Gozo - Unity in Creativity - A Collection of Writings

From the Creative Pen A COLLECTION OF WRITINGS

Cultural Heritage Directorate

A tribute from the Cultural Heritage Directorate within the Ministry for Gozo to the frontliners in their struggle against Covid-19

Index:

You Teach Me

pg 2

Planting Trees

pg 3

Myself

pg 3

The Secret Cave of Unicorns

pg 4

Pig Gets Stuck

pg 5

The Underground City

pg 6 - 7

Visiting Paris

pg 7

The Three Trees

pg 8

Covid – 19

pg 9

Dino The Dinosaur

pg 9

Emily and The Dragon

pg 10

Let's Make The World A Better Place

pg 10

What Can We Do To Make A Better World?

pg 11

Stay Safe

pg 12

Animals, Our Friends Who Teach Us

pg 13

The Magical, Sparkly and Colourful Shoes

pg 14 -15

The Easter Bunny Breaks His Legs

pg 16

A Special Birthday!

pg 17

Jack, Steve…And The Other Thief!

pg 18

The Fall Of The Stars

pg 19

Realise

pg 20

A Tiny Little Mouse

pg 21

The literature inside this booklet was collected from a competition held on a Facebook Page created by the Cultural Heritage Directorate, within the Ministry for Gozo to bring joy through visuals and creativity during the Covid-19 pandemic.

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YOU TEACH ME...

DEDICATED TO MY PARENTS AND TEACHERS

You teach me care How to be fair Never be rude like the hare Always play fair and square.

You teach me true love Never to be rough Always share and halve Like a sweet white dove.

You teach me respect You make me reflect On how I always act And properly react.

You teach me friendliness Where to find true happiness With you there is no loneliness No weakness or emptiness.

You teach me loyalty You reduce my anxiety With you beside me I feel like royalty!

Emma Lynn Cauchi 2

PLANTING TREES Using a shovel, soil and water And a big hole You put a tree everywhere Here and there Hooray Finally it’s Earth Day Planting planting always FUN! Save our environment Earth and trees Seriously Hooray Finally it’s Earth Day Maria Lourdes Bugeja

MYSELF Aurora is the name Of a beautiful little girl Tall and fair And with golden curly hair October is the month When I was born 18 is the date When I celebrate The Happy School is called The school where I go Mr. Spiteri is the Head A lovely person to know.

Aurora Xerri

3

THE SECRET CAVE OF UNICORNS

Once there lived a little girl named Mia, who always believed that unicorns are real. When she grew up, she still kept dreaming about unicorns and thinking that they are real.

One day, her friend Emily came to her house to tell her that she was going fishing in a river near the woods. She asked Mia to join her. Mia accepted the invitation. The two girls both went in the woods fishing with their fishing rods. When they were catching fish, Mia heard something moving in the woods. She told Emily to go and check. Mia and Emily saw a cave with light coming out of it and water going down. They decided to go and have a look in the cave. Mia and Emily could not believe their eyes. Their sight was amazing!! They saw lots of colourful unicorns. Mia was thrilled with delight. She now was certain that unicorns were real. The unicorns were eating grass. The girls went to touch them. Only two of them were friendly. The unicorns were unique. They were colourful and spiral. It was time to go back home. They kept it a secret. Every day they visited the unicorns, they gave them names, petted them, gave them food and took good care of them.

Up till now no one knows that unicorns are real.

Believe in unicorns so that your wishes will come true!

Marilyn Xuereb

4

PIG GETS STUCK There are six pigs in the pen of Apple Tree Farm.

Curly's the smallest pig. He finds it difficult to get food. Curly's tummy starts to rumble. He finds a little gap under the wire. Curly is out in the farm searching for food. There he meets other animals.

He decides to taste the hens' breakfast. The hens' breakfast tastes good. He squeezes himself in the pen.

Curly gobbles all the food and the hens are not pleased.

Mrs Boot finds Curly in the hen run. He tries to escape but he gets in the fence. Curly eats too much food. Poppy and Sam are Mrs Boot's children. They push Curly out of the fence. With a grunt Curly pops out. He is safe and is taken back to the pig pen. Curly is happy and he never got hungry again.

