Nativity, 2014 grade 11-12 1 When Shirley Brown was born, the world fell upside down. Her birth was going to cause much more controversy than any world war, economic crises or atomic bomb. She was going to be born and raised for great things, however, people wouldn’t be aware of such reality. ### Opalopa was a small town located in the Cogli Valley between the deserted Vertic and the Vorat mountain ranges. The Latimo River passed exactly through the center of the town, ultimately dividing it into the easterns and the westerns. The river was a strong flowing one, which meant that people couldn’t use it as transportation or for recreation. In fact, people were afraid of the river’s flow to such an extent that people hated having to cross it. Furthermore, there was only one bridge connecting the east and the west sides. The bridge was a wooden, timber-like, old one that creaked with each human step. Actually, it creaked with anything. Even if it was a homeless dog passing by, the bridge would create such a sound that everyone in Opalopa would hear the steps and say “God praise the traveler,” revealing how precarious this crossing was. The crossing from east to west wasn’t very common. Founders of the town built it in such a way that things would be distributed equally between the two sides, in other words, the two existent butchers each one was in a side, the two churches were each one in a different side, and the two taverns were as well, one in the east and one in the west. As a consequence of the previous, people didn’t have to cross the Latimo unless they wanted to visit someone on the other side, which hardly occurred since in reality, easterns and westerns would socialize as much. Everybody preferred socializing with their own people and didn’t like ‘getting Nativity, 2014 grade 11-12 2 mixed up’, how they said, with the other side. Nevertheless, this tension between the two sides was a benign one, nothing risky. In Opalopa everything worked just perfectly. The town had everything that was necessary; as a consequence, there was no need of commercializing or trading with neighbor towns. The only trading done once in a while was between easterns and westerns, given that each side’s soil was different, which resulted in different crops being produced in each of the two territories, which was what ultimately, little by little, as people began realizing the idea of ‘preferences’ existed, created the tension and competition between the two sides. People from the east began planting on the west and vice-versa and people from the west wouldn’t stay behind. Lisha and Toby Brown lived in Opalopa. They loved this town like everyone else did, however, among everyone else, they had something that differentiated them. Something that nobody was in favor of, but neither complained about. The Browns were neither easterns nor westerns. Their condition was a complicated one. Nobody knew how they dared, nobody knew why de did so, nobody knew why wouldn’t they stop doing so, they just knew that the Browns lived happily in the so hated and feared bridge. They’d built an inexpressive house made out of fallen tree leaves and tree trunks and other materials that people had donated them as they began constructing this shelter. People from all over Opalopa didn’t like them, in fact they disliked them for not being part of any of the two sides, however, nobody would reject them or deny their friendly requests since it could result in the Browns uniting to the other side. It was February 25th when Toby was out there fishing in the Latimo- the only person in town that dared getting close enough to being able to do so. Meanwhile, Lisha was at home doing house shores. She was weaving some clothe for her Nativity, 2014 grade 11-12 3 husband when she began feeling really drowsy. It wasn’t drowsy actually, but instead, somewhat dizzy. A bizarre intense desire to vomit saturated her inside. Running towards the bathroom she started bleeding through her genitals. Now she didn’t know whether her nausea or her bleeding was more terrifying, all she knew was that she had been cursed by someone- someone that hated the idea that her husband and her wouldn’t be part of any of the two sides. After non-stop throw-up, she ran non-stop outside looking for her husband. “I knew this would happen someday, I knew it,” she screamed looking down preventing getting obstructed by the gigantic silver rocks and falling down. “What, what is it my lovely wife? Call down. Get yourself together. God is with you my love you, there is no need of shedding tears.” “We gotta choose. East or west Toby. It’s up to you.” “We won’t choose a side Lisha. We’ve talked about this already. We don’t believe in segregation of the easterns and westerns. We don’t believe in separation. We live in the bridge and here’s where we will stay.” “But I began throwing up and a red liquid began coming out from between my legs. I am gonna get killed by someone who wants us to choose.” There was nothing that could convince Toby that they should choose a side. Furthermore, Lisha kept feeling dizzy and with a lot of nausea for the continuing nine months. However, it was November 27th, nine months and two days later, that something that was about to turn people in Opalopa lives’ upside-down. A diminutive newborn child came out from Lisha’s genitals; Shirley-the first infant born in Opalopa. Afterwards, the Browns realized that this baby was what made Lisha felt such way. People idealized this creature that came from Lisha’s body. They realized that being from the two Nativity, 2014 grade 11-12 4 sides wasn’t as bad at all, and maybe, if they got together with the other side, they would as well produce creatures. Many metallic and strong bridges were created in Opalopa. Easterns and Westerns began living together. It was the first time that men and women got together in society. It was the first time that a bridge wouldn’t be the cause of genre separation. A lot of babies began being ‘produced’ and Opalopa people learned about breading.