Saying "Goodbye"

I knew for months that my parents were thinking about moving, but I didn't know for sure until that humid spring morning.

It was a Friday morning at 5:30 am. I was in a deep sleep when I felt my body being shaken back and forth. "Melanie, get ready for school and come downstairs. I have something to tell you," my mom said. At a leisurely pace, I rolled out of bed. I walked over to my bay window where a blue, plaid skirt laid next to a white long sleeve blouse that had the words "Mother Mary Academy" embroidered over the left breast pocket. I slipped off my soft, cotton pajamas and put on the same uniform that I had been wearing for the past four years. The same uniform but a different size. I slipped on the knee high socks that would cover up the big scrape on my leg I got from playing kickball the previous day.

I went to the bathroom to wash my face and brush my teeth. No makeup was needed because it was not allowed. After I was all cleaned up, I stared. I stared in the mirror. I stared at the face of the girl who was about to walk downstairs. I stared at the face of the girl who knew what her mom was going to tell her. I stared at Melanie Elias Nelson, the girl who was going to say goodbye.

When I got downstairs, I noticed everyone sitting at the dining table so I joined them. "Good Morning," said my mom as she braided my sister's hair, "I wanted to tell everyone that Daddy and I have officially decided that we are moving to South Dakota!" Everyone was so happy, except me. The rest of my family had no reason to stay in Nashville, but me, I had every reason to stay. I knew this was coming. I knew but I wasn't prepared. Nashville had been my home for 14 years. I had friends, I had the high school of my dreams. I was on a varsity basketball team, I had everything. I didn't want to leave it.

The car ride to school was filled with excitement. My brother and sister were talking about how they wanted to decorate their new rooms and Daddy was just laughing at them. I was silent, though. I thought about what I was going to tell my friends. We were all going to go to the same high school together but now I couldn't. I didn't want to be the new girl in a new high school.

When we finally got to school,(We all went to the same school but we were just in different buildings) I took my sister to her classroom and then went to my homeroom. As soon as I stepped in, my best friends, Sophi and Sarah, ran up to me. "Did you listen to the new BTS album?" Sarah asked with excitement, "It's so good!" The twins kept telling me things about the new album and all of the sudden the tears that I had been trying to hold back started to rush down my cheeks. The two twins rushed me to the bathroom and started wiping my tears. I told them about the move and they started to feel as sad as I was.

When the twins and I arrived to our classroom, everyone was lining up. It was time for Mass. I went to a Catholic Academy so everyday started with Mass. Around that time of my life I started to question if God was real. We had Religion class everyday, but every time we learned something about God, I would doubt His existence. On that day in particular, I needed a God. I needed to know someone was there and now I do.

After Mass, we had a 15 minute break before our next class. That's when I told everyone the news. Everybody seemed sad, but someone's reaction stuck out to me like a flamingo in a flock of crows. His name was Zach. I had a crush on him for three years. He was so nice and gentle, but when he heard I was moving, he was upset. He didn't seem angry. He just seemed disappointed. He was the guy who played defense for me when I needed to work on my layups and I was the one who would help him with his Spanish homework after school. We were friends. W

What I miss most is the school. Most people hate going to school but I had a reason to go. I joined so many clubs just so I wouldn't have to leave at 3:00. School was my happy place.

One month later, was the last day of school. The last day with Sophi and Sarah. The last day with Zach. My last day at Mother Mary Academy. The hardest part wasn't a new house or new school. The hardest part was saying "goodbye."