Gabriel Tabone

5

THE UNDERGROUND CITY One day four friends went to explore a lake. One of the friends, Mia, had even found a shark’s tooth close by. One of the girls told them that they should go in the underground cave, where an underground city had just been discovered a few days before. There were three caves but they decided to only go in the first one. The girl named Mia, whose father had found the city, had a stepsister called Soya. At the beginning, Soya and Mia weren't sure about it but they got convinced.

They wore oxygen tanks and made sure they were all at a hundred percent. When they went into the cave, they witnessed the most beautiful city in the world! It obviously wasn't a normal city, it's very rare to find underground cities. When they reached the end of the first cave, they all agreed to do one lap around the cave and go out. But thing turned when one of the friends saw something moving. The others didn't believe her and told her to stop fooling around. She decided to go check it out, being the adventurous one. There she proved them that she wasn't fooling around. There was a transparent fish that looked like it was hiding from something. Fun fact fishes that live in underground caves like this one don't see because they don't really need to use their eyes so the body gets used to using the other senses more. The girls had never seen such a thing. One of the girls, Sarah, went to touch it and it bit her. The girls were in shock! One of them hit one of the precious statues under there. The statue fell on other statues and dust covered everywhere. The girls couldn't see a thing and they got lost.

When everything was clear, they didn't see each other. Few minutes later, Mia met with one of the other girls. She told Mia that Soya and Sarah were waiting at the exit. While telling her that they met with one of Mia’s father’s employee. He asked what they were doing there. When they were just about to tell him, a shark attacked him! The girls were scared to death. It was a blind w h i t e s h a r k ! Ye s , even sharks are blind in these types of cases. Mia and the other girl told Soya and Sarah that there's 6

a shark. They tried escaping from the entrance but the shark heard a sound and whit it senses it followed them. Unfortunately, all the rocks fell with the shark’s strength and the exit was blocked. When they managed to get out one of them got attacked by the shark as well. The three girls began to swim in terror.

They ended up getting caught in a current. Soya got blown away by it while Mia and the other girl saw another cave. They both held on to some small rocks. When they managed to make it to the cave the shark appeared from nowhere and grabbed the other girl! Mia got pulled down by the current too. The other girl tried to escape form the shark by taking off the jacket that had the oxygen in it. Unfortunately, the current made her struggle a lot more and she ended up running out of air! But gladly Mia and Soya still managed to make it through the current. The shark was right behind them, but they saw a narrow wall that leads to the ocean. They tried to get up but while the shark was behind, Mia’s oxygen got stuck. She had to take it off.

There was a bit of air for her to take. When the shark got closer, they decided to risk it and go up. Surprisingly they got up before they ran out of air. The bad thing was that a shark boat was close to them and had thrown blood in the sea for the sharks to come and the tourists can see them! When the people on the both saw them, they tried to help them. They reached the boat but only Mia got up. Soya got attacked. Mia decided to garb the shark gun that the boat had in case of an emergency, and she went back in the ocean and shot it at the shark. This time Soya managed to get up and Mia got attacked but she had the tooth that her dad had found and with it she stabbed the shark. One man pulled Mia out of the water exactly when a shark passed right by her foot! They did it, even though Soya had a huge shark bite and Mia had scratches everywhere.

After this whole thing they got closer. As stepsisters they went through a rough patch.

Aalliyah Bonnici Carbonaro

VISITING PARIS Once upon a time, there was a girl called Olivia. She always dreamed to visit Paris with her family.

This day of her dream has arrived to become true.

It was time to pack her stuff that she was going to take with her to Paris because in a week time it was her big day. In a blink of an eye it was the day that they were leaving to Paris. She was very excited after the 3-hour flight and her first time on an aeroplane. They went to the hotel and unpacked their stuff and settled everything.

The first day was spent down by the River Siene which was very relaxing on the boat which took them all the way round the river. They visited the Eiffel Tower which is very nice and not to be missed if one visits Paris. Then the next three days were the most exciting because they were spent in the Disney Land Park. There are no words that can describe the joy and entertaining time that she spent in the Park. It was just a dream come true. There were so many rides to ride and characters to meet.

