Determination

Introduction SWAMP -Sweeper night shift -nap -slipped into container -went for a smoke -in the middle of night shift	“I can’t wait to get home,” Bala chuckled as he puffed out a cloud of cigarette smoke from his slightly agape mouth.  “Sasha is going to give birth any moment now and we are hoping to have a boy.” His best friend, Din, a slightly older man nodded in agreement.  The two sweepers were at the port, in the middle of the night shift.  Overwhelmed with fatigue, they slipped into a container to go for a smoke.   They soon dozed off and fell sound asleep.   Snores literally filled the whole container.
Problem -container had been picked up and transported onto the ship -woke up -trapped -locked -pitch dark -shouted for help -no one knew they were inside -not knowing where they were/headed to -pack of cigarette and clothes on their back -no goods -nothing to live on -very hungry -shouting for help for 2 days	Out of the blue, Bala heard a strange clanging noise.  Unknown to him, the container had been picked up and was being transported onto the ship.  All around him was near pitch darkness and he immediately shook Din up.  Together, they shouted for help but all they heard was only the echoes that bounced off the walls for no one knew they were inside.  Trapped!  Locked in a container!  They did not know where they were and when they were heading.  Other than the clothes on their backs, the container was empty.  No food.  No water.  Nothing to live on!  Din slumped against the metallic door and started sobbing, “I am going to die.  I am going to die.”  Bala offered him a cigarette and crooned, “No, my friend!  We will live!  We will!”  Although he did not know when or how, his eyes were ablaze with stoic determination.
Problem Worsened -fear, fatigue, lack of nourishment took a heavy toll on them - friend collapsed and died -stuck with decaying body of his dead friend -decomposing body - prayed to God for a miracle	Days passed like a snail.  Their stomachs rumbled and protested loudly.  The lack of nourishment was taking a heavy toll on their health.  Fear and fatigue besieged them.  Their thirsty throats yearned for water but there was none.  Out of desperation, they stripped their upper bodies and drenched their shirts with yellow urine and sipped it.  They were determined to live, no matter what. The days droned on.  It was already the fifth day.  Even the urine had gone dry.   Hopes were failing.  “I must live.  I must go home and hug my baby.”  The same words kept ringing in his mind.  “My friend, I am leaving first.”  Din’s voice weakened to a soft murmuring.  “Din, no!  We will survive!  Maybe, just one more day,”  Bala sobbed, grasping his hand.  “Take care, Bala.  When you go back, kiss your son for me,” he smiled and breathed his last.  Bala cradled his lifeless body in his bosom and wept bitterly.  “Why Din?  Why?  Why have you left me?” he muttered.  His buddy had left him for good.  Would he survive?  The image of his wife and his newborn kept him going. Days passed again.  It was already the ninth day.  Frail and thin, he was severely dehydrated.  Every day, he was praying to God for a miracle.  By now, the intense heat of the container and the oppressive stench of Din’s corpse were becoming unbearable.
Climax -frail and thin -prayers answered on the ninth day -felt container being moved -find metal rod and a big magnet -hit container -loud banging noise -container to be moved to a trailer -reloaded onto a ship bound for Vietnam -alarmed by strange sounds -alerted employer - Door to container opened - Sight that greeted them was astonishing - naked - Stripped off his clothes due to oppressive heat - Severely dehydrated - Stench so smelly that the port workers gave the container a wide berth	As if he were in a dream, Bala suddenly felt some movement.  Mustering all his strength, he found a metal rod and hit the metallic wall hard and loud.  He had become too painful to scream.  He kept his hopes up and kept hitting. Lady Luck or God was with him.  There was a loud clang.  The metallic door sprang open and the bright light almost blinded him.  In came some silhouettes whom Bala could not make out the features as his eyes adjusted to the glare.  The strangers were astonished to see him, naked, stripped off his clothes.  Bala had ended up in a different country for the ship had sailed for a total of nine days.  Bala flashed a weak smile and fainted.
Closure LAUGHS -gone through the hell that he has suffered	When he came to, he found himself in the hospital and related what had happened to the police officers who then arranged for him to be sent back home.   When he returned to his home, Sasha had given birth to a bouncing boy.  He was born the day Din died.  Bala planted a kiss on his forehead and decided to name him “Kacha” which means determination in his native dialect.