Chapter 14 House I don't move to the fruit valley. But I decide to build a house here. I visit the valley very often. Step by step, I build a house here. The house is small. I make a double fence around the house. The house is protected like a castle. Again, I use a ladder when I want to go inside. And inside, I have stairs in one corner of the fence. I use the stairs when I go outside. And I use the ladder when I go inside.

This activity takes the whole August and the beginning of September. But I enjoy it a lot. The fruit valley gives me so much energy. I feel so healthy and strong here. Sometimes, when I am in the valley at night, I watch the moon and the stars. I think about my wife. I think about my family in England. I know that they see the same moon. They see the same stars. But we can’t be together. I think about my family very often. I wish the best for them.

I also think about all the people who see the moon. I think about the places where they live. I feel connected with them. Sometimes, I feel connected with the whole universe. I also think about God. I have questions for God. I ask him, “Why am I on this island? Why am I still alive when my friends are all dead?” I believe that he knows what he is doing.

It is the time when the rainy season starts. The rainy season continues until the middle of October. This is my first year on the island. When the rains end, I return to my valley house. I see that the fence is all green. New leaves are growing everywhere. This isn’t only beautiful. It is also useful because it is really hard to see the house. The leaves create shadow. It is very nice to stay here. I want to make a fence from the same wood around my first house too.

When the rainy season is finished, I put my corn in the ground. I have a bad feeling that something bad can happen. I only use a half of the corn. This is a good idea because no corn grows up. I put the second half of the corn in the ground before the next rainy season. This time, the corn grows up. Now, I have a small farm on the island. I see that the seasons on the island are different from England. The seasons are not spring, summer, autumn and winter. We have two rainy and two dry seasons. With this information, I can now plan when to put corn in the ground.

Chapter 15 Basket I make longer and longer trips around the island. I need a basket for these trips. With a basket I can carry more food during my trips. I can also carry more fruit from the fruit valley. I cut branches from the tree which I use for my fences. I use the branches for the basket. When I finish the basket, I decide to make a long trip around the island.

I go through the fruit valley. After the valley, I find some fields. A lot of grass is on the fields. The fields are very flat. There are a lot of flowers on the fields. The flowers smell so good. Many insects fly around these flowers. I see some big butterflies. Their wings are ten centimetres wide. I also see small trees around these fields. I find nuts on these trees. These nuts are different from nuts in England. They have a different shape. They are also more sweet than nuts in England.

I discover some new animals on this side of the island. Wild cats live here. I also see many parrots and other interesting birds. I catch one parrot. I take the parrot with me. His body has many colours. I see red, green, orange, blue, pink and yellow. This part of the island is very nice. More food is here. But I don’t want to move here.

My dog catches a young goat on the way back. I save the goat. I take the goat with me. I want to keep goats. Now I have another chance. I leave the goat in my valley house. I want to prepare some space for the goat in my first home. I am so tired from the trip. I relax the whole day. I make a cage for the parrot. I bring home the goat. The goat starts to be calm.

I make a map of the whole island. I put these new places on the map. The time goes very fast. Soon, it is September again. This is my second year on the island. I am less sad now. I accept my situation. I have many good things in my life. My days are similar. I hunt in the morning. I cook at noon. I relax in the afternoon when the sun is very strong. And I work in the evening. This is my typical day. I also teach my parrot how to say his name. His name is Poll.