The holiday came to an end. Olivia wished that the holiday would not come to an end. Her parents told her if she would like to visit again and her answer was a definite big YES. Megan Rapa 7

THE THREE TREES

Once upon a time there were three talking trees that were cold in the breeze. One day a woodcutter came by, and his name was Jack. He had an axe on his back.

The trees were scared and didn't know what to do. The animals who lived there were confused too. The evil man cut them down because he wanted to make ďŹ re, so he chopped the logs and loaded them on his tyres.

The trees were dead. They were not talking anymore and about the hidden treasure found under their roots, only the sad mole will know.

Gabriel Grech 8

COVID-19 Clean your hands well so they’ll be germ-free.

Obey safe-distancing rules so they’ll open the schools.

Video call family and all of your friends to show them that your love never ends.

Inform if you feel anything different, though it might not be significant.

Do pray and have faith, don’t worry, it’s not too late!

1 life, so take good care of it.

9 million reasons to thank front liners who won’t quit.

Emily Tabone

DINO THE DINOSAUR Dino is a big green dinosaur. Dino has big teeth. Dino has a long neck. Dino runs very fast. Dino snaps and stomps. Dino is going to have a baby brother. It is now an egg. It will soon hatch and become baby dinosaur.

Dino and his brother play together in the jungle. This story is about a dinosaur called Dino and his baby brother.

Ilyas Ige Sultana

9

EMILY AND THE DRAGON

Once upon a time there was a dragon who lived in a cave. Opposite of the cave, on a hill there was a castle. In the castle there lived a little girl who was a fairy named Emily. Between the castle and the cave there was a forest. One day Emily the fairy decided to explore the forest. While walking she saw a cave and continued walking towards it. When she was near the cave, she heard strange noises. She looked up and was surprised to see a dragon flying and breathing fire.

The fairy flew towards him and patted him gently and then the dragon befriended her. Emily the fairy started to visit him three days a week. She always took him something delicious and named him Tobaga. Tobaga became Emily's pet and they lived happily ever after.

Elisa Marie Azzopardi

LET’S MAKE THE WORLD A BETTER PLACE The earth is a wonderful place, But we are destroying it with our race.

Pollution is making the atmosphere hotter, And in 50 years our world will be rotter, We need to remember the 3 R’s, Reduce, reuse, recycle is all you need to remember.

Plant more trees in open space, To give life to wildlife and smiles on people’s face.

Keep fit, be active, Eat healthy foods, Exercise daily to maintain a good you.

Help each other in any way you can.

Don’t drink alcohol, don’t take drugs, Respect the law to avoid the war.

Be proud of what God created, Take care of it and be educated, So that you can be elated.

Let’s make the world a better place.

Blake Sciberras

10

WHAT CAN WE DO TO MAKE A BETTER WORLD? Our world is slowly dying So what about I tell you a few words about Earth?

We shouldn’t throw our waste In the sea or else we will be displaced.

The earth is in danger, I can be a game changer.

The world is very precious!

So what would happen if we harm The world?

It will form into a storm And no more babies will be born.

It won’t reform.

We should try to change our ways And make the world a better place.

No more plastic, much less waste.

Eat organic – better taste!

Why go by car when you can walk?

Enjoy the breeze and have a talk?

Use your bike or take a hike.

It will give you great delight!

Close the tap when you wash your teeth.

Eat more veg and buy less meat!

Have a shower not a bath!

So do your part and take this PATH! Kate Grech

STAY SAFE

24. Stay Safe

My dear friends and classmates I miss you very much I wish our life was normal And we could still keep in touch.

Unfortunately, this is the current situation Please obey the law and stay inside So, we prove to this pandemic That we are ready to ďŹ ght.

We all miss our social activities Which might lead us to despair This is what this nasty virus did I think you all agree that it is not fair!

Without doubt this time is very tough To all the medical staff, the police and armed forces.

With pride let's say a big THANK YOU For their hard work and dedication They're risking their own sanity to protect our nation They're a huge inspiration!

Don't give up guys Remember GOD is watching us from above Don't lose faith in him Since GOD is full of Love!

I'm pretty sure we'll conquer this Be patient one day this will all come to an end From here I would like to send my regards To all my friends You're not alone in this black cloud I'm shouting out loud STAY SAFE!

