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I clutched my backpack to my chest, hoping desperately that we were almost there. My legs trembled, and pain shot up my thigh each time I took a step.

"You okay, K?" My friend, Charlie, looked concerned. I grimaced.

"Yeah, I'm just tired from all the walking." What an understatement… Ever since I tripped on a fallen tree branch and twisted my ankle, each step was pure agony.

A couple months ago, National Geographic sponsored our 8th grade class to go to the Amazon on a private field trip. We had won the National Geographic Wildlife competition, and this was our grand prize. At first, I was excited to share such a wonderful experience with my friends-- but it was short lived. All of those hours of studying for this? I was weak, impatient, and homesick. It didn't help that we hadn't even reached the rainforest yet.

Ms. Glin stopped walking. "Class, we're going to rest for the day! Set up your tents!" My other friend, Summer, cheered.

"That was fun!" It didn't help that she had a six minute mile time- compared to my unathletic ten.

I wearily helped Summer and Charlie set up our 3-person tent. My muscles felt like Silly Putty, and I breathed hard, still trying to adjust to the high altitude of the Andes. Once we ate a hearty meal of steamed rice, beans, and canned fish, we got out our sleeping mats and laid them on the floor of our tent. Fourth day, and I survived.

"What did you bring from home?" Charlie asked us once we were settled inside.

I emptied the contents of my backpack. "Not much." I started listing out some necessities. "Fourteen sets of identical green army style shorts, my favorite Star Wars t-shirts, my Element long sleeves…"

Summer nodded. "What about your personal items that keep you from being homesick? It's a shame that we can only bring three."

Summer and Charlie groaned. "One of your Tolkien books?"

I faked disbelief. "How did you know?"

"You talk about Lord of the Rings EVERY day. I mean, you named your dog Frodo! But how would a book remind you of your family?"

"Well, you see, everyone in my family likes books. Even when we get sucked into technology and such, books bring us back together. Mom prefers nonfiction or historical fiction and she takes me to Parent-Child book clubs every month. We have lively discussions at home, too, and we stay up late pondering about each book. Dad prefers fantasy or science fiction, and he introduced me to the Tolkien world. We used to read the Hobbit every night." Tears welled up in my eyes when I thought of my family, and I hurriedly wiped them away. I continued.

"I brought the Hobbit, specifically, because it's about a young hobbit who went outside of his comfort zone to go on an adventure. It's kind of like what we're doing now in the Amazon, you know?" My voice faltered to a whisper. "I miss my family."

I looked at Charlie and Summer to see their reactions, only to realize that they were fast asleep. I sighed. "G'night, then." Before I knew it, my eyes were closing and…

Sunlight shone through the transparent vinyl panels of our tent. "Good morning, everyone!" Charlie started rolling up her sleeping bag. "Rise and shine!"

I groaned. "Just a sec."

Summer was already up and moving, her golden brown ponytail swinging. By the time we took down our tent, most of the other kids were already eating breakfast. I helped myself to some oatmeal while Ms. Glin announced the schedule of the day.

"We expect to reach the Amazon rainforest by noon," she said, holding up her microphone. "To the Amazon!"

The signal sent clouds of dust up in the air as thirty kids started to stampede toward the pathway. I cleaned my oatmeal bowl while Charlie and Summer waited patiently for me.

"Ready now."

We continued our painful journey ahead. After a while, Charlie paused. "You never told us your other items that you brought. I took a tennis ball out from my backpack and started bouncing it. "This."

"Why on earth would you bring a tennis ball?" Summer said disbelievingly. "Did you even bring a photograph of your family?"

"Um…no." I felt sheepish. "I brought a tennis ball."

"Go on!" Charlie said, looking almost amused.

"Well, I brought a tennis ball because our family always plays tennis with each other twice a week. It encouraged me to work hard to get the ball, and I have improved ever since. During tennis, we would laugh and play silly games like Gladiator, where you are trying to beat the master tennis player. I felt like tennis brought our family closer together than ever before. Also, my puppy, Frodo, loves to play with squeaky tennis balls. He doesn't even think when he runs after it and it's fun to watch him slip and slide on the floor. So, a tennis ball reminds me of those things."

"Huh, I didn't think of that!" Summer exclaimed. She skipped down the path. "Oh my gosh! Look, it's the rainforest!" Sure enough, strong, broad trees that seemed to stretch on for millions of miles were right on the path. The strong smell of earthy, damp soil and sweet fruits created an enticing aroma that made me long for adventure. We all began to run forward when I realized that my ankle was still twisted. Ow. We continued to walk in peaceful silence as our eyes glazed over the playful monkeys, snakes, insects, and birds in the jungle. Well, not exactly in silence. The soft chittering of insects and birds made the forest become alive with vivacity. My bones tingled with energy, and my eyes shone.

"I want to keep all of them as pets!" I squealed, eying a beautiful tree green snake wrapped around a trunk. "So beautiful!"

"I know," Summer said. "I wish our parents could see this."

Charlie laughed. "Look at that baby monkey!"

Summer noticed I was clutching something in my hand. "What's that?"

"Oh." I laughed nervously. "My third personal item." I opened my hand for Summer and Charlotte to see.

"A rock?"

"Yeah... " I shrugged. "Look closer." Large holes covered the rock, and in those holes were tiny crystals.

"Cool," Summer breathed.

"I got it in Hawaii, while searching for fossils. At our resort, we had many fun things to do. However, I was disappointed that there wasn't a beach there. Dad and I went to a rocky shore with no sand, and he took pictures of the landscape while I gathered stones. One time I found what looked like plain rock. It was black and smooth, with what seemed to be like small bits of lichen attached to it. However, when I brought it home, I discovered that it was not lichen, but green crystals! I was amazed, and to this day, it remains to be my favorite rock. It taught me that some things may not be what they seem, and you have to look closer to find what they truly are."

"Wow! I didn't realize that items could have… such deep meaning." Charlie laughed.

I laughed too. And with the sound of a rushing river nearby, we faded into the distance, pondering our thoughts.

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