Alexandria of Africa (22 page)

I didn’t know what to say. It was exactly the car I’d dreamed about and schemed for. And now I was holding the key in my hand.

“We can pick it up from the dealership on the morning of your birthday!” he exclaimed.

“So … you haven’t actually taken the car yet, right?”

“We’ve signed the papers and everything is set, but the sale isn’t final until delivery. Why?”

“I was just wondering … and I know this is going to sound ungrateful … but do I have to have
that
car?”

“Alexandria, I know it’s not the
very
top of the line, but you can’t expect me to spend any more money than—”

“No,” I said, cutting him off. “I was wondering if you could spend
less.”

“Less?” both my parents said in perfect unison, with identical looks of utter confusion. They couldn’t have looked more lost if I’d spoken to them in Swahili. Less … 
kasa … kasoro
. Actually, they didn’t look confused, they looked worried, almost scared.

“I really do want a car,” I said, and they both relaxed a bit. “I just don’t need a Mercedes. I was thinking a Mustang.”

“I thought that was the one car you
didn’t
want,” my father said.

“Carmella likes hers. It would be a lot less money, right?”

“About a third of the cost of the Mercedes,” my father said, and chuckled.

“Then there would be some left over if I wanted some money.”

My father smiled. This was something he understood, something that was familiar.

“How much did you have in mind?”

“Well, I’m not exactly sure, but I was thinking around twenty thousand dollars.”

“Twenty thousand dollars! That’s a lot of money for me to just give you!”

“Your father’s right, Alexandria.”

“No, you don’t understand. I don’t want you to give me a cent.”

“Who do you want me to give the money to?” he questioned.

“It isn’t really a
who
as much as a
what
, a place.” I paused. “This is hard to explain, but I really need you to understand … both of you.”

“We’re listening,” my father said, and I could tell that they really
were
listening.

“You see, there’s this community, and there are no hospitals, and they need our help … your help … and I was just wondering …”

Alexandria of Africa
was mostly written while I was in Kenya with my son, Nick. We were there, in part, with an amazing organization called Free The Children. My son had raised $20,000 for a school to be built in memory of his Uncle Peter, who had died of cancer. We were part of the opening ceremony at that school as well as helping to actually build another school.

A great deal of the things we experienced, participated in, and witnessed form “the bones” of this book. Nebala is real. Renée is real—although she has much better fashion sense in real life—and the Renée character in my book is a combination of her and another amazing individual, Robin, who also works for Free The Children. They kindly allowed me dramatic licence to re-create their personalities in these pages.

Being in Africa was truly one of the most amazing experiences of my life. It was wonderful to be there with an organization that is dedicated to changing the lives of young people around the world. For more information about how you become involved with Free The Children go to
www.freethechildren.com
.

ERIC WALTERS
, a former elementary school teacher, began writing as a way to encourage his students to become more enthusiastic about literature. His young adult novels have won numerous awards, including the Silver Birch, Blue Heron, Red Maple, Snow Willow, and Ruth Schwartz. He lives in Mississauga, Ontario. His website is
www.ericwalters.net
.