IF YOU DO NOT CREATE CHANGE, CHANGE WILL CREATE YOU

By Suniil Kali Vanan

0126657891 suniil1996@gmail.com

FADE IN: SCENE ONE John and Friend#1 are sitting by the river after a tiring day at school. Just as they are about to enter the calm waters for a swim ,an eccentric looking man halted them in their tracks. THE SCIENTIST No, boys! You cannot swim in there! JOHN Why not, mister? Who are you, anyway? THE SCIENTIST I am THE SCIENTIST from the Environmental Protection Agency. And I have received numerous reports stating that this river is extremely polluted due to the dangerous emissions from a nearby establishment. FRIEND#1 How could this river be as polluted as you say? It looks perfectly fine to me. THE SCIENTIST I can see how you would think that. In reality, this river is polluted by nitrogen based waste. For the time being, you may not be able to observe this rivers pollution with the naked eye, however, (* Scientist pulls out tool from bag*) this tool enables me to measure the level of ammonia in this river, which also indicates the level of pollution. Being only 12, John and Friend#1 could just listen to the Scientists lengthy explanation in awe. The Scientist walks toward the riverbank and inserts the tool in the water. JOHN So, mister? Is our river really polluted?

THE SCIENTIST *stares at his tool in belief* This cannot be! I have to go! *Scientist grabs his bag of equipment and flees the scene, leaving both boys confused* JOHN Wow, Friend#1. I never expected our river to be polluted. I just thought the number of fish being caught were reducing because the fish were getting smarter and not taking the bait. FRIEND#1 Exactly, John. I wonder which irresponsible manager is causing this. Upon hearing his friends words, John plunged into deep thought. He was suddenly struck by the fact that the company closest to the river, was run by his very own father! SCENE TWO John and Friend#2 are sitting in a classroom while waiting for their next teacher. John seems to be extremely uncomfortable. His best friend, Friend#2, immediately rushes over to his place. FRIEND#2 Hey, John! Ive been watching you throughout the whole lesson we just had, and you seem awfully upset about something. Whats up? JOHN Hey, Friend#2. I dont really feel like talking about it. FRIEND#2 Come on, John! You can tell me anything! Let me see whether I can do anything to help.

JOHN Oh, alright then. Well, I just found out a few days ago that our villages river is extremely polluted and my father is the cause of it. FRIEND#2 *surprised* Your father?! How is that? JOHN He runs the company by the river and the emissions from there are causing the pollution. I feel so bad about this, thats why Im not in a good mood. FRIEND#2 Have you tried talking to your dad about this? JOHN Whats the point? He wont listen to me anyway. The next subjects teacher walks in. TEACHER Class, today were going to talk about all the causes of pollution. JOHN *mumbles* Oh, great. John listened intently to his teachers explanation on pollution and was shocked after hearing about the negative effects of pollution. He felt even worse about what he knew but still wouldnt tell his parents. He knew they wouldnt listen. SCENE THREE John and his mother are in the kitchen cleaning up after dinner. Johns mother collects all the rubbish in the house at that time and gives it to John.

JOHN Hey mom, where do I throw all this? It sure is a lot. MOTHER Well, just throw it in that river nearby. Is that so hard? John stared at his mother in utter disbelief. He knew she wasnt always like this. An easy and luxurious life changed her from someone who cared about the environment to someone who just didnt care at all. He couldnt take it any longer. JOHN Mom! How can you possibly ask me to do that?! Dont you know that our river is a source of clean water and the natural habitat for aquatic life? If everyone throws rubbish in the river, its going to be so polluted and there are going to be so many negative effects! MOM How dare you speak to me in that tone! I dont care whether the river is polluted. You do what I tell you to do. John was helpless. He couldnt go against his mothers words. In tears, he ran towards the river and threw the rubbish in it. SCENE 4 John and Friend#2 are walking together to the clinic. Friend#2 has been vomiting and having diarrhea for the past few days, so they decided to go see the doctor. They were shocked when there was a long line at the clinic, even surpassing the entrance. JOHN Look, Friend#2! Look at how many people there are!

FRIEND#2 Wow, I wonder why so many of them are sick. Lets find out! John walks up to one of the villagers waiting in line. JOHN Hi, maam. Could I know why there are so many people here? VILLAGER Well, nearly all of us have been vomiting and having diarrhea for quite a while now. So we just decided to get it checked out. John was astounded. A great number of villagers had the exact same symptoms as his best friend did! John immediately ran home and started searching online for diseases related to his friends and the villagers symptoms. He was terrified when he found out that all the symptoms pointed to one disease, Cholera. It was a waterborne disease and he knew that means it was caused by the pollution of the river. SCENE 5 John is sitting by his best friends bed in the hospital. The doctors have diagnosed his condition as extremely critical and most probably cant be saved. Both Johns and his best friends parents were waiting anxiously outside the hospital room. John was so angry at his father, his mother, the other people who polluted the river and himself for not doing something sooner. He knew he had to do something now. He stormed out of the hospital room and walked towards his parents. JOHN Do both of you have any idea how Friend#2 and the other villagers got this disease?! It was because of the polluted river! JOHNS MOM What do you mean? How do you know that?

JOHN He has cholera, a waterborne disease caused by everything Father and all the other villagers have done! All the toxic substances from the factorys emissions and the rubbish thrown by the villagers has caused this. Johns parents are extremely shocked and overcome by guilt after hearing this. They are at a loss for words as John continues to point out their wrongdoings. John is interrupted by the on-call doctor, delivering the worst possible news. His best friend has passed away. Everyone starts crying, knowing that was their own actions that has caused them to lose a loved one. From then on, Johns parents made numerous changes to their lifestyle to save the environment. Emissions were disposed in the right places, they started recycling, and even carrying out campaigns throughout the neighborhood to promote awareness on the importance of taking care of the environment.

THE END

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