Starchild

Chapter 2: A memory

It was one of those summer days when the heat of the sun was not too hot, but just felt like you were swathed in a blanket filled with warmth. The breeze was steady, and ever so slightly you would hear the mellow sounds it made: swoosh, swoosh, swoosh, as it stirred about. The distant, yet crisp chirps of birds contributed to the sensational sounds of nature, whirling around you. Everywhere around you felt alive, even the steady hum of the neighbor's lawn mower. Indeed, it was a perfect summer day, a day when children would go out to play- laugh and chatter and frisk about- and that was exactly what I, Madeline Westerly did. I was a 6 year old girl excited to play.

So, here's how it went: A group of kids, including me pranced out into the community park's field, and we started to dance about. I felt happy. That was until a girl in our group said, "let's play frisbee!" What is frisbee? I had wondered. Nevertheless, I was eager. The girl's mother brought out a smooth, sky blue-colored disk, and my eyes had widened with interest. With a flick of her wrist, the disk sailed to the girl's hands. My hands started to sweat, and adrenaline was pumping inside of me. The girl passed the frisbee to some other kids, and I noticed that all of them caught it with ease. Before I knew it, the frisbee was being passed to me. I froze, and so did the world around me. No longer did I feel the welcoming warmth of the sun, the mellow swooshing sounds of the wind, or the sweet chirping sounds of the birds. What was the perfect summer day around me was gone. I just stared at the disk, slowly whizzing towards me, like an arrow about to pierce. My mind was frantic, thoughts racing in my head from all sorts of directions. Then the thoughts in my head snapped. My mind was blank. Then, this: I screamed, screamed with all my might I could muster from my 6 year old body. Already hysterical, I ran out of the path of the frisbee, and stumbled backwards. I could feel my face growing scarlet. All the kids squealed with laughter, chanting, "Madeline's a scaredy cat, Madeline's a scaredy cat!" They shrieked with delight. Tears started to stream down my face, as I hurriedly scrambled out of the field. For the rest of the day, all I could think of we're the taunting words of the kids: "Madeline's a scaredy cat, Madeline's a scaredy cat!" After that day, I never wanted to play frisbee again.