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Compartment 114
Compartment 114
Dog Sledding in North Pole

Dog Sledding in North Pole

A Poem by Zypy Kirubi

Dog Sledding in North Pole

Icecaps are visible from the sky through the twin-engine airliner’s window. Huge glaciers, like clouds, cover miles and miles of land down below and the fog skimming their surface makes it hard to see clearly.

Beatrice has being coveting to experience the extreme cold weather, below -60 degrees Fahrenheit, yet her heart is beating fast; faster than she can breathe.

Going to a cold place is definitely not her cup of tea, she reflects.

At seventeen, she has never being in a cold extreme environment but her desire to ride dog sledges in North Pole is not on an easy street.

Her two younger brothers, Steve and Albie, are tagging along; they dislike to disturb her for she finds joy in reflecting on everything she observes.

 

She stands no chance of approaching her destination with a white-livered attitude, but wait...did she forget her Febrifuge? Oh no! She will die of frostbite!

A sudden chill runs through her body.

She can feel tingling in her fingers and toes.

The cold weather is a hardliner especially to her feeble skin.

Her greatcoat and single pair of mitts will combat the harsh winds and subdue any imperious fever; she reflects.

 

The plane touches ground...Whoosh!

 

She struggles to stay hard hearted and ward off sullen mood but she can't.

It's impossible.

She is fearful the cold will reduce her to nothing.

She wants her hardihood back.

She wants to go back to Kenya where temperatures are higher, around 80 degrees Fahrenheit.

It is already too late.

The extreme cold cuts through her nose, ears and fingers like a sharp knife.

There is an ache at the back of her neck, then a twinge.

The Lachrymose cold is booking her one way Train ticket to Netherworld yet she just landed in Spitsbergen, North Pole.

Ahead of her, a middle aged woman holds tightly to her baby; the woman seems impassive and normal in a way that feels disturbing.

 A child? In the North Pole? Quite perplexing; indeed it's a jape.

 

Tourists wait in line for the airport bus. Most of them carry skies and must be professional skiers.

The bus pulls in and the crowd huddles at the doorway; She's careful not to drop her luggage.

Once onboard, the drive along the icy roadway is not easy.

She can see nothing through the window but snow and ice and no vegetation. White and bright Mountains surround her from all sides making Spitsbergen town look like an immurement.

It's a no man's land.

 

Settlements are few and spaced out; the houses elevated to avoid destroying the existing permafrost. Most of them have pyramid and cone shaped roofs. The streets are empty and as silent as a grave.

 A dark smoke rises off the coal factory's long Smokestack to the south. The factory's flue is scintillating corpuscles of invisible harmful gasses into the air. The people of Spitsbergen don’t seem to care about Pollution, she reflects.

 

Early explores had to face extreme conditions when they set forth on their expeditions to the coldest regions on earth.

 

The bus heads for a dog station on a steep hillock, at the outskirts of town. The dogs stand, waiting outside their underground burrows.

Again, she is nervous.

She hesitates at the thought of coming close to dogs. It's her weakness since she was seven. A neighbor’s dog had always attempted to bite her with its serrated teeth, on her way to school.

The idea of being hauled by dogs on snow makes her shiver. They might attack her; she worries.

 

The bus stops at the open station and she stares at the dogs chained at their even lines.

Each is tied to its own Igloo.

The instructions are crystal clear; everybody has to take turn to bring the dogs out of their burrows and not let them get on each other.

Her worry is to not let the dogs get on her.

She cannot think straight; she feels brainsick.

 

Her partner kindly takes the lead on picking the first dog for their sledge.

It is not clear how many minutes she stands in blurred confusion while everybody else is getting into the action.

Then, tensed, her legs in hurly-burly, she walks slowly towards the wooden gate.

It dawns on her that she is actually walking towards the mean dogs.

She gathers some phony confidence and approaches the first dog but the urge to pee is intense.

She murmurs the Lord's Prayer and the rest she does out of willingness to accomplish the task.

 A relief; she reflects.

 

The dogs are barking and jumping as if they are about to compete in a race. Slowly, she releases the dog carts' brakes and the next things she can see are the huge White Mountains on both sides of the long trail.

