Second Chances. (WATTY AWARDS 2013)

Chapter 77: In the summertime.

Chapter 77: In the summertime.

It’s finally June, summer is here. The last six months have been . . . easy. Oddly enough; Peasnie kept her word and did not get depressed although she did have her sad days but that’s normal. Kier is graduating from fifth grade and we just registered Alfie for kindergarten. So next year the house will be quiet during the mornings since Alfie will be going in the morning and returning in the afternoon. I’m sad to see her off to kindergarten but I’m proud of her; just like her older brother and sister. And I’m proud of Kier for going into middle school and proud of Peasnie for passing ninth grade as the top ten percent highest grades. She’s worked hard for that title and she wears it like a badge of honor. All of them wear their success as a badge of honor which makes me very proud of them. Bailey is proud of Kier for the report