by Rae Knightly
Now, as he stared at the snowy landscape from his classroom window, he realized it had been strangely comforting to refer to Mesmo as his dad. He had never had the opportunity to call anyone Dad before since his own father had passed away in a car crash after his birth. Referring to someone as Dad stirred unknown feelings in him, even if the whole story was just pretence.
He blinked as he realized the teacher was already talking.
“…Declaration of Human Rights,” Ms. Evans said, as she finished writing a website on the blackboard.
Ben straightened in his chair. It had been reassuring to find that he wasn’t too far behind in most classes, which seemed to please his chubby neighbour greatly, as the boy regularly peeked at Ben’s notes, whispering with wide eyes, “You’ve seen this already?” and “What did she say?” This material, however, was new to Ben, and he wondered where Ms. Evans was going with it.
She walked over to Ben’s desk with a document in her hand as she spoke. “I’m sure you all consulted the United Nations’ website, which I wrote on the blackboard, like I asked you to.”
Many students scrambled to pull out the same-looking document from their backpacks.
Ms. Evans dropped the stapled pages on Ben’s desk, saying quietly to him, “This is for civics class. Try and read up on it by next week, would you?”
Ben nodded and stared at the bold title on the first page: UNIVERSAL DECLARATION OF HUMAN RIGHTS. It was eight pages long and was printed off the UNITED NATIONS website. Ben scanned the pages curiously.
Ms. Evans leaned against the corner of her desk, locking her fingers before her. “So… who can refresh our memories and tell us what are the United Nations?”
A girl called Rachel shot her hand up in the air.
Ms. Evans waited for other hands to appear, but since none did, she pointed at the tall girl. Ben had already identified Rachel as the smart one in the class, yet was surprised to find she was not afraid to speak her mind. In his previous school, the bright students tended to avoid raising their hands, for fear of being reprimanded by less studious companions.
The dark-skinned girl answered with a clear voice, “It’s an organization of countries that work together to bring peace to the world.”
Ms. Evans smiled at her. “That’s about right, Rachel. The United Nations is an international organization that promotes peace and co-operation throughout the world. Does anyone know where the headquarters are located?”
Someone shouted, “New York!”
“Right again,” Ms. Evans said. “The United Nations was created in 1945, after the Second World War, to try and avoid such a terrible conflict from ever happening again. Now, what I wanted to talk about today is one of the most important documents that was signed at the United Nations by almost all the countries in the world.” She waved the document at them.
“It is called the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. It contains thirty articles, which apply to all human beings. Since I’m sure you’ve all read the articles like I asked you to, maybe we could help Ben here by sharing some of them with him?”
Some students fidgeted in their seats, while others glanced at the pages hurriedly. Rachel’s hand shot in the air again.
“Yes, Rachel?”
“The thirty articles talk about how people’s rights must be protected. Like the right to freedom or the right to life,” Rachel explained proudly.
Ms. Evans agreed. “Yes. Each and every one of us has fundamental rights that must be protected at all costs. We take for granted that we can go to school, go home to our families, travel freely to other countries or feel safe in the presence of the law. Yet you should not take these rights for granted. Many generations passed and many conflicts occurred before these rights were finally written down. Now, let’s talk about these thirty articles. What types of rights do you think need protection?”
Some hands went in the air.
“The right to vote?” a girl called Kimberly said from the front row.
“Very good.” Ms. Evans approved. “We all have the right to elect people that we would like to represent us in our government. Did you know that women weren’t allowed to vote until the 1920’s? And that there are still countries where women are not allowed to vote?”
“Children aren’t allowed to vote!” a boy called Tyler noted. Everyone laughed.
“Hold on a second!” Ms. Evans smiled. “That is actually an excellent point, Tyler. Do you think children should be allowed to vote?”
“Sure!” He grinned. More laughter.
“Then why do you think they are not allowed to vote?” Ms. Evans asked.