Krista Marie Tabone

12

ANIMALS, OUR FRIENDS WHO TEACH US Have you even wondered, What it’s like to be an animal?

Whether it’s a dog, a cat, A cow or a camel?

Cats and dogs usually Live with us at home.

But sometimes even they wish To go out and roam.

Cats teach us that when you Feel you need to be alone, There is no need to Run away from home.

An annoyed cat, seeks a quiet place, There it calms down, at its own pace.

So when we are angry, We must just count to ten, And spare some time To find ourselves again.

Dogs are a man’s best friend They seek for their owner Wherever they are And a relationship they never end.

A cow, yes you see, Has a very good memory, Giving me advice, To observe well and be wise.

The shark, as cunning as it seems, Cleans our oceans and seas.

Even though it may be scary, Its cleaning job shows the contrary.

The camel in the desert, Sure makes a lot of effort, Telling us to never give up, Cause clean, clear water will soon show up.

Last but not least, A roaring tiger may look like a beast.

But it takes great care of its young, Even showing them how to clean up using their tongue.

Every animal is different And special in its own way.

So let’s look up info about The wonders of an animal each day.

Maria Parnis 13

THE MAGICAL, SPARKLY AND COLOURFUL SHOES

One sunny day, I decided to go for a walk in the forest behind our cottage. When I entered the forest I heard a mysterious voice calling my name. At first I thought that it was a fairy calling me but then I said to myself, “No, fairies do not exist”. I got curious and walked closer and closer to the voice. The voice was coming from an old ruined building.

When I got next to the ruin, I noticed an old lady who looked like a witch sitting on the ground.

She was an old, ugly lady with a wrinkly face, boney fingers, pointy nose and elfin ears. I thought she was going to kill me! She told me “Come closer, I promise that I will not hurt you”. I felt a shiver run down my spine and I did what she asked me to do. She said in a trembling voice, “Here, take this parcel. Do not step into the water with these because you will lose the magic and whoever asks you to give them the object inside this parcel, do not do it because it will be my evil twin sister and she will stop the magic! Understood?” I nodded my head and replied “Understood,” in half a whisper. She pushed the parcel into my hands.

The parcel was wrapped with newspapers. I unwrapped the newspapers and found a box. It was a shoebox! I opened the shoe box slowly because I thought that there was a poisonous frog waiting to jump at my face but instead there was the prettiest thing I had ever seen. It was a colourful, sparkly pair of shoes. I immediately took them out of the box and put them on. I looked down at my feet to admire them. When I lifted my head to thank the old lady I realized she had vanished! I looked around but she was nowhere to be seen.

I felt confused, I did not know how this pair of shoes could be magical. I tried to understand how the magic works. I rubbed the shoes like a genie’s lamp and I said, “Magic shoes, magic shoes, do your magic!” but nothing happened. I thought some more and then I twirled around four times and said once more, “Magic shoes, magic shoes, do your magic!” but this trick did not work either.

I felt frustrated. Then I remembered about Dorothy and the Wizard of Oz story so I tried my luck one more time. I wished for a chocolate ice cream. I closed my eyes and wished really hard, I tapped my feet three times touching both shoes together. I opened my eyes slowly and I saw a golden glow that whirled around my hands. All of a sudden, a chocolate ice-cream appeared in my hands. I happily ate the ice-cream and walked deeper into the forest.

From the corner of my eye I saw a movement, I saw a leaf man struggling to get up. When he noticed me he asked me to help him up. I told him, “You do not have feet, how are you going to get up and stand up?” The leaf

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From the corner of my eye I saw a movement, I saw a leaf man struggling to get up. When he noticed me he asked me to help him up. I told him, “You do not have feet, how are you going to get up and stand up?” The leaf man replied in frustration, “I do not have feet! Can my day get any worse! Please help me little girl.” I said, “Do not worry, I think I can help you.” So I wished really hard for a pair of feet for leaf man, I tapped my shoes together three times and when I opened my eyes I saw a glow around the leaf man and a pair of leaf legs appeared. He was so happy and he asked me, “Can I join you in your adventure? Can I be your friend?” I replied, “Yes! Of course you can join me and be my friend.”

