Bao
Kennedy School, Yuk Yee Cheng, Fiction: Group 2
L
ong ago, in the vast sandy dunes of the Gobi Desert, there lived a playful, yet bizarre
Gobi bear or Mazaalai called ‘Bao’ for he was one of the last of his kind.
His parents named him long before he was born; they were very wise and knew what
was happening to their kin. They thought for quite a while but came to the conclusion of
‘Bao’ for it meant Treasure or Jewel. When he was born, fate decided that he should live up to his
name…by giving him a sign, a small birthmark shaped like the Chinese word ‘Wang’ on the tip of
his ear.
By a year old, he was already bigger than the other bears the same age. At the age of 2, he
could dig as deep as his older cousins from other areas of the Gobi desert. But he had the biggest
weakness of them all, for he loved his family a little too much for their liking. His parents knew
his time was coming, that a few years later he would need to embark on his frightening quest,
without them, to find peace…but they weren’t that sure if he could handle it. He was, still…only a
child. Still a little one, that needed to be cared for…so weak, so feeble… so, so vulnerable.
A few months later, his parents went missing, while searching for grubs to eat. Bao was very
upset; he vowed to reunite with his parents again.
A month later, hunters came and killed several of his relatives, just because they were
selecting some wild berries near their house. Bao was angry and started without thinking
trekking out of his territory. “This is not fair! Why did this have to happen to me? Why is it me?”
he sobbed as he went.
“My parents and relatives will all be avenged!” Bao menacingly bellow subsequently.
He stopped when he passed a small, flowing stream.
He had never noticed that the Gobi Desert was this beautiful! All around him, the desert
buzzed, teaming with life. He heard the golden eagles with their ear piercing cries; the camels,
treading slowly through the sand; the lizards gently gliding through the sand and the beetles
furiously digging away.
He saw the wild flowers swaying in the breeze; the over-ripe berries fall down from the top
of their bush; the snake slithering through the golden brown sand and the river quietly creeping
down the mountain.
He smelt the grass freshly pushing up through the ground; the fruit almost ripe enough to
eat; the sand whisking off in all directions and the herbs of wonder sprouting in places you would
never believe.
But he quickly shook the thoughts out of his head and went on his way. A few days later, he
found an old cave and decided to go inside and take a nap. After all… an expedition is tiring.
When he woke up, he ran out from the cave and slurped water out of nearby oasis and got on
his way. He found two crickets in a bush close to the oasis and crunched them up happily.
He trotted for a few miles onward and tumbled down a scorching sand dune; falling
unconscious! He felt a warm liquid oozing from all over his body; he must have fell on some
jagged rocks. He tried to get up but winced in pain. After a few more tries, he felt strangely tired
for it was just too much for his wound. Then he fainted! But before he did he stared at the sky and
thought of what a life he had lived.