Tyler shrugged.
Rachel had her hand up and answered before Ms. Evans had time to pick her. “Because you have to be eighteen to vote. You have to be a responsible adult.”
Ms. Evans agreed. “That’s right. This is an interesting topic which we will talk about later. But let’s get back to our fundamental rights. What types of things do you take for granted, but would be afraid of losing?”
Only Rachel’s hand was in the air. Most other students pouted at the document on their desk.
“My family?” someone ventured.
Ms. Evans agreed. “Yes, we all have the fundamental right to form a family and to live with our parents, brothers and sisters, husband or wife. No one may threaten our family. No one has the right to impose marriage on you, either. There must be mutual consent: both must agree to marry.”
Ben saw Tyler make a vomiting gesture. His friend Wes sniggered beside him.
“What else?” Ms. Evans asked.
There were hesitant faces, so Ms. Evans said, “What about the right to life and freedom that Rachel mentioned earlier? Let’s read Article 1 of the Declaration. ‘All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights.’ Or listen to this one. ‘No-one shall be held a slave or tortured.’ It took thousands of activists and hundreds of years to abolish slavery and protect freedom. The freedom to move around, to think freely, to choose your religion, to travel to another country without being afraid of imprisonment…” All eyes were fixated on their teacher.
“Here’s another one related to freedom. ‘No one shall be subjected to arbitrary arrest, detention or exile,’ and, ‘Everyone charged with a penal offence has the right to be presumed innocent until proved guilty.’ I want you to think about this for a minute. Do you have any idea what this means?”
The students hung onto the teacher’s every word.
“It means no one can be arrested and put into jail without proof of wrong-doing. The police need to find concrete proof that you did something very evil before they can arrest you. Unfortunately, there are countries where the opposite happens: first you are arrested and, while you are in jail, you must provide proof that you are innocent! In other words, you are presumed guilty until proved innocent! Can you imagine how scary that is? How can you defend yourself for something you didn’t do, if you are already in prison?
“You see how important this document is? It protects all human beings from suffering unjustly. So let’s see, what else should we be protected from?” She paused, but since no one spoke, she added, “What would you like to be protected from? What makes you afraid?”
Some students started chatting.
“War,” one of them said.
“Losing my house.”
“Starvation.”
“Not being allowed to go to school.” That was Rachel, of course.
“Monsters under my bed," Wes muttered.
Everyone burst out laughing.
“I hate spiders,” Kimberly, who was playing with her long ponytail and munching on a piece of chewing-gum, told her two friends. Her comment carried over the laughter, triggering more guffaws and babbling, and suddenly the tenseness in the classroom evaporated.
Ben glanced at the teacher, thinking she would be upset at having lost the students’ attention. Instead, Ms. Evans watched with a small smile as conversation erupted through the room. Kimberly, Ali
ce and Joelle were three tight-knit girlfriends who Ben took to be the reasonably well-behaved lot. They spent most of their time chatting about their impeccable braids and ponytails, trendy clothing and lightly visible make-up. He had already gathered that they were not usually amused by the two boys, Wes and Tyler’s, comments, which they apparently thought were childish and annoying.
Ms. Evans clapped her hands. “Ok, kids! It sounds like we’re going to have to create a new Declaration. The Lawrence Grassi Declaration of Human Rights.” She wrote on the blackboard. ARTICLE 31. NO ONE SHALL BE SUBJECTED TO THE FEAR OF LIVING WITH A MONSTER UNDER THEIR BED.
Giggles.
Ms. Evans turned around. “So, who’s next?”
Ben grinned. Max had told him over lunch that Ms. Evans was the favourite teacher in the school. He understood why and admired her ability to veer the babbling back to the subject at hand.
“No one shall be subjected to the fear of snakes,” someone said.
“Very good.” Ms. Evans smiled.
Ben’s neighbour ventured, “No one shall be subjected to thunder and lightning.”
