"Dear Dairy" (Journal Of A Child With Dyslexia)

HENNRY'S PRIZD DAIRY

Belungs tu - Hennry Finn

19 Oktobur, Nintin Thartinain, Soothamton,Englend

"Dairy,

I HAAAAAAATE riting. Goodnit "

20th October, Nineteen Thirty Nine

"Dear Dairy,

Mai Sistur forcd me to rite tooday. Shee wrote da tooday date for me nd told me to copee it for yesturde . I dident. I dont likehur. She alwais

shouts with me. I like Pappa. He give me gifts. Momma says I shud rite dairy to make mai engleesh good. Says dairy is mai frend. I dont have frens. De say I am a bad boy.Will u bee mai fren? I have milk to eet . Bai bai."

21th Octobur , Ninteen thirti nine

"Dear Dairy,

I am gron up now I copiid mai sistur now shee wont be angree with me. I wil rite more my nanna has cum I wil com soon dairy bai for now. Hai dairy i am Hennry nanna gifted me Eroplen i will play now ."

22 Octubar , Ninteen thartinain

" Dear Dairy Im exaited i went to zoo nd saw lion tigar chita . donno wich was tigar, yellow aur orung .I et five choclets n biscits it was yumie I like them. pappa got me baluns i jumped on the gate the monky sat on it took momma's chips paket away i lafed.Sistur lafed . Pappa smild. "

25 Oktuber ,

" Dear dairy

how are you.Sistur dident letme rite to yu. i ad fevur. i am fine .i dident go tu scul i was hapy n sad cus i missed you frend. are yu mai frend.! mai nose has water falling and i am alon in mai bed . mom dident let me lev bed . Says i will cach cold.how do i cach cold? can it relly be cached. i wonto kno. pappa sed i musnt situp for long or id feel ell. i sleep now. see you soon dear dairy."

27th oKTUBER

"I will never go to scool.Even if pappa brings me a monstur ship I will never. Momma beat me today for being bad boy. She say I do not lissun to her, my teecher says same. I am VERY VERY VERY angree. Mum can beat me,but ticher beats me and she shudnt. She aint my momma. I try to leesten, but she still beat me. I wont go out of mai room Ever, I will never write anymore dairy. dont feel bad dairy it aint your meestake. I like u now,dear dairy. I am stil frends wit yu. Promees."

28th Octubur

"Dear dairy ,

I feel gud. I am plaing wit pappas gift monstur ship pappa gave. i am veri hapy. i wanto ple . dont wonna rite . sorry dairy yu still are in mai leest of good peepal. dont fel hurt plis."

30th Oktober

"Dear dairy.

why do i hav tu rite the date evry day? i kno the date. i am shior yu kno tu. can i tel yu sumthin frend? yu r mai onli frend. wil yu tel me.. in scul i got puneshed for riting see saw as sea saw. why did teechar scold mee? i wasint noty. Shee sed to da scool..i am noghty from da day i was born. but I do nOt trai to bee noty. Am i a bad boi, dairy. is dat wai momma scolds mee alwes?do Yu kno "

4th Novumbr Nineteen thirtinain

"Dear Dairy,

Pappa momma was argoin in the morneng. Sistur wached tv nd was scered. wot is hapening? yesterde nait

mom had come in nd dident scold mee. shee sed we need tu leev

evrithin heer. we hav to go tu a farawe land. whear angel lives. i am exited to meet engels. why s momma pappa sistur sad ? dont de laik engels?"

6th Novimbre

"Dear Dairy

Momma combed mai hair bacc. i am wearing mai favorit trushers and shirt. Sutcase is out.pappa is bringeng it to tha car. sistur has red face.. like a tomato. i laike tomato. Sistur askd mee to say bai bai soutamptun . I askd her wot was in tha skai shee sed bad , noty peepal. Are they laik me? i want to see dem . Did de get F in engleesh tu? Pappa is colling us. a draivur is hear..he has big mustach. like pappa. bai bai soutamptun"

14th January , 1945

"Dear Dairy,

Its been a long time. We are fine,all of us.Unharmed.I am a young man of 16. These 6 years have been no less than a turmoil. No sooner did we reach The Netherlands than the whole world became divided into blocks of sworn enemies.They said that this was a land full of tulips and eye popping scenery.But all I see is dirty clothes, banners and most of the times, blood.

The Southampton we had left in time had transformed into the ruins of an ancient city, without leaving behind any trace of what it used to be. Our family, living in a refugee camp along with an uncle of ours had became prone to near starvation ,lack of water and means of livelihood. To get accustomed to life without fans and television sets was hard to adjust to, but we did it. Will power made us do it. Even I , the stubborn , 'noty boy' had the regular job of fetching water each and every day from the tank three miles away from 'home' and standing in the long queue for my turn.

