to  me!  But  I  knew  the
truth; I would not be tricked by a lie any  longer!  Sure,  it  would  begin
pretending to be friendly and benign, but it would spread and  spread  until
every part of my body was at its mercy.  Cell  by  cell,  it  would  conquer
using its insidious methods. It was ready to mercilessly make me  its  slave
the moment I gave in to temptation. The thousands of captives,  it  enslaved
each day, were unconditionally controlled by it. No, I would not  fall  into
its grasp! I had to be victorious! With renewed vigor, I  dizzily  stood  up
prepared to defend against the attacker. I was ready!
      Or so I thought. A  barrage  of  grotesque  images  flooded  my  brain
overwhelming my  senses.  Factories  spewing  putrid  smoke,  teens  smoking
disgusting cigarettes, and the minuscule bacteria from biology,  all  pushed
their way simultaneously into my head. Shuddering,  I  recalled  the  deadly
effects of pollution. I felt like spilling the contents of my  stomach,  but
the thought of vomiting made me even sicker of my situation.  Why  me?  What
did I do? Dadump. Dadump. I saw the doctor hovering over  me.  His  spotless
white coat contrasted greatly with my present mood. I wanted to  laugh,  but
I could not find the strength. No! A sharp blade  was  aimed  right  at  me.
Help! I longed to shut my eyes to this terror, but my  body  was  unable  to
comply. The blade inched closer and closer. I watched  the  blade  touch  my
skin, easily making an incision. What  was  the  doctor  doing?  What???  My
lungs! No! No, not that one; that was my favorite one! I wanted to cry,  but
I fell to the ground, knowing it was hopeless.
Helpless and weak, I waited for the inevitable. Dadump. Dadump.  Taking  one
last swing at the untouchable adversary, I fell to the ground  exhausted.  I
could not stand it anymore. Maybe I'll win next time. I took a deep breath.