 Her toe nails begin to burn in extreme cold and her face cannot withstand the harsh wind that is blowing from North to South creating icicles on her eyelashes.

The first few minutes are hopeful but as they turn into hours, she becomes less and less assured.

The challenge causes a feeling of de ja vu.

The trail is endless; she reflects.

 

Every second passes with difficulty.

Her body starts with Lumbago then severe twinge in her limbs.

As sure as camels have humps, she is in tears.

She feels like a guillotine is working on her limbs.

She is about to die; she reflects

 

Suddenly, the sledge in front of her overturns and her two brothers riding on it roll on ice while the dogs run, barking ahead of them.

The boys quickly get up and chase their sledge in the midst of guffaw.

She laughs and cries.

Everybody else is laughing.

A nepenthe.

If her dog cart happens to overturn, God forbid, she can die; she reflects.

 

 The challenge is not yet over; there are eight more miles to cover.

 

 

© 2011 Zypy Kirubi


Author's Note

Zypy Kirubi
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Featured Review

Welcome to WC! This is an interesting story that drew me in so I too was shivering in that brutal cold.

Perhaps if you post this as a "Short Story" it will be read by many who don't care much for poetry. It is a good story worth reading. Thanks for sharing.

Posted 13 Years Ago


1 of 1 people found this review constructive.




Reviews

"This is a most excellent story. Your character drew me in with her observations and emotions and memories. I enjoyed this very much. Thank you for sharing :)"

Judy, I am happy that you enjoyed the story. Thank you for reading and reviewing it. ^Much appreciated ;p


Posted 13 Years Ago


This is a most excellent story. Your character drew me in with her observations and emotions and memories. I enjoyed this very much. Thank you for sharing :)

Posted 13 Years Ago


Dream D, Thanks for your input..i appreciate! yeah it's a story for sure! I will have to change the format and the category later. ;p

Posted 13 Years Ago


Hey, welcome to the cafe. :) wow long long poem. well good flow, nice write. I agree with the other reviews it is like a story type. i do like it tho. Made me feel cold.. im always freezing tho. Good write! Good Job!

Posted 13 Years Ago


1 of 1 people found this review constructive.

Thank you Linear! haha i understand. It takes time to read it all but thanks again for your efforts. I will try to look him up ;p

Posted 13 Years Ago


A story for sure, and I rarely read online stories and so though I have read most of this Im sorry to say I did not complete it, You should perhaps read it through slowly and correct the few minor errors, over all I think It's quite good, but as I said I'm no real judge of stories, keep on writing :O]
If you like stories look up the writer Fenner on here, though he dosnt keep his work on for long there are always chapters to read

Posted 13 Years Ago


1 of 1 people found this review constructive.

Thank you Wangashura 4 your review. I will put your suggestion into consideration next time. Nota-bene: Readers and writers r fond of reading and the length of a poem and/or a story does not really matter compared to the quality of the content; And yes! you are right about time consumption. Unfortunately, i had guidelines e.g. 600-800 words but it is definitely appropriate to cut it down for sure....thanks again for your review Wangashura.

Oops i just have to correct it (bona fide) and i hope you don't mind. Alot=two words. (A Lot) lol

Posted 13 Years Ago


i agree with Ellen ifs the poem was alittle bit shorter it would be perfect because it would attract alot of people that dont have alot of time and can read it fast. but other than that its one of the best poems i have read this year.congrats.

Posted 13 Years Ago


1 of 1 people found this review constructive.

Thank you Ellen! Yeah, i had it as a 'short story' but changed my mind the last minute. I am having 2nd thoughts so i will re-post it again later. Thanks again for your review....i appreciate!

Posted 13 Years Ago


Welcome to WC! This is an interesting story that drew me in so I too was shivering in that brutal cold.

Perhaps if you post this as a "Short Story" it will be read by many who don't care much for poetry. It is a good story worth reading. Thanks for sharing.

Posted 13 Years Ago


1 of 1 people found this review constructive.


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12 Reviews
Added on April 27, 2011
Last Updated on April 27, 2011