Week 3 Storytelling: Freedom isn't Free

The first semester of college was over for Will. It's been a rough semester for the new freshman with the transition to a university, his own apartment, and to a new state. He overwhelmed himself with credit hours this past semester which put more stress on his plate. He had a part time job as a waiter in order to pay rent and buy food, but money was always tight. On the brighter side, he was flying back home to Oklahoma for winter break. He couldn't be more excited to see his family.

The flight landed at Will Rogers airport around 11:35 PM. Will was anxious to get off the plane and head on home. As he left the gate, he saw his twin brother, Robbie, waiting for him on the other side.

"Will! You're fat now," chuckled Robbie as he embraced his scrawny brother. "Welcome home, bro. I'll admit it's been pretty boring without having you around."

"It's good to be back. Surprisingly, I miss mom's cooking the most," said Will. He reminisced of all the meals he missed out on while he scrapped by with cans of tuna and rice.

The boys headed back home by midnight. Will rummaged through the fridge to find any leftovers to silence his growling stomach. All of his ruckus in the kitchen woke up his sleepy mother who angrily shouted, "Will! It is the middle of the night! Go straight to bed, young man!" The door slammed behind her.

Will looked at Robbie with a confused look and whispered, "Well nice to see you too, mom. What's with her?" Robbie shook his head and sighed, "She's been like that. You'll just get used to it. At least here you're not starving though!"

Will didn't think much of what his brother said, but as the days passed by, he realized how much his freedom was restricted. There were no more late night snacks. Inviting friends to the house past nine o' clock was now prohibited. A curfew at eleven was also enforced. Worst of all, Will's mother prohibited the consumption of alcohol in her household. Towards the end of winter break, Will had enough of all the house rules. It was back to the airport for Will since the spring semester was closely approaching. Robbie helped Will check into his gate where they said their final good-byes.

"Dude, thank God that you're leaving. I'm tired of you eating all of my snacks." joked Robbie. "Make sure you have a safe flight."

Will hugged his twin and said, "I'm going to miss you, bro, but I most definitely will not miss that house. I don't know how you do it. Sure you don't have to worry about rent or being short on food, but you can never do anything. You're restricted. I would much rather be on my own than be controlled, but that's just me. Take care, Rob." Then Will boarded his flight to his new home.

Breaking free from chains. Source.

Author's Note: I rewrote this story from The Fables of Aesop by Joseph Jacobs based on Wolves chapter. In the story of the wolves, there was a starving wolf who approached a well-kept dog. The dog offered the wolf a place to stay with his master. The wolf took the offer, but then realized that the master would chain the dog. Refusing to be a slave, the wolf took off. The moral of the story was Better starve free than be a fat slave. I rewrote the story in the perspective of a college student. I know that several of my friends struggle during break because they have to obey their parent's rules again. I chose to rewrite this story because the moral caught my interest. I believe several people are willing to give up their freedom for security or food and water, but in the end nothing will compare to glory of freedom. It's a human's natural right to be free, and the wolf knew that he was better off enjoying his freedom that obeying a master just for food. The image that I chose shows a person breaking their chains. I liked the way freedom was depicted. Whether it be literal chains or chains of oppression, breaking those chains must be the most satisfying feeling.

Bibliography: The Fables of Aesop by Joseph Jacobs (1894).