It was an ordinary day for Kali, a sweet 9 year old 3rd grader. Kali stood in her pale pink nightgown at the foot of her mother. With her hands behind her back and her little puppy dog face, Kali says,
“Mother, please I don’t want to go to school! No one likes me anyways.” Kali’s mother placed the butter back in the fridge from making breakfast and signed, “Dear, don’t say that! I’m sure some one likes you.
Now hurry upstairs and get your clothes on before you miss the bus.” Kali has had a hard life since a accident that happened when she was just a baby that no one speaks of. This accident caused Kali to be deaf. Kali was so angry she headed upstairs Without saying a word to her mother.
Kali slipped on the same pair of jeans and the same t-shirt she has worn to school the day before. Since her father died just a year ago and since the accident that caused her to be deaf her family was very poor and couldn’t afford much, more like anything at all. She brushed her long brown hair and tied it with a faded red ribbon.
Kali headed downstairs ready for another miserable day of school. She ignored the toast her mother had left on the kitchen table for her and walked outside. The leaves under Kali’s feel crunched ever step she took but of course Kali heard nothing at all. The only thing that she was good at was reading lips which came in handy quite a lot. As the bright yellow bus slowed to a stop, Kali climbed on. Lots of children came into view, all different but all the same. These children had something in common. They were all bullies and didn’t seem to realize it either. These children, even ones younger than Kali, picked on her daily.

Kali sat in the 3rd sit, because it was the closest one to the front that happened to be empty as well.
She gazed out the window at the pretty blue sky. Something hit her arm. She turned her head quickly to see
Kids throwing paper at her and laughing. This was every day and she was used to it. Before so turned her head back to the window she noticed a girl that was in her class. This girl pointed at her and was talking to another girl so Kali was pretty sure they were talking about her. Kali watched the girls soft red lips move and Kali was able to make out, “Oh my god! Did you see that girl in the 3rd seat? That’s the girl that’s deaf,”
One of them said and the other said, “She’s deaf? Well she must be poor as well! She is wearing the same ugly clothes from yesterday. Thank god she can’t hear us.” That girl was wrong, Kali did not hear her but was able to make out what she was saying. These words hurt Kali and no one seemed to realize it.

A tear ran down the rosy red cheek that belonged to little Kali. Before she knew it they had arrived to school. Kali ran of the bus and straight to class. As Kali walked in she noticed that Miss.Honey, her teacher, was not there. No one even noticed Kali entered the classroom. She sat down quietly in her seat. She looked around trying to see where her teacher was but she saw a note on the black board stating, that Mrs.Honey was absent today and the sub would arrive soon.
Kali worried, not knowing if this sub was mean or very nice like Miss.Honey. She tried not to worry so much and started to doodle on her notebook. She was lost in her thoughts and did not notice she was now the only one left in the classroom. The smell of smoke came from the hallway. Bright flashes of red came from the corner of the room which was where the fire alarm was. A look of terror came from Kali’s face as the flames surrounded around the classroom.
Kali didn’t know what to do. Everything was happening so fast. The worst part is that she can’t hear anything so if someone is calling her name, looking for her she will never even know.
She ran to the back door trying to open it as fast as she could but it was locked and Miss.Honey had the key. She put all her weight against the door but it wouldn’t budge not one bit. Kali began to cough as she was losing the air around her as it now was replaced with smoke. Kali’s screams and crys were not heard as if they were hidden within the bright colored flames.
The only thing that Kali could rely on was god. She closed her eyes a said a million prayers in just a few seconds of times. Kali said in almost a whisper, “ God please if your listening, just please let my mother know I love her and she will never be forgotten. I wasn’t good enough in this world but It’s not my fault I’m deaf either. Things just happened to quickly and you can’t change the past either. I just want my mother to know I love her with all my heart..“ When she opened her eyes she wasn’t sure but she thought she saw something move thru the flames. Perhaps a person? Kali dropped onto the blackened floor, swallowed by smoke.
The arm’s of a fireman wrapped around Kali’s burning body. She was carried out with all the boys and girl’s watching. Her body was now on a stretcher right by an ambulance. Those girls who made Kali cry earlier that morning were the ones crying now. They felt guilty because they were right next to her the moment the fire alarm went off and they knew she was deaf but they ignored her as if she was invisible. If
One of them would have just at least tapped her on the shoulder then they could have saved a life, but that’s not what happened.









Kali’s burning hot body was now laying there in the ambulance. She couldn’t hear, see, nor touch or smell.
Not even a muscle In her body made the lightest move. It was no one’s fault that this little girl died that very day. She had a short life filled with miserable memories but now all she can do is move on and live her life in heaven with her father and one day her, mother as well.