We walked together until we found a poor bird on the ground trying to fly. I went next to the bird and asked, “Do you need help little fellow?” The bird said, “Yes please, my wing is broken and I cannot fly!” I replied once again, “Do not worry, I think I can help you.” I wished really hard, closed my eyes and tapped my shoes together three times. A golden glow swirled around the bird’s wing and it was fixed. The bird was so glad he starting flying on top of my head. The bird said, “Thank you! Thank you very much!” He asked us if he could join us and be our friend. “Of course”, both me and leaf man said together.

We continued walking deeper into the forest and we found a boa constrictor struggling to wriggle its body. The snake asked me if I can help him. At first I felt terrified that the snake was going to trick me and eat me but then I said yes. I approached the snake cautiously and touched its body. Once more, I wished really hard, closed my eyes and tapped my shoes together three times. A golden glow appeared around the snake’s body and he started to wriggle again. He was so happy. He said, “Thank you very much. I never met a kind girl just like you. I am the only friendly snake on the planet, I will not hurt you!” He too asked us if he could join us and be our friend because he had no family. “Of course!” we all replied together.

We continued our way slowly deeper into the dark forest. The sun was going down and the shadows started growing. My heart started beating quickly because I felt that something bad was going to happen. All of a sudden, a tree started moving and it came face to face with me.

It had a face and it could talk! “Oh hello little girl. You look so pretty. You have such colorful shoes and they are so sparkly. Do you mind if you give them to me?” I immediately realised that it was the evil twin sister the old lady had warned me about. I had to get away from her. I started moving backwards slowly, slowly and the tree started moving its branches and roots.

It grabbed me by my waist with its branches and I started screaming and beating the tree. I couldn’t tap my shoes together to work the magic!

The bird quickly flew next to me and told the tree, “Hey, let her go!” The tree replied back, “Never!! I want my shoes back.” The bird flew down to the tree’s face and started poking the tree’s eye with the beak. Leaf man had strength as a super power so he grabbed the tree and started bending it. The boa constrictor wrapped itself around the tree’s branches and started crushing them so the tree could let me go. I fell on the ground and my friends surrounded me. A black smoke swirled around the broken tree and we could not see anything. When the smoke disappeared we realised that the tree had vanished and there was no sign of the evil twin sister.

We were so relieved!

From that day onwards, leaf man, the bird, the boa constrictor and I remained best friends. We always stayed together and fought the villains of the forest.

Sofia Cini 15

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The Easter bunny breaks his leg

One Easter morning Pinter, the Easter bunny was in his house preparing the Easter eggs to give out to the children. When he was done he decided to go for a walk...

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While he was walking he tripped over a rock. Pinter tried to get up but he could not move, that is when he realized that his foot was broken. HELP, HELP!!!!!! he screamed.

Luckily his friends Peep the chick and Betty the sheep were near. They quickly called an ambulance. In a ash the ambulance arrived. The doctors put Pinter in the ambulance and drove to the hospital. While they drove to the hospital Pinter asked a favor to his friends. Peep and Betty he said, can you deliver the Easter eggs for me please?. Yes, said Peep, sure said Betty. Thank you said Pinter with delight.

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When they arrived at the hospital Pinter asked them to go to his house and collect the eggs and give them to the children before they get impatient. Peep and Betty said goodbye and rushed to his house.

When Peep and Betty were done they went to the hospital.

Pinter was about to leave, my leg is better he said running towards them. Now I know who to ask for help next Easter if I am sick or hurt.

16

A SPECIAL BIRTHDAY! Last year, on the 2nd of March 2019, I celebrated my 11th birthday........but in a very special way!

It was a blistering hot afternoon and the sky was filled with cotton wool clouds. I was back home from my piano lessons when all of a sudden, SURPRISE!!! I couldn’t believe my eyes when I noticed that my family and friends organized a surprise birthday party just for me! Our house was decorated with rainbow pastel confetti and heart shaped balloons. There was also a huge unicorn piñata which was filled with marvellous toys and delicious lollies!

My mum and dad also organized several fun pool games! In a flash of a second, I changed into my brand-new bathing suit and jumped into our warm and large indoor pool! My friends and I enjoyed ourselves to the utmost splashing in the crystal clear blue warm water and playing all sorts of fun pool games! As we were in the middle of a volleyball game something rather peculiar happened!

