“Good morning, boys and girls,” our new teacher said. She wrote her name on the blackboard. “My name is Mrs. Jason.”
“Good morning, Mrs. Jason,” the entire class said at the same time.
She smiled. “Welcome back to school and to sixth grade. I have an exciting year planned for us.”
Someone groaned in the back of the classroom, but I didn’t turn around to see who it was. Mrs. Jason pretended not to hear the groan at all.
“There are a few new students in our class. And a few faces I don’t recognize. I would like you each to stand up and tell us your name and one interesting thing about yourself.”
I heard the groan from the back of the room again. Only this time it was louder. Mrs. Jason ignored it again.
One interesting thing. About me. I could only think of one thing, and I was not going to tell it.
“I’ll go first,” our teacher said. “My name is Laurel Jason. In June I had a baby boy named Chad Dane. He’s almost four months old now.”
Kelly was sitting in the front desk, in the first row, so she was next. I was so glad I had taken a desk in the second row. What was I going to say about myself?
Kelly stood up and said, “My name is Kelly Conrad and I…I spent a week at a cabin on the beach this summer with my family. And I got this cool watch,” she said, holding up her arm, from which several bracelets dangled along with her watch. The groaner from the back of the classroom snickered.
Shayna Gutmann was sitting in the desk behind Kelly. She stood up, gave her name, and said, “I spent the summer in Israel with my grandparents.”
Tell us something we don’t know. I looked over at Kelly. The goofy look she gave me told me she was thinking the same thing. I didn’t hear what anyone else in Kelly’s row said. I was trying hard to think of something to say about myself. The only thing I could think of was, “My name is Tory, and I have cystic fibrosis,” but there was no way I was going to say that. No way! Kelly kicked my leg under the desk. I looked at her. It was my turn! I stood up very slowly.
“I’m Victoria Richards, but I like to be called Tory. I...” I still didn’t know what to say. “I...” Maybe I would just sit down. I glanced at Kelly for just a moment. She couldn’t know what I was thinking, but her eyes were encouraging me to say something!
Quick, think of something.
“I got a new scooter last week,” I said and sat down fast. Kelly raised the left side of her top lip at me. I just shrugged, but I could tell by the hot feeling in my cheeks that my face was really red. I was so busy thinking about the dumb thing I said that I didn’t hear what any of the other kids in my class said about themselves.
What if I had told them what I was actually thinking? What if I told them I had cystic fibrosis and I have to take pills when I eat and do breathing therapy at home twice a day to keep me from coughing all day long, and go into the hospital sometimes? They might think I was weird or something. They might think they could catch it from me and get sick just from being around me. What if they didn’t believe me if I told them you can’t catch it? Even if I explained I was born with it.