my body
...being last into the pool. As I passed into elementary school, I also passed through my “big-boned” years. I admit, that when I was growing up, I had some difficulty ridding of some excess baby fat, however it had never really bothered me. So what if I have to go the husky section at the department store to buy my pants? At least I was the best at wrestling, and none of my friends had the strength to tackle me. However, I soon became more aware of more differences that set me apart from my fellow classmates. During recess, I noticed how so many people could climb across the monkey bars faster than I could, when I struggled with my jittery arms, barely even to be able to hold myself up. I noticed how during flag football, all of the kids from the other team always caught up to me when I ran past them. These distinctions still didn’t bother me at first, because all of these were just games, and games are just played to have fun. But then came Sarah Smith. Sarah Smith was pretty. Every day at the playground, I would purposely go out of my way and pass by the merry-go-round on my way to the basketball courts to catch a glimpse of her. And everyday, she would have this radiant smile that I absolutely knew was because she was so happy to see me. But whenever I knew that she actually had seen me, I would blush and run away as fast as I could. And so the day came, when I gathered up all the courage in my being and I decided to ask her if she would be my girlfriend. I then gallantly told my friend Steven, who told Bob, who told Melissa, who then told Ashley, who asked Sarah Smith if she wanted to be my girlfriend. Sarah Smith then relayed her answer back to Ashley, then to Melissa, then to Bob, then to Steven, who told me the short and definitely not sweet answer. “No. You’re fat.” Following the Sarah Smith incident, my physical appearance played a large role in my personality and who I was throughout middle school. I would spend a whole ten minutes...