The lights switched off and I was quite shocked as I thought that there was a power cut but in a matter of seconds my parents entered the room with a massive scrumptious and mouth-watering fruit and cream cake! It was decorated with lots of rainbow sprinkles, delicious whipped cream and tasty strawberry jam! The cake had eleven huge candles which lit the whole room!

I am sure that that was a very special birthday which I will truly never forget!

Mireil Portelli 17

JACK, STEVE… AND THE OTHER THIEF! Out of an old Prison, Once escaped two thieves, One was named Jack And the other was Steve As they had no money, They planned to rob a bank So they stole a motorbike With plenty of fuel in the tank But while they were driving They were spotted by the police Who immediately followed them And shouted “Freeze!”

Panicking and rushing, They quickly drove across the land But they could go on no further As they had reached a dead end!

Blocking their road was a huge wall, Made of bricks They got off their bike to try to move it, Maybe even using some tricks They started pushing the wall …they thought it was clever Pushing, huffing and puffing …it seemed to be taking forever!

As they were pushing, Another thief came from behind their back He stole their motorbike, And silently took it away from Steve and Jack For hours and hours, They kept pushing the wall “Has it moved yet?”

“Yes, as I can see the bike no more!”

And as their genius plan Did nothing but fail The police finally found them And they ended back in jail!

Always be a good person!

And just in case you forgot, If you steal or do other bad things, …you will always get caught!

Hayley Attard 18

THE FALL OF THE STARS I almost heard the sea sirens Sing a song of grace As they rejoice To crash onto the shores alone There is almost a choir Harmonising the sky As the birds waltz with the wind Unphased by ur slaving ways I woke up and saw my reflection In my coffee and it awed me.

At dawn I really ‘saw’ My children’s sleepy faces Their tangled hair And how it caressed them The way the light moves at home on A Tuesday afternoon How life sounds outside When no one can be angry For fleeting things One day the tide will subside We cannot deny we have Made ourselves blind To what we’ve had before our eyes They’ll have time to adjust To the things that we lost But nothing comes close to what our lives cost

Melissa Portelli

19

REALISE Standing in a meadow, Feeling the light spring breeze, Looking at the rolling hills, Take a moment to stop...

Take a moment to breathe.

I take a breath, I close my eyes, I take a moment, I start to realise...

Feeling the soft sun rays, I am here, i am now...

I take a soft deep breath in, I am grateful, so very grateful, I actually don't miss a thing.

Birds are ying in the sky, Birds sounds all around, The suns warmth surrounds me, My feet ďŹ rmly in natures ground.

What matters is what's real, What matters is for free, What matters is appreciation, Of all things that we see.

I take a breath, I close my eyes, I take a moment I start to realise...

I see the seas before me, Colours before me sapphires and teal, Soft waves, jagged rocky landscape, A perfect moment so real.

Humanity has paused, Mother nature has not, Take a moment to appreciate what you have all around you, Not.. what you haven't got.

The human world has stopped, My life is currently on hold, Nature is creating, Mother nature's creation, this planets gold.

I take a breath, I close my eyes, I take a moment, Now I realise.

Sian Lautier 20

A TINY LITTLE MOUSE And yet, We all live in continuous peril Of body, mind and soul.

We all scamper to and fro So endlessly and restlessly Until our hearts rest in Him. He who had dwelt among us, And sacriďŹ ced His life for us, Our Saviour, in Bethlehem born.

It was just a tiny little mouse That ventured into our house, A furry little sprightly ball That scampered to and fro, In search of food and shelter In a home where in his view, Giants must have dwelt Of a burly human form.

It was just a feeble little mouse That crossed the threshold of our house And was an uninvited guest, A gnawing little pest!

Surely an unwelcome sight, In a home where food and comfort Were in abundance For all to glee about.

Fretting so in her seat The one who gave me birth Looked at me imploringly.

No words were uttered.

No order was given.

And wham! With one little whack A life puffed out.

A lifeless little creature.

What a hideous little act!

And yet, If by power and privilege We live so loftily, We can look down upon others As if they were mere mice That scamper to and fro Their plight and pain To us will surely not appertain.

Their lives so expendable!

Mary Grace Mercieca 21

Cultural Heritage Directorate