October 4, 2008

Dear Friend,

I’ve read over my last letter about eight times and noticed that I haven’t mentioned anything about my family or friends. So I decided to dedicate this letter to a story or two about who they are and what they mean to me. I won’t be able to tell you anything about them that will reveal who I am, but I think you’ll get a better understanding of who I am and why I act the way I do.

When I was 7, my friend was having her birthday party at Chucky Cheese. Before going to Chucky Cheese, everyone wanted to go swimming in the pool since it was in the middle of July. The problem was that I didn’t know how to swim, and never been in a pool either. I stood by the side of the pool and watched all the other kids run in, some with their snorkeling gear and inflatable shoulder pads. After watching them for about ten minutes, I got bored and started to walk away. Suddenly, I heard someone call out my name. I turned around and saw my friend’s dad motioning for me to come into the pool. I told him that I didn’t know how to swim yet; he told me to get in and he’ll show me, like he has shown all the other kids that didn’t know how to swim. I gladly accepted and jumped in. After about twenty minutes of practice, I felt confident enough to go on my own. I looked around for my mom, who was sitting in a foldable chair on the other side of the pool, talking to the other moms. I was so excited to go and show her my new skill. I started to walk across the pool, not noticing that it was harder and harder for me to touch the bottom. I took one last step and fell into the deep part of the pool. I panicked, swinging my arms and feet wildly as I looked up from underwater. The sun had a big yellow aura that I kept trying to grab and hold on to from drowning. All of a sudden, someone grabbed me and pulled me out of the pool. It was my mom. I realized that out of all the people that was in the pool, no noticed that I was even drowning. Only my mom knew; she even jumped in with all her clothes on, not knowing how to really swim either. I think it’s amazing how strong of a bond a mother has with her children. By my mom doing that, I learned that you have to try and help someone you love, no matter what the situation or the risk is. Hopefully I can be a mom like that one day.

Although my mom has taught me how to help others, so have my friends. One day when I was 14, I was walking down the hall at my school when I saw these three upperclassmen pushing a freshman around. I was with my two other friends, Da’Veena and Lisa. Lisa saw this and wanted to go stop them. We reminded her that we were freshman too, so we should just leave them alone or they will mess with us also. She didn’t listen to us and went over to the bullies. She pulled them off of the boy and told them to pick on someone their own size, along with some other cuss words. I was so surprised to see the bullies grab their backpacks and walk away. From that moment on, I looked at Lisa in a different light. Even though the situation didn’t directly involve her, she still felt obligated to intervene because that was the right thing to do. That taught me to always help someone in need, even if it didn’t involve you. It’s just the right thing to do.

Sorry these stories are so long; sometimes I get too detailed in my writing and story-telling. Or at least that’s what my English teacher tells me. Last week, he asked us of what our definition was to feel “infinite”. Everyone in class was really confused as to what that could mean. It was a really random question. In my opinion, to feel infinite is to feel like you can accomplish anything. It’s that feeling that nothing and no one can stand in your way. It’s that last mile you run in a marathon, that great debate you won over in class, that sexy dress you put on for a night out on the town. All these things make you feel infinite and worthy. I don’t know; I could be wrong though. Here I go, talking too much again. I will have to work on that. Until next time....

Forever,

Vanessa