A Sky Without Stars

Part 8-March

March used to be my favorite time of year.

It marked the beginning of spring, which was the season of new life. Flowers would begin to grow and rain would sprinkle gently from the sky. While most people abhorred the rain, I had always loved it. Forget raincoats---it didn't matter to me if I got wet. Everything about the dull, rainy days just made me happy. I also used to be a fan of St. Patrick's Day, back when I still believed in the existence of Leprechauns. Every year in grade school, up until third or fourth grade, we would each write cute little letters to the magical beings and draw poorly-colored pictures. The entire school reeked of plastic shamrock decorations. But that was all a long time ago.

Now, spring was defined by chaos. Although I didn't have very many extracurriculars myself, Bailey was always busy with something that I was forced to go to. Aside from that, we didn't exactly get the rain I loved so much this year...we got snow. Every week brought new waves of blizzards, practically burying us in our own houses. It was impossible for new life to arrive when everything around it is so bitterly cold. And St. Patrick's Day? Now, it was just a holiday where I could watch my relatives wash away their sorrows with alcohol.

Each day was one less day until spring break, which was the only thing I had to look forward to. The one and only thing. Until then, I walked into school each day with baggy eyes and no optimism.

On one of the first days of March, I was sitting in Spanish class, head on my desk, when the daily announcements came on.

"Good morning, faculty and students of St. Barnabas! Congratulations to our boys lacrosse team for winning their game against St. Augustine last night!"

I rolled my eyes. The announcements never had anything actually pertaining to my life on them. All they ever announced were sports this, and sports that. Aside from playing softball before high school, I had never really gotten skilled in the athletic department. I knew that our teams deserved recognition, but maybe they should try spicing things up every once in awhile. I zoned out as an upperclassman continued to talk about who-knows-what.

"The St. Barnabas theater department will be presenting Hello Dolly at the end of this month! Cast list is online, but set crew members are still needed. You will be helping to design sets and move props during the production. If you would like to join, forms are available in the office to fill out."

That caught my attention, and I raised an eyebrow. I had no idea what Hello Dolly was even about, but I knew that Hannah, Melody, Sierra, and Castor all had parts. They had tried and tried again to convince me to audition, but I was far too uncoordinated and I couldn't sing. So I'd decided against it.

But I had to admit, being part of the theater department would probably be fun.

It's funny: a year ago, I'd sat down at a St. Barnabas open house, and listened as one of the teachers told us about new opportunities. While speaking to hundreds of students, she said, "High school is a new opportunity. It's a chance to change yourself for the better; to learn about yourself, and to grow as an individual. You get to try new things. Who knows? A current star-athlete could end up on academic challenge, or the shy kids could be the ones making their way into the musical. It's all up to you."

I'd never thought much of it then. In fact, I had laughed at the thought of me being in a play, even just on set crew. But maybe it was would be something fun to do. And it would give me an excuse to hang out with friends outside of school.

After thinking about it all day, I retrieved a form from the office. I looked at the due date, and saw that forms were due in only a few days. Nervously, I filled in the various information, and had it in the director's hands by the next day.