Fall to Winter, Rise to Spring | Teen Ink

Fall to Winter, Rise to Spring

November 30, 2016
By Jaqueline BRONZE, Monett, Missouri
Jaqueline BRONZE, Monett, Missouri
1 article 0 photos 0 comments

As I stare at my clock, Thoughts in my head are roaming..”Will I ever be good enough?”  I quickly put on my warm, fuzzy cardigan the one that my mother gave me for my birthday. I go downstairs and grabbed some breakfast. It’s 7:55 a.m I arrive just in time for another typical school day. We had a lot of homework, followed along by a test that was due in a couple of days, but since I have to work tonight, I decided that I might as well get it over with.

My favorite spot in the classroom was at the very front row. My grandmother always told me that when she was my age she also loved to sit in the very front row in her classroom. My grandmother is someone very important in my life. There is never a day where she doesn’t have her hair up in a french braid. One of my favorite things is the garden she so gladly, takes care of.  The idea of her decorating flowers according to the season is a genius idea. My grandfather was 19 when she became my grandmother’s girlfriend. Their love was inseparable.  Grandpa, initially said when she was young, she was the most beautiful girl in her village that many boys want to flirt with her. Especially since those eyes of her’s glistened.
Anyways, all of a sudden, my glasses were vigorously yanked from my head, causing me to go blind. I looked around to see who took my glasses and next thing I know, I’m on the ground. I hear one hyena-like laugh and that’s all it takes for me to know who took my glasses and pushed me on the ground, Kennedy.   
Kennedy is on the cheerleading squad, is captain of the cheerleading squad, and of course the one and only girlfriend of the quarterback. Kennedy has the perfect figure any girl would die for. She has muscles, fit looking. This gives her the great advantage of bullying me. Without a doubt knows everyone knows she is popular beyond belief. It may sound utterly stereotypical as well as made up, but that’s the thing. As much as I wanted it to be unreal, though, and wished it was all a nightmare, I have to face the reality. My name is Skyla and I on the other hand, well I’m the complete opposite of Kennedy you see. I’m quite actually proud to say that I’m a student body president, I’ve never had a boyfriend, I have an average figure, dark brown hair, I’m the biggest nerd in the school, and I have the worst life ever.
After many classes had passed, I got called up to the office to leave early. All I could think about was my grandmother.  She said she was not feeling well and she needed to go to the hospital. Lately, she has been having a lot of difficulties with her cheek. It’s gotten to the point where I have lost track of the numerous times she has told me. Whenever we arrived at the hospital all we had to do was wait.. and wait… wait.. The fluorescent lights glared on the tile floors as I was  waiting and witnessed many sick patients.. Until finally the doctors attended her and described her pain to just simply be a mouth ulcer.
Later that day I was heading over to the movie theaters to clock in, my boss told me I was going to be alone up at the counter. I have used to that position already, and it was my favorite thing to do customers were very nice. Until I see Kennedy walk in the door, my one place where I felt comfortable had to be ruined.
“Hey Kennedy what can I do for you?”“Oh hey there Loser!”said Kennedy rudely  “Where is your “mommy and daddy?” Oh wait I forgot you don't have any!”
My eyes watered as she was laughing, she was laughing for a good 3 minutes I’d say. The sad thing is that what Kennedy said was true. My parents were the best parents a kid could ask for and I mean it from the bottom of my heart. My mother worked at an investment bank in what is known as the world trade center. My father worked at a real estate office very close to the area my mother worked.They both always look forward to going to their job. Sadly, an event occurred a tragedy that knows one will ever forget. September 11, 2001, known as 9/11. They passed away when the planes hit the towers. That was back when I used to live in New York, so as of right now I’m living with my grandmother.
She wanted a ticket for some new movie, and popcorn. As I handed her them she just quietly left. That whole day I was devastated, I didn’t even feel like doing anything. I clocked out and drove home. When I got home my grandmother left me some dinner on the table, she was already asleep. I wasn't hungry so I packed my backpack and set some clothes out for the next morning. At about 2 a.m in the morning, grandma yelled loudly, I woke up and ran fast as I could to her bedroom.   
“What’s the matter, grandma?” I asked
“ I can’t stand this pain no longer sweetie!” she said.
I could tell that this was no longer just an ulcer, she has had it for months now. The expression on her face broke my heart. Tears were rolling down her cheeks. Grandmother Sallie is such a kind-hearted person, she is always there to comfort me. I hugged grandma and told her that everything was going to be alright.


We rushed to the E.R and were taken to room 227. Sure enough, they checked my grandma and she was diagnosed with oral cancer.
“Doctor will this cancer in her mouth ever go away?” I asked.
“Cancer is ultimately the result of cells that uncontrollably grow and do not die.” he said.
Skyla, Treatment will depend on various factors, such as where the cancer is, its stage, as well as the patient's..”
In my head, I was thinking that my grandmother’s stage had gone very far, and it was going to be very hard for the doctors to do anything about it. The goosebumps on my body were very visible, and my heart was pounding. The doctor said there was a tumor in her mouth. The cells are growing and multiplying too quickly. Chemotherapy was going to be needed. Once they did that we were sent back home there would be a radiation therapy scheduled some other time that week.
My grandmother drastically was skinnier, as much as I tried to feed her she refused. Her long hair was not so long anymore. A winter night I was going to the bathroom in her bedroom. Grandma wanted me to sit and have a chat with her before I went to the bathroom. Overtime grandma’s self-esteem was down...
“ Sweetie I wanted to tell how much I appreciate you, you were just like your mom so sweet, and caring,” she said in a raspy voice
“ Grandma I appreciate everything you have done for me too,” I said with watery eyes
“ Sweetie you  are a hard-working young lady and some day you are going to grow up to be a great mom”
“Hehehe, grandma that is not going to be for a long time,”
“I wanna give you something I love, and want you to always keep it no matter what”
She reached over to her nightstand at the bottom drawer, it was the wrong one with the gun. She kept a gun for protection, I tell her it’s not a good idea but she doesn’t really care. So she opens the top drawer and she pulls out a bible. She hands me the bible and tells me that she loves me and we hug. I go to the bathroom and tell her I'll be back quickly, she tells me to take my time.
I hear a loud bang minutes after I drop my toothbrush and am in total shock. I see her with a gun in her hand pointing to her head, blood everywhere. That day I cried an ocean. My parents and now my grandmother. I felt so alone more than ever, I wish my existence on the earth never happened.
A few days later passed and my 4th quarter of school was about to start. When I grabbed my bible, a particular verse caught my attention it talked about how we should love our enemies, and pray for those who persecute you. So, I did I kept praying and praying because this reminded me of all those enemies mainly Kennedy. I sent her an email of how I wanted to be friends with her, that if she ever needed something I would be there to help her no matter what. She replied to my surprise with a simple “whatever.” I know that it is going to be a process that things were not going to be good between her and me in just one day.
Throughout the school year, Kennedy slowly shifted away from me. I had nothing against her and neither did she. She changed so much, she participated in many community service events, She did not gossip anymore, she was  kind to others, even strangers, without needing to 'show' or asking for something in return. Even if she didn’t talk to me , the past is the past and I learned to love myself. I visited the cemetery where my grandmother was buried. My faith in god grew, I grew closer to god and carried my bible everywhere I could. I always think about a new beginning. How in the winter, snow covers the earth, hardening it. It's all about wiping the slate clean and preparing for a new beginning in the spring.



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