When a glass is half empty,its also half full. That was the case with my life. I learnt of the ways of living the hard way, but that helped me toughen up and realise my ever increasing responsibilities.I regularly strived to better my English by sitting for daily tuitions with my professor uncle, who might be strict but very caring and kind. And here I am, proving to you how my English became from nothing to so much. Wish my teacher could have seen me now. If she is alive out there..

The existence of a rare disease called dyslexia was known to very few in the world, and is still not popular. The victims to this have been subjected to never ending discouragement, jabs and have been made to look like they are worthless. I was one of them. I still am one of them, yes I am. But I have conquered my weakness. Nowadays, the only conquering people talk about is Japan destroying Pearl Harbor and Britain and France making mincemeat of Germany. This is the current scenario.

All these apart, how have you been tending to yourself? Hope these 6 years haven't made you as old as I feel! Your paper still is as smooth as I had left it in my last entry! I still am naughty, though..pranking my sister Eileen like the 10 year old I still am at heart! See..not a single mistake by the 'noty' boy! Oh yeah..right. I haven't gotten over referring to you as Dear Dairy.. that might be because you'll always be seen as my 'Most Special Friend since I was a 10 year old". And I have more friends now..yes. Not surprising, with how fast I have become momma's 'good boy'.

This is my biggest entry, and naturally so. Hope you are preserved by my descendants to deliver to them the story of their great or great great grand uncle's life! Because I don't intend to get married. Not that I don't have a girl to consider, but what's the use? I want to be an editor in a newspaper, but its all driven by politics nowadays.. and pay scale is insufficient to feed a family. In any job no,actually. So better not ruin someone else's life, especially someone I am destined to love forever.

Hopefully I'll be able to enter again very soon. But there is uncertainty, as is the case in world politics and peace now.Yet, its us who have shortage of food, not the ones sitting on the thrones. I'd better hide you before anyone reads you, or I might be beheaded!Who knows...as I have said , there is uncertainty."

1st September, 1945

"Dear Dairy,

We are alive. Sister and I. Momma is in coma. Uncle was killed in the open firing. Papa's body has not yet been recovered from the border."

17th March, 2005

"Dear Dairy, (The 'Diary' was cut off)

Like my fond childhood days,I am in a hurry.But today, the reason is slightly different..

I am very happy! When was the last time I had said that? I don't remember. But anyways.. today, I am finally off to..guess what?!

I'm going to meet my momma ,papa and Eileen!!

Yes , in a few minutes, I am heading to heaven! The divine journey. I am consistently smiling, so that when the soul of your 'frend' departs and reaches heaven, they get to see a smiling me. Their son! Who was once a naughty boy.. who was never to be anything but a nuisance when he grew up. I did not become a journalist. I could not fulfill my ambition. You have forever been my most faithful friend, and I owe you an explanation. Oh,the word forever seems so real today..instead of the surreal feeling it used to generate in the past!

I was told to join the Dutch army after receiving my citizenship

but I refused. All my life I devoted to be the earning member of our family of two. I used to work in a food manufacturing plant as a worker. My sister used to beg in the street near the refugee camp. One fateful day, the factory got burnt..forgive my shaky handwriting, and I lost my job. But not before I managed to save some money and open a small food stall near our temporary house in the refugee area. Me and my sister used flour, oil and available vegetables to prepare meals at a very low rate for our fellow refugee neighbors and left the remnants of the day for our feed and for those who couldn't afford the subsidized price,which was very normal... we made some money and the whole refugee camp turned into a marketplace . We all shaped our lives with our hard work. Then came a fateful open firing followed by revolts ,and my sister was badly injured. I tried everything I could to save her, but God had chosen her to go back to Him. They say.. the most beautiful flowers are plucked first. But at last.. today is my time.. God has called me to Him.

Time is running out..I might be gone any second now.. continue with all the unfinished conversations with momma and papa and Eileen. In my mind I am counting down.. but till then, I would like to take the time to thank you. For always being by side..for being My Most Special ".................

___________________

17th March, 2005

"Dear Henry,

Thank you.....thank you for having me...for not throwing me away..thank you for asking about my health..thank you for sharing your life with me. When you came home crying for being punished, I cried with you..I know how it is to feel low and laughed at. "Diary?? Who the hell writes diaries when there is a typewriter!"

And I was thrown on the floor by your sister..and then I became yours. Since that day, I have seen you become a responsible,amazing young man from a pure hearted , sweet young boy whom everyone but I failed to understand, but who understood everything which others failed to see. Rather, ignored intentionally. You always have been special. The way you worked as an army doctor even after the painful loss of your family, you never went down.You are the brave, 'noty' boy whom I am glad to call

'My Most Special Friend Since You Were A 10 Year Old'.

And I will always be your Dear Dairy."

____________________