In 7th grade I got a project in English class. The project was to create a children’s book and a merchandising item to promote a period in time called Elizabethan England. It was a three week project and there was no way I was going to start this project right away.
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A week went by and I still hadn’t started the project yet. Again, I wasn’t worried at all. I still had two whole weeks to do the project! Plenty of time! I could just do it whenever I wanted to.

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The next week was April vacation and I went to Myrtle Beach. If you think I did any of my project while I was on vacation, you’re insane! I got home on Sunday and my parents asked me if I had any homework. I just thought for a second or two if I should tell them. I decided not to. So I replied,” No, it’s all good.” Too bad I really did. I probably should have told them, but I guess it wasn’t a big deal.

As the week went on, I kept getting distracted by all the other activities going on in my life. Everyday in English class, Mrs. Brown, my English teacher, kept reminding me about the project. I just kept putting it aside like an old toy I will never play with again.

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Now it is Friday night, three days before the project is due. My family just bought an iPod for my mom for Mother’s Day. When we finished giving it to her, I was kind of unsure to tell her about the project. I was pretty scared that she was going to get mad. I stuttered for a second. I was so nervous. Finally, I brought myself to say it. I said,” Mom, I have a project due on Monday.” She wasn’t that mad at first. She said,” Alright, get me the info sheets.” I got them and she read them for about 5 minutes. I could see her face turn into a more disappointed face. After she finished reading she just put her head down. OH CRAP! My heart just dropped.

When my dad heard about the project, he was furious. Great, now I got the whole family pissed off at me. He took me into another room and I was scared as hell! Once he closed the door, I knew I was done for. He just stared at me for about 4 or 5 seconds. I felt like a freaking day.

He started off the lecture with,” You ruined the whole weekend for the whole family.” As he was going on, I really started to feel bad. I was also scared to see if there was going to be any punishment. My dad was going on with,” You are going to have to miss a baseball game this weekend now because you left this to the last minute.” I was pretty mad about that I had to miss a game, but if I didn’t leave this to the last minute, I could’ve gone. It was my entire fault and I felt terrible.

Meanwhile, my dad said,” How long did you have to do this project?” I was terrified to say, but I couldn’t lie. I replied,” Umm… three weeks.” He gave me a piercing look that made me feel ashamed of myself. Then at that very moment, I realized that when I got home from vacation on Sunday, I should have told them about it and then I would’ve had a whole week to do it instead of three damn days.

After my dad finished with his lecture, I took it straight to heart. He taught me that I can’t procrastinate. It will only make my life a lot harder.

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The next three days were complete hell for me. I worked for about 3-4 hours every day. Just like my dad said, I had to miss my baseball game for it. I guess he wasn’t lying.

My dad really drove the point into me about not procrastinating. He always knows how to tell me something. Even if it means yelling at me. And to tell you the truth, I love him for that.