“Everyone has the right to sleep in on Sundays,” Tyler shouted gleefully, triggering hoots of laughter.
A voice broke through the noise. “No one shall be subject to the fear of abandonment.”
The laughter died down, and everyone turned to see who had spoken.
Ben spotted a girl wearing black clothes and a black beanie hat sitting, motionless, with her arms crossed before her. Her eyes were hidden behind a black bangs that reached down to her chin in such a way that it was hard to tell what she actually looked like. He hadn’t noticed her before.
“Kimi? Were you sharing your article with us?” Ms. Evans asked.
A silence fell over the classroom.
The girl repeated, “No one shall be subject to the fear of abandonment.”
Wes snorted at the heaviness of the comment.
Ms. Evans ignored the rude reaction. “That’s pretty deep, Kimi,” she spoke to the girl. “We often think fear comes from live or inert things around us—like spiders or lightning—but in fact, the worst and strongest fears come from immaterial things, including from our own minds. You’ll notice that most of the articles of the Declaration are immaterial, such as freedom and life. Good one, Kimi.”
Ben continued to stare curiously at the girl.
“What about you, Ben? Would you like to share an article for our Lawrence Grassi Declaration with us? What would you like to be protected from? What is your worst fear?”
Ben’s heart dropped like a stone. He turned around slowly to face the front of the classroom, fully aware that he had suddenly become the center of attention. A million thoughts flashed before his eyes.
Burning objects falling from the sky. Twisted Eyes. Blue filaments coursing through his blood…
“Uh…” was all he could utter. He sweated profusely.
A handful of seconds passed, yet they felt like an eternity. Mocking smiles were creeping onto some faces.
Come up with something, you idiot!
“No one shall be subject to panic attacks,” he blurted.
Scattered laughter.
He kept his hands under his desk to avoid anyone seeing them tremble.
“All right,” Ms. Evans smiled acceptingly. “Speaking in front of a room full of unknown faces would trigger a bit of panic, I’d say! It sounds like you know what you’re talking about!”
Some of Ben’s tension ebbed away. Mentioning panic attacks had been the appropriate comment. His teacher obviously believed he was feeling shy about speaking in front of the class.
“Yeah, I used to have panic attacks,” he admitted, glad to have found a safe subject and thinking she’d move on to the next student.
Instead, she said, “Really?”
Ben wrung his hands together under the table.
“You said used to. Does that mean you don’t get them anymore?" she asked with genuine interest. She must have noticed his discomfort, because she added, “I’m sorry. I don’t even know how we came to this theme. We’re way off subject! Sneaky kids!” She wagged an accusing, yet playful finger at the class. “It just struck me that you named a fear that you don't seem to suffer from anymore. I was hoping you’d share how you did that with us… if you feel up to it, that is?”
Ben swallowed.
He realized he had expected most people to show indifference to his presence. Instead, it was the complete opposite in this classroom.
And then there was the panic attack thing. Ben hadn’t really given it any thought, but the truth was that he hadn’t had one in a long while. Had he really gotten rid of them?
Everyone waited for him to answer, so he cleared his throat. “Actually, I think it’s thanks to Mes… um… my dad. When he’s around, I feel safe. I guess he’s helped me put things into perspective.”
Ben listened to his own words in amazement. Did Mesmo really have that effect on him? He had to admit, he always felt safer when the alien was around. Mesmo made his fears seem less overwhelming.
“Thank you for sharing, Ben,” Ms. Evans smiled encouragingly. “Putting things into perspective is an excellent way to face your fears. I mean, seriously, how many of us are scared of spiders?”
Several hands went up in the air, including Ms. Evans’.
“Now think how big you are compared to a tiny spider,” she continued. “You could step on it without a second thought. It should be more afraid of you than you are of it! You see, when you truly understand the thing that you fear, you'll be able to put it into perspective, and you’ll realize that maybe your fear is unfounded.”
