Oil

A Story by Autumn

Classic story of a family finding oil on their property.

At first, we thought the black liquid was oil, that we’d struck it rich and that we’d be able to retire and live in leisure. We actually started writing down all the ways we’d spend the money. Our first choice was to buy a house big enough for all of us to at least have our own room. Three people to one room, and there’s only two bedrooms in our small house. None of us were allowed to sleep in the living room, so there’s hardly ever a moment of privacy. The one bathroom we have is the only safe haven, and being alone in there is even a challenge.

The second choice was to buy a boat, but my mother vetoed it due to my baby brother’s fear of water. Before any of us listed anything else, we agreed that the house would be our top priority after we received the money.

My father called the environmental authority to notify them that the black liquid was pouring from a hole in the ground, and the person replied that they will send a surveyor along with a field tester out to ensure that it is oil leaking from the ground. When they arrived, my father walked out to greet them while us children and my mother peeked from the window. Our little noses grazed the dusty window sill. The men and my father disappeared around the back of the house.

After nearly twenty minutes, the men drove off in their big, white truck while my father trudged into the house.

My mother stared at him as he took off his hat and placed it on the hook by the door. He finally smiled at us,

“Two weeks and we’ll be sure that is oil. They’re nearly positive that it is, but they want to be sure before making us millionaires.”

We all began to scream, and my little sister was running around like a chicken with her head cut off. Us children did not even get in trouble because of this extraordinary event. My mother was shedding tears of joy. We have been poor all of our lives, but this was going to change everything. In at least two weeks, our lives would be so different than it is now.