GMD1

=//Do I Stay or Do I Go?// = = =  **ON THE SHIP TO MARYLAND **

For eight weeks, you travel on this huge, creaking ship. For the first week, it seems like all of the passengers are seasick—including you. Eventually, you get used to the constant rocking and swaying of the ship, though you’ll never get used to the awful smell down here. You are given two meals a day, though some of this would barely qualify as food. The meat smells rotten and the biscuits are rock-hard. The water is brown, and the potatoes are usually wormy. Despite your hunger, sometimes you can’t even bear to eat. During the days, you look out the windows whenever you can, trying to imagine what your new life will be like. If you’re lucky, you can go up to the deck and breathe some fresh air. This usually happens once a week. At night, you try to find a place to stretch out and sleep, and you hope that the rats won’t bother you while you’re sleeping.


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