“How is it that a thirteen year old boy can raise more money than any of our board members?” asked the director of Camp One Step at a Time to open his board meeting. All of the board members were truly in shock at this opener. Did a thirteen year old really raise that much […]
KAT: It’s back. A moment of silence. My heart slowly starts to beat again, as if hesitant to resume its normal function. My head feels like it’s swimming as my eyes become lights over a stage, narrowing to one spot: cancer. Time wasn’t an object anymore. ME: I can be over in 10 if you […]
I stepped out of the gray colored elevator into the hall. In front of me stood a golden, oak-colored wall that said “Maternity”. Walking to my right, I pushed a calling bell that had a camera attached. When I informed the receptionist who I was, the doors unlocked and I pushed open the entrance to […]
Si se puede, yes it can be done, was the phrase little eight year old me and my six year old sister chanted through my cramped, tiny townhome in the suburbs of Montgomery Village, MD after watching Gotta Kick it Up! on Disney Channel. The smells of rich Peruvian chicken being roasted from the oven […]
“Angely am I a bad mother?” those words pierced my ears the same way painful way it pierced my heart. Different feelings started to pound slowly as I saw my strong and independent let tears fall from her beautiful face that’s never let her guard down. She believed the words the words of individuals that […]
Dripping wet, a boy with blue swim trunks dashes up to me after his name is called. I gently extend my hand to give him his ribbon. He got fifth place. Instead of snatching the ribbon from my hand, he flung his arms around me. Unsure by how to respond, I gave him a hug […]
The loose gravel of the hiking path crunched underneath our feet as our group from my paper-flat hometown gradually scaled a tall hill in the Marin Headlands Institute. Led by a camp counselor, we were an odd assortment of tired parents Helping their bedraggled children and bedraggled children Helping their tired parents. Despite the fatigue […]
With a last look at my book lying on the couch I trudge out into the bright, sunlit day. Accompanied by my younger sister and mother, I climb onto our orange tractor. With a roar my mom drives away slowly towards our hay field. The barn in the far corner is filled with bales of […]
“Who want’s to go first?” That aching inside me tells me to push myself, overpowering my fear and self-doubt, just long enough for me to raise my hand, instantly making me the unsaid leader of the gym class. What did I just do? I can’t do this. But there’s no way that I would allow […]
The second row from the door and the third seat from the front. I had my head resting in the palm of my hand, with my elbow placed on the bottom left corner of my desk. My algebra teacher sat on top of her desk. She sat with a stack of our very first tests […]