Vado per mare

Suddenly the wind started to blow. The waves became bigger and bigger. I had never been on a ship before. I felt terribly ill. My stomach was turning. My head was spinning. But worse than the sickness was the fear.

The storm grew stronger. The ship went up on huge waves and then fell down into deep valleys of water. Every time we went down, I thought we would never come up again. I was sure we would all die. The waves would be my grave.

“Oh God!” I prayed. “Save me! If you let me live, I will go home. I will listen to my father. I will never go to sea again. I promise! Now I see that he was right. The middle way is the best!”

I thought of my father’s tears. I remembered my mother’s warnings. My conscience hurt me. I had been a bad son. I had gone away without permission. I had broken their hearts. And now God was punishing me.

All night the storm went on. I made promise after promise to God. I said I would be good. I would always obey my parents. “Please, please, let me live!” Every wave seemed ready to kill us.

But the next morning something changed. The wind became calmer. The waves were smaller. The sun came out. Suddenly the ocean did not look so terrible. It was actually beautiful. My sickness was gone. My fear was gone too.

My friend found me on deck. He laughed and patted me on the shoulder. “You were scared last night, right? You thought that little bit of wind would kill us?” I could not believe his words. “A little wind?” I said. “It was a terrible storm!”