Eiffel Tower ~ A Daughter's Story by Kinzel

One sunny day in 1895, July 19th, around 11 O'clock , I was walking through the Eiffel Tower gardens with my father, Gustave Eiffel. When I looked up at my father's 985 feet of pride and glory, I saw wonderful, hard work and smelled freshly shaved sawdust and spring Lilies blooming. I could see the glistening sun rising behind the Eiffel tower. It was beautiful. I could smell the damp, freshly cut grass and freshly cut flowers, two smells that made me feel free. I felt so proud that I told him, "Father, I am so proud of you! You are the best!" I gave him a small hug. Dignity filled me as I told him this.

"It has not always something to be proud of," father scuffled to me as he looked at the tower guiltily.



"Hmm? Why not?" I asked with shock and curiosity.


"Many, many people got seriously injured and even died when we were building the Eiffel tower,” he said with disappointment.

"Oh,… um...uh well, I am sorry. I didn't know," I said feeling guilty. There was a long awkward pause - longer than I ever remembered the two of us ever having.




Then all of a sudden a flashback from breakfast hit me. I could hear my brother's proud voice, "My father is Gustave Eiffel, the creator of the Eiffel Tower and the Statue of Liberty for the United States of America." I could just faintly hear my brother whisper his speech over and over again as he prepared for his first day as an Eiffel tower tour guide. The breeze brought me back to the present. The memory faded away as someone's terrified screams broke through my mysterious thoughts. Both my father and I looked toward the scream, then suddenly I recognized it. "Father! That's Tailon!"



Jasper, the engineer of the Eiffel tower's repairs and upkeep and also our gardener, ran up to my father and me yelling in terror, "Help! Help! Talion, YOUR SON, has been in an accident. Some iron broke off the tower about five minutes ago. It fell really, really far down! It landed hard...it landed on his leg. I know it's broken, and he's unconscious! We must do somthin' about it!"

"The wind can cause the tower to sway, and, in fact, at the very top it can move up to five inches. This made the iron beam come lose and fall. Yes! It’s a terrible break indeed, I am sad to say," Jasper sighed.




My father sprinted after Jasper to get to the hospital and see talion!

I jumped on my bicycle and peddled to the victorian hospital.

When I arrived at the hospital on my bicycle, I realized it was a terrible accident. My family was already there, weeping over him; he was still unconscious. I ran over to my father, who looked like he'd done the damage personally, and grabbed his hand. I squeezed it. I hoped with all my heart that he knew it was not his fault. He had to know that his intention was good, he hadn't built it to hurt people. Why hadn’t I thought of that before!

But Talion was still injured. I wanted to cry my eyes out! I was in my father's arms at last, and I kept telling myself, "Talion is OK. Talion is alive..." As we waited for him to regain consciousness, time crept by."Father, it's ok. I know its not your fault and accidents happen, so every things ok ."

"Talion, I am sorry to say has to make some choices...," the doctor seemed terribly sad, "and, the surgery is so intense, there is a possibility that he won't make it. There is a possible chance of … death.” The doctor's words shocked me, and I ran out into the hallway and through the hospital doors. I couldn't stand the harsh talk that was about my dearest twin brother. I couldn't think about his death, even for a moment. I knew that I had to get away, so that's why I left. As I ran, the tears were flowing like rivers down my face. I stumbled on the hard concrete and ran to my bicycle.



I kept riding, past the pastry shop on the corner, and past the big green, school yards. Riding, riding, riding, like there was no tomorrow. I rode and cried, continuing on despite my winded lungs! I was heading home!





Suddenly the tower came into view. "I hate that tower! I hate it! I hate it. I hate it," I kept yelling as people looked at me in confusion. But I kept yelling, screaming, and crying, "I hate that tower! How could my father have built something that...well, horrible! How could he build that monster?" I knew something would go wrong in the surgery! I just knew it! The doctor said that the surgery is so dangerous that Talion had a chance of .... death! What if he doesn't make it? I thought. What if something goes wrong? What if I was there holding his hand when he went, up into the big blue? What if I NEVER see him again?! The thoughts flooded my brain, leaving me even more angry. The tower had hurt my brother, my family, and me! But how could my father's dream be bad? A billion confusing thoughts swirled through my head, too many at once, wayyyy too many. I rode my bike in effort to drain them out of my mind. As I peddled, my thoughts dissolved.





I rode and rode all the way back to the barn behind our home. As I shoved my bicycle aside, and grabbed my western boots, I ran to my horse Gingerbread with tears running down the side of my face. He seemed to know that something was wrong. As I swung my leg over Gingerbread, he stood up and looked at me with sad black button eyes and a sorrowful smile. We galloped through the meadows and past the house. As I was telling him that every thing was going to be alright, I saw father pull up in our black automobile.
Father stormed out of the car and started yelling at me. "Why in the world did you leave in the middle of a very important conversation with the doctor!?" Father questioned me as he stormed closer. I did not reply. I didn't want him to see my tears or hear my emotion because he couldn't bare to see me crying.

Father approached on his horse and we talked and rode all the way to the Eiffel Tower to start the way Talion always did.


"Hello, welcome to the Eiffel Tower, in Paris, France. My name is Burnadette Eiffel. My father, Gustave Eiffel, is the designer of the Eiffel Tower; he also designed the structure of the Statue Of Liberty. The Eiffel tower was built in 1887 and finished in 1889. The construction work took 121 workers and 326 people worked in the Eiffel factory. Paris's Eiffel Tower is one of the world’s most famous landmarks. Paris is the capitol and the largest city of France. it is one of the most beautiful city’s in the world, and the Eiffel Tower only adds to its beauty. From the bottom to top there are 1,665 steps to the top of the tower. Depending on the temperature height varies up to 15 cm..."

The tourists could hear me speaking these words. And if they listened closely enough, they wold hear my pride. The Eiffel tower might be beautiful, and it has caused some sad stories ... but I choose to be like Talion Eiffel and can see the positive side of everything.

But most of all, what the Eiffel Tower teaches us that when you put your mind to something, your dreams will someday come true!!!!!!!

By ~ Kinzel