Ben tried to picture Bordock as a tiny spider. It didn’t work.
Ms. Evans rubbed her hands together. “Anyway, let’s get back to our Declaration. We’re talking about much bigger things than spiders. We’re talking about protecting the whole of humanity against serious threats such as war, loss of life, loss of freedom, slavery, etc. Pretty fearsome things, I would say.” She picked up a copy of the Declaration. “Let’s read article twenty-six.”
Ben sagged back into his chair, his mind buzzing.
CHAPTER 4 Kimimela
Not long after, the school bell rang. Ben jumped as several chairs screeched back, releasing students from their desks. He realized almost everyone had been paying close attention to the time and had slowly been feeding their backpacks so that, as soon as the bell chimed, they were ready to dart out of class.
Pull yourself together!
His first day back at school had been more of a roller-coaster ride than he had expected.
“Are you taking the bus?” Max asked.
Ben looked up in surprise. “Huh? Oh, yes. I’m taking the twenty-five.”
Max heaved his backpack over his shoulder. “Yeah, most of us are. I can show you where it is.”
Tike.
“Oh, um, that’s ok. I need to sort out a couple of things before I leave.”
“Oh, ‘kay. See you, then,” Max said, sounding disappointed.
“I’ll catch up with you,” Ben offered.
Max’s face brightened. “’kay.” He waved shyly and headed out.
By the time Ben left the classroom, most of his companions had gone. He grumbled inwardly when he remembered he had to put on his winter gear again. While he struggled with his boots, he saw Kimi leaning her right foot against a low shoe-cabinet, tying the laces of army boots. Observing her curiously out of the corner of his eye, he noticed that everything about her was black: boots, jeans, a knee-length jacket, long side bangs and beany hat.
What a gloomy girl.
He cleared his throat. “That was a pretty deep thing you said—you know-about fearing abandonment?” he ventured.
Her head shot up, and her black eyes pierced him accusingly. “Yeah! Look who's talking. The boy with the super dad. Aren’t you lucky?” she snapped.
Before he could react, she placed her heavy boot on the floor and stomped off.
Ben stared at her with his mouth open.
What’s up with her?
He shook his head in disbelief. At least that reaction was closer to what he had been expecting all day, so it didn’t bother him too much. He wrapped his scarf around his neck, then followed the girl from a safe distance. He slipped to the side of the school where he had left Tike. His dog peeked at him from behind a wall, then rushed out to greet him. Ben knelt to rub his back.
“Hey there! What’s that?” A voice burst out from behind him.
Ben whirled around to find a man in a basic coverall staring at him.
“Is that your dog?” the man asked.
Ben swallowed. It was no use denying it. “Yes,” he said, looking at the ground. To his surprise, the man bent to scratch Tike behind the ears.
“Hi, you! What's your name?” he said in a friendly voice. The dog grinned.
“His name is Tike,” Ben offered.
“You’re a good dog, aren’t you?” the man said to the terrier.
Ben watched curiously.
The man stood, then offered his hand.
“I’m Joe, the school caretaker,” he said.
“Ben Anderson,” Ben answered, shaking the man’s hand. “I’m new,” he added as an afterthought as if that excused his dog being there.
“Well, Ben Anderson, I take it you know animals aren’t allowed on the school grounds?”
Ben looked at his feet. He couldn’t picture a day without Tike nearby.
Joe pursed his lips. “Come, I think I may have a solution.” He gestured for Ben to follow him until they reached a utility door with a sign that read FURNACE ROOM. Joe opened it to reveal humming machines inside. A whiff of warm air escaped the room. “This isn’t exactly ideal, but you could leave Tike here while you’re in class. I can check up on him and give him a couple of breaks outside during the day. I don’t mind. I have dogs of my own. And you can pick him up here. Just make sure you don’t forget him, ‘cause I lock up the school at 6 pm.”
