“How much do you need” he asked
“$159” I said “Oh well, I can find another dress”. I took one last look at the dress and started to go into the dressing room.
Jacks voice stopped me “No you won’t” he said “Even I can see that you love this dress and that it literally seems to be made for you”
“What do you want me to do Jack? I love the dress but how am I going to come up with that much money. Mom and dad said that they wouldn’t give me anymore. If I use the money I set aside for jewelry and makeup, then what would I do for those?” I said, slightly annoyed
“You are not going to do that because I’ll pay for the rest of the dress” he said
I stared at him in shock for a minute and then said “you don’t have to do that Jack. I know that you have your own bills and expenses to pay for”
He walked over to me and took my face into his hands “my baby sister is getting ready for prom. For one of the days from her high school years that she will never forget. I know how hard you had to work to convince mom and dad to even let you go. I know that you are going to have an uphill battle until the day of prom because if anything happens or goes wrong, dad will use it as an excuse to not let you go. I know he doesn’t think that it is appropriate for an Indian girl, especially his daughter, to be going to prom where there are going to be boys and dancing. So let me do this to help make your life easier”
As he had been giving this little monologue, tears had welled in my eyes and I blinked several times, trying not to start crying. Smiling he pulled me into his arms and I gave him a long hug and whispered “thank you”
When I finally let him go, I looked up and everyone in the store was looking as us. Jamie, Merry and Alisha all had tears in their eyes as well and as I looked at them, we all started laughing.
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When prom finally came around, 3 weeks later, it was all that I had imagined it would be. My dad tried over and over again to find an excuse to not let me go but even he knew that there really wasn’t an excuse. 3 weeks after prom was graduation. Before I left the house that day, my parents gave me long hugs. The only thing marring the perfect day was that Jack couldn’t be there. He had a Saturday morning final and wouldn’t be able to make to the ceremony on time but would be there for the party that my parents were throwing for me the next day. We had also found out that Alex wouldn’t be able to make it either so I was without two of the most important people in my life.
I had to be at the school by 9 and the graduation ceremony started at 12. As I parked my car in the graduated parking lot that the school had set aside, I heard my name being shouted. I looked around and found that almost all of my friends were already there. I ran over to them and we all hugged and talked loudly and excitedly. When we finally headed inside to get the flowers pinned to our robes and to get the cords, if you were getting any. As we stood in line, we all talked about how amazing it was that this day was finally here. When we finally got to the front of the line, I discovered that one of the teachers handing out the cords was one of my favorite teachers, Ms. Addles. She smiled when she saw me and leaned over the table piled high with cords, to give me a hug.
“Am I getting a cord, Rhonda?” I asked, calling her by her name as I had since freshmen year.
She gave me a look that said you are joking right and said “Of course you are, Rory. You have a 3.9 so you get the salutarian cord, you got the CAM certificate so you get that cord, and you were a class rep so you get that as well”
I laughed as I took all the cords from her and put them around my neck. I moved to the side and waited for the rest of my friends to get done. As we waited to get lined up, we all stood around talking and taking a lot of pictures.
When I was finally time to go get lined up and head outside, a hush fell through the room as everyone realized that this was really it. Walking outside, I glanced at the bleachers and saw that they were packed, literally to the rafters and people were sitting on the football field as well, around the chairs that were set up for the graduates.
We walked through a tunnel made up of teachers and it was slow going because we all kept stopping to hug teachers and show our gratitude. When I finally go to my seat, I looked around to see if I could fine my parents and saw my parents sitting right in the middle of the bleachers. My jaw dropped in shock as I realized that sitting around them were my aunts and uncles and some of my cousins who I had though wouldn’t be here until tomorrow.
After everyone had made their speeches and it was my turn, as a salutarian to speak, I took a deep breath and walked to the podium, when the principle helped me up on the stage. I looked at the thousands of people, whose attention was suddenly all on me. I opened my mouth and started to read the poem that I had written for this occasion:
It seems like I’ve been waiting my whole life for this time to arrive
I’m perched on the brink of my new adult life
Looking back at all the years that have gone by
Experiencing the next few carefree months that are all I have left
Knowing that whatever the future holds will be a truly thrilling ride
Having the knowledge that my teachers have given, the wisdom of my parents
The confidence in myself that only comes from hardship and experience.
Seeing all the love and support come pouring out
I’m left speechless sometimes at the thought of all that I’m leaving behind
Ready to charge forward in my new life
Like a mighty Lion roaring as it gets ready to fight
For fight is what I’m going to be doing for the next few years
Fighting for my place in the world, my education, and the rest of my life
I’ll always remember what this school, this town and this world has taught me
For if not for this place
I wouldn’t be me.
After I was done, I turned around and started to get off the stage when something caught my eye…
I personally think that you should have gone into detail with prom. I mean the dress was such a big deal to you so why not describe the night also. Sorry this isnt a completely positive comment, but that is what I was really looking for when you were talking about finding that perfect prom dress.
ReplyDeleteI was actually going to go into more detail and I did. THis post is a quick re-write because my newphew accidently delelted the 1st one. I will go back in the next post and explain why prom was so important because it ties into the next post.
ReplyDeleteI felt like this was a big jump from prom to graduation. I know that it feels like the last couple weeks of high school is fast. But I agree that there should have been something on prom. :) I'm glad it wasn't a horrible prom!
ReplyDeleteSorry. There will be more about the prom in the next post. I did it this way because something that happens at the prom ties into something that happens right after graduation so I had to introduce both the events on 1 post. I was trying to make it a smooth transaction but I didn't suucceed. I will try and make it better next time, I promise.
ReplyDeleteAt first I was unsure if I was going to like this story but you are pulling me in! I enjoy the way you bring both cultures into play and I agree with the prom thing but was not going to comment until later. With the past/present/past/past thing going I was holding out hope there would be more.
ReplyDeleteYou are doing a good job-keep it up and you will get better.
Thank you, Kedz. I am sorry to everyone if the switching back and forth between past and past present is getting a little confusing but I am trying. And the story goes back into the present sometime next week.
ReplyDelete