I was coming back from the bathroom, and I distinctly remember that I was all dressed up because we were having an assembly that day. I had on a nice white shirt that was probably cheap, but it was my nice white shirt.
Feeling a bit thirsty, I headed towards the school’s water fountain. I don’t know exactly how or why, but out of the blue, this kid named Andres decided to give me a push from behind. It was completely unexpected, and the force of that shove sent me hurtling forward. The collision that followed was spectacular in all the wrong ways. My lip, unfortunately, found itself intimately acquainted with the unyielding metal edge of the fountain nozzle. I can only imagine that this was how gazelles must feel when they end up in the jaws of a lurking alligator. In my case, our wild jungle was the neighborhood we grew up in.
As you can probably guess, my nice white shirt was quickly transformed into a white and red shirt, courtesy of the generous amount of blood that was now profusely gushing out of my injured lip. The whole incident was bizarre because Andres wasn’t known for being a bully, and he had never messed with me before. It just so happened that on that fateful day, my lip ended up paying the price, and my nice shirt was ruined in the process.
The funny thing is, I can’t quite recall what the consequences of his actions were or how the whole situation was resolved. But what I can say is that I’ve never forgotten that moment when my white shirt was turned into a bloody mess, all thanks to an unexpected encounter with a school water fountain.
Just a life long New Yorker sharing the journey through my lens. Please take note of a post’s date. The views I express here are subject to change and evolving as I grow and learn.
Leave a Reply