"First medal"

The 100 plus relay participants(myself included) got their medals today; 3rd place, cheap plasticky-bronze, not like the interschool chess club medals. Now those are semi-metallic, and have some weight on it.

Not for Agan. It's his first sports medal since primary school, or so I've heard. It's like those first time moments, you know. Bless his excited soul, or whatever.

Noel came up with some idea to make this blog more entertaining. A continuous essay-style "competition". Here's how it works:
1)I start first(not all the time)
2)Next guy posts a paragraph or several, continuing the story
3)Cycle continues for maybe a month(All stories need endings)
4)Then someone comes up with a good ending; bad endings will be commented on, since I haven't set up some type of poll, so bad comments=post taken down.
5)New story starts again.
6)No, it's not really a competition, I just put it there for lack of a better name as of this moment.

Now, here are the rules:
1)Anything goes, as long as it makes sense, and it doesn't make the story too weird for the reader.
2)If you really want to take a new direction, justify it(lame justifications include a magical reality altering wristwatch, instant setting change, etc). Try to make lame justifications less lame(DUH!)
3)Please check for spelling and grammatical mistakes. I specifically hope you can actually produce good paragraphs(I'm improving your English; you'll thank me later)
4)MAXIMUM paragraphs per post is 3. Please be reminded that you're not the only one writing this.
5)No consecutive posting. Meaning to say, if you've already posted your continuation, and no one else has posted his continuation, you'll have to wait. Same reason as Rule #4.
6)New rules come as they go.

Before I forget, reminders:
1)BM Homework-Workbook, pages 115-122(4 exercises). Due TOMORROW! I've warned you since last week, so don't bother whining.
2)Bio Test tomorrow-still on Chapter 5:Cell Division.
3)Read up on the Acid and Alkali stuff for tomorrow's Chem experiment.

I'll start the story, here goes. Note:If you've a better title, I'm all for it.

Memoirs of a Farmer

Cyril stared at the grey, barren wasteland in front of him. What used to be verdant fields where abnormally corpulent cows grazed in the past are but memories in Cyril's mind. The effects of the Last War were painfully obvious in the decimated wasteland before his eyes. Cyril thought of the days when he was just a simple farmer, tending his crops and watching his livestock, a lovely wife and 3 kids to raise, fishing at the nearby lake with his friends, and having a jolly good time every weeknight at the tavern. Before the War; before the steel machines rolled over his pastures; before the bloodshed and tears; before his family was brutally massacred; before he was conscripted in the Empire's massive army; before the horrors of war descended upon his simple, happy life...