Across a Half Bridge

by Nidhi George

Grade 8

The day was sunny and bright. I was walking on the uneven side of the road, my friends and family all around me. The November wind was sharp and cold against my face. My hat couldn’t prevent my ears from going numb with cold. I could smell the fresh rain from the night before, and the grass looked muddy. 

“It’s not that cold, Nidhi,” my friend Aanya said from beside me. She probably saw me shivering. “Besides, we’ll warm up as we walk.”

“Maybe. I thought it would be warmer than this, though!”

I glanced ahead and saw the Smoky Mountains right in front of me. We were staying in Gatlinburg for the week, as a chance for me to see Aanya and her family (who had moved to North Carolina 2 years prior.)  We were going to hike through the mountains, which had seemed cool when I first heard the idea. Now it was literally too cool, and I was starting to regret not bringing a pair of gloves. 

We reached what seemed like a parking lot, and saw the entrance to the hiking trail. It seemed pretty straightforward, without too many forks in the path. I could hear the sound of rushing water ahead, and I could see couples and families walking. There were eleven people in our group; my two best friends, their parents, my parents, and another couple that was friends with our parents and I. We started through the trail, twigs snapping under my sneakers. 

After a few minutes of seeing only trees and rocks, we found the first stream. It was beautiful, with clear water and a small waterfall, smooth stones underneath. I immediately pulled out my phone, and took a snapshot of the picturesque scene. I showed my dad, who nodded approvingly. 

“Come on, Nidhi! Hurry up, you’re taking forever!” Archi, my other friend, called from up ahead. I scrambled to catch up, but there were so many things I wanted photos of! 

About 30 minutes later, after a lot of annoyed reminders to keep moving, we reached a river with a bridge over it. The only problem? The bridge was split in half lengthwise, so it only had one railing, and it was barely a foot wide. 

Now, I’m not usually afraid of heights, but I’m definitely not a daredevil. I hate doing anything risky, especially without thinking it through first. Unfortunately, no one else seemed to take issue the seriously. We only had half a bridge to cross to the other side, so I was forced to go along with them. I stepped in line between my dad and Aanya, who I figured were the most likely to catch me if I slipped. I carefully put a foot on the bridge, and started slowly shuffling across. I could see a line forming behind me, and the people ahead had already crossed all the way. I knew I was ridiculously slow, but to be honest, I was extremely scared. I continued inching my way across, with a few nudges from my dad behind me. 

After what seemed like ages, but was probably closer to thirty seconds, I finally hopped off the other side of the bridge. My mom raised her eyebrow. 

“Stop being so scared. You’re fine. You’re not going to slip.”

“What if I do though?”

“You’re not going to.”

I shrugged, and I skipped off with my friends, into the forest.