• Monkeying Around

    When I was in the third grade at Dickenson Elementary, home of the dolphins, I was in Mrs. Fogarty’s class. I was the one who did the craziest things all the time, twenty-four seven. One day when we were walking through the hallways on the way to the playground for recess, I announced to everyone that I was going to leap off the high monkey bars and live to tell the tale. Eventually, when we got to the playground I had changed my mind and decided not to leap off monkey bars. I was playing around all alone and away from everybody so that they would most likely forget about my announcement. And of course, because of my horrible luck, someone remembered. His name was Pablo, he wasn’t my enemy and he wasn’t my friend. We got along, but we weren’t really friends. He said out loud, so everyone could hear, “WEREN’T YOU SUPPOSED TO JUMP OFF THE HIGH MONKEY BARS?”. I was so mad that I wanted to grab his little neck and strangle him like no tomorrow. After that, I told him that I had changed my mind and he said, ”Wow, you are the biggest freakin’ chicken in the whole entire world!”. At that moment a surge of anger and embarrassment went through my body like electricity. He started making everyone chant, do it, do it! Eventually, the pressure eased me up there and before I knew, I was standing on top.
    While up there, I was frozen with fear, I couldn’t move a muscle as though tight ropes were binding me where I stood. I had never been so frightened in my whole entire 9 years of life. On top of that, my other classmates were still chanting, do it, do it. Then, Pablo, that twit, threatened that he was going to punch me if I didn’t move. Then, I stepped backward a bit a lost my balance and started falling down do the white depths below. While falling, My entire life flashed before my eyes like an old movie projection. I saw me at my day-care called All About Learning eating pizza with my friends, Charles and Jeffrey. I also saw me having my fifth birthday and everybody saying that I’ll start school soon. Then I saw the dreadful scene of my mom and dad telling me they were getting divorced. I saw the seven year old me with tears streaming down my face like bitter waterfalls. After that, I was back to reality and then I hit the ground, I blacked out.
    I awoke four hours later in a daze with a very uncomfortable cast around my neck. When I was out of the daze my heart started beating fast and I quickly asked the doctor if my neck was broken and if I was going to die. He told me to calm down and smiled. He explained to me that I had only sprained my neck and that I was lucky for surviving a fall from such a height. He told me that it was about 10 feet tall and that most people wouldn’t live through it. I was shocked, and also relieved. What he told me made me think about how much I loved being here, alive and healthy. I made a vow to myself saying that I will not do anymore stupid stunts to impress people. For the next year or so, I stuck to that vow. Then fourth grade came . . . and I started it all over again. Well, I guess I didn’t keep that promise to myself, but at least I made it to sixth grade and I am a little more cautious about the stunts I do. The thing that mentally changed me is that I can’t stand being high up in the air anymore because I am afraid of heights now. That is the last near death experience I will ever have again, maybe.