I would understand if you do not believe what I am about to tell you but I lived to tell the tale. Have you ever looked death right in the eye? I have. 

It all started with a family trip to the tropics. A beautiful jungle oasis. We were surrounded by a sea of lush green with the wildlife living right there with us.
It started out as a picture perfect week but on day 5 things took a turn…
I had always dreamed of an opportunity to take a real jungle cruise. I wanted to witness the animals in action, interacting with each other in their natural habitat.
When we arrived, the first thing we did was book our excursions and I could not wait for day 5. My dream to cruise through the jungle was coming true.
We woke up early to get ready and to fill our bellies for the next great adventure. I will skip to the part you are all waiting for…
Our jungle cruise director led us to the center of the jungle only for the truck to run out of gas. Where, you ask? The lion’s den.

We called for help as soon as we could but knew it would be several hours before anyone could get to us. We knew this would be a game of survival.
I did my best to stay calm because these animals do smell your fear, but that is no simple task.
Several hours turned into 2 days. It was an agonizing game of hide and hope to not be seeked. The hotel staff sent to rescue us were caught in a stand off with a few disgruntled gorillas. They had to be rescued first before anyone could get to us.
I don’t wish to revisit the details of those days. I know I was lucky to come out alive. Sometimes we are lucky enough to look death in the eye and live to tell the tale.

Samantha completed her two painting project to accompany her creative writing piece of a Survival Story. When asked how she would want to illustrate it she said it would be fun to do a stare down between the girl and the lion.