Dear Mum,

Thanks for the warm weighted blanket, it kept me very cosy on the train. What felt like hours later we finally arrived. It’s my first time in Wales, and the view is absolutely stunning. The weather was  way better than back at home, where the smoke is strangling the sky.

I stood super still like I was stuck in concrete as I waited to be chosen by my guardian. A short, skinny woman walked over and without caution she grabbed my hand. She gave me a friendly smile and it made my heart melt and made me feel safe.

I’m staying with Mrs Oatlen in a small, little stone cottage. The water comes up from a well. We pull a string which is tied to the bucket, and we lower it down until we get enough water to pull it up and drink it.

The first thing she made me do was to help her mop the floors. She did downstairs and I did upstairs. She had one mop, so she took it and I had to get on my hands and knees, with a sponge and a bucket. She couldn’t do it because it would hurt her back. Mrs Oatlen would not let me go downstairs, until the floor was shiny enough to see your reflection. After that we sat down at the dinner table and she gave me a cup of tea with a slice of carrot cake. She has a very British accent which makes me laugh a lot, but she’s really nice and we get along quite well.

I have a little room in the attic. I can see through the window that has soft pink coloured curtains. At night I can hear birds singing and trees swaying in the heavy wind. I’ve prayed every morning, and night about you and dad. Every morning I wake up to the sound of a chicken. It doesn’t fully wake me up but it’s enough to get me out of bed. There are loads of chickens in the backyard that are running around. Miss Oatlen let’s me collect the eggs and that’s what we have for breakfast. She has rows of fruits and vegetables in the front garden and we often pick those together and cook them for dinner.

You won’t believe what we did this week. We made a pond in the back garden. We started by laying bricks in the shape of a heart, then started covering it with cement. We waited a few hours until it was dry so we could paint it and add decorations. I added flowers and lily pads. It was so much fun, rather than staying under a table hiding.

There is a town called Yookia and that’s where we are staying. There are about 25 houses including us and other villagers. There is a stone pathway that’s connected to all the houses. The town can’t afford to buy carpets to scrape their feet on before they come into houses so we use this stone path to scrape our feet on. The fields are a bright green and just by looking at it you can tell it’s a clean and safe environment unlike home.

Every morning Mrs Oatlen makes sure I walk safely to school with my friends. She always checks my back to make sure I have the right things for school, such as my gas mask, ration book, notebooks, and pens. I have got lots of friends to play with, like Lacy Isabella, Brooklyn, Ella, and Louisa. They teach me more than I have probably learned in my 7 years of living. We braid each other’s hair, play hopscotch and skipping. It’s so fun.

I hope you, dad and my friends who didn’t get to come are doing okay. I think about you every day and I miss you guys all so much. I wouldn’t trade you for the world. I’ll write again soon, and I hope you write me a letter back. Bye. 

From, Vanessa