Author's Note: This piece was a personal narrative assignment. Throughout the piece I focused on using descriptive, yet appropriate, word choice and demonstrating my knowledge of colons and semi- colons.
As a young child, perhaps the worst thing your parents could
ever say to you is ‘no’. No, we cannot go there. No, it will not happen. And
the most famous, yet dreadful of all: no, you cannot have that.
I was five years old, the age you are when you start to
believe that you’re all grown up. I had just learned to ride my bike, started
piano lessons and began to attend my first year of kindergarten. I was on top
of the world, or, so I thought. The only thing I didn’t have, was a trusty sidekick.
Inspired by our new class pet, I had attained the will, want and withering crave
for a bunny.
For the next week or so after school, my post was behind the
computer, equipped with a notebook and pencil researching all there is to know
about bunnies, domestic and non- captive. I had checked out each and every
bunny book in the library to read hours and hours on end when one day, I had
finally known it all.
Like every other kid my age, one of the most horrifying
things that I could every do was ask my parents. Bringing up the topic and
trying to support my reasoning before they cut me off with an immediate “no”,
was nearly impossible. So I took a different approach; I made a book. The cover
displayed my advanced artistic ability with a picture of a little brown haired,
blue eyed girl (me) crying. From my miserable face there emerged a dream cloud,
and in it was nothing other than a bunny. The rest of the book continued to
explain everything I had learned about this fascinating species, why I deserve
to have one and everything I would do to maintain its good health and
wellbeing. Now, it may not have been the nicest or neatest book in the world,
but in the eyes of a five year old, it was pretty cool!
But in the end, it failed to reach my parents high standards
and my request was turned down. And that is when I created an entirely new and
more outrageous plan: I was going to run away. Away from my parents who denied
me my wish. Away from the many tears I cried when they did. Away from anything
and everything I had, because of one thing I couldn’t get.
Almost instantaneously after looking into my father’s eyes
and hearing the magical word, ‘no’, I leaped off the couch, ran to the front
door and burst out of it. As I began to run down the street (which I still
wasn’t allowed to cross by myself), the wind blew through my hair and little
gravel rocks dug into my bare feet.
About thirty yards later, I came across the home of my best
friend, Shelby. Without reluctance, I pushed open their door and made my way up
into her bedroom where I found her sitting on the ground playing with her
dolls. Fortunately for me, I was quick on my feet so when she questioned why I
was at her house I made up a story
explaining my appearance without so much as a stutter or hesitation. But, when
her mom walked in and asked me the same question, that’s when I began to panic.
My words jumbled up together and my thoughts trailed off. Eventually, I got my
story straight but something was telling me she didn’t buy it. She just smiled
and closed the bedroom door leaving us to play in peace.
It was only about an hour later when the high pitched ring
of the doorbell disturbed our game. Curious to see who it was that interrupted
us, we ran downstairs and watched as Shelby’s mom let them in. When she opened
the door I could clearly see that the couple standing in the doorway was no one
other than my parents. My mom stood holding my pink and purple polka dotted
suitcase and my dad stood tall over her. Upon making eye contact, my mother
began to explain the contents of my suitcase.
She told me that she had packed it full with my clothes,
pajamas, toothbrush, and a few other items so that I would have my things while
I lived at Shelby’s. It was then after when she lay my suitcase on the ground,
gave me a kiss on the forehead and began to walk out, when I realized I didn’t
want to live there at Shelby’s. My home was at my house, with my family (with
or without a new pet). As she reached for the doorknob I flew toward her. And
without a word, she took my hand and suitcase and we proceeded to walk back to
our house.
When arriving back at home, I couldn’t help but ask my mom
the one question that had been weighing on my mind the whole walk home. The one
thought I couldn’t shake. Was she actually going to leave me, let me live at
Shelby’s house? When approaching her with this she just smiled, let out a heavy
breath and told me to look in my suitcase. Unzipping it, I expected see all of
my clothes neatly folded into two piles and my socks laying in between them;
but I didn’t. When I opened my suitcase I revealed a single item: a toy bunny.