Gravitas

The WC

Sasha wasn't allowed in the WC. Her parents told her that once, a long time ago, the letters stood for Water Closet (that meant bathroom). But now it was different. WC now meant Weight Control. The inside was the size of the closet in her room and was all metal. Its door was in the far left corner of the playroom. The outside of the door was made to look like the rest of the walls. The only difference, from the outside, was that unlike other closets, this one had a lock and a control box in the wall beside it. There was an on/off switch and a round dial that went from 0-20. Sasha had never gone in. If she did, Mama and Daddy would get mad.

A Great Day at School

Sasha liked school because she liked things that were fun, and school was really fun. Ms. Anderson taught first grade and she was a fun teacher. Whenever she asked a question, Sasha raised her hand even if she didn't know the answer.

"Who knows the name of the planet we live on?" She asked. Sasha raised her hand, "Yes Sasha?" Sasha paused. She wasn't sure because she didn't really hear the question.

"I...I dunno." She blushed and some other girls laughed, "I can't remember."

"Well, and this goes for everyone, think about the answer first before raising your hand, okay?"

"Yes Miss Anderson!" they all responded. It made Sasha feel silly. But pretty soon they returned to her favorite lesson. Science. They were learning all about Mars. It was so much fun. Some days Sasha wanted to be in space. But she also wanted to be a karate expert. Both sounded fun.

Not So Fair

Hannah got to stay home for school. Mama said that she needed to stay home because she was a bad little girl and that the school wouldn't let her come in. Sasha thought this was silly. There were all kinds of kids at her school. And the school didn't even have a WC! Hannah was so lucky. If Sasha had the chance to stay home with Mama she'd do it every single day. One time she got a cold and the school asked Mama to keep her home until she felt better. Sasha spent most of her time in her bed thinking about space and trying to remember all they had learned about where astronauts were. Thinking about it made her tired so she didn't get to join in with Hannah's lessons from Mama. But she did hear muffled yelling from downstairs. Mama sounded mad.

Mama and Daddy Get Angry

"Do you know why your sister is in the WC?"

"No Mama."

"She talked back. She talked back and what is the punishment for talking back?"

"Go to your room, young lady!" she answered triumphantly.

"For you. But what about for Hannah?"

"WC." She said flatly, as if jealous.

"Now hold on," her father spoke up, "Are you trying to tell us you'd rather have Hannah's punishment? Because we've talked about the differences between you two."

"I dunno. Mama lets her go into the WC all the time."

"As punishment."

"What about me?"

"Again," her father restated, exasperated, "you are not the same people. You are a very different girl than your sister. She is older than you and refuses to understand the rules. And remember, you weren't around yet when she was your age. Hannah has had quite a few opportunities to be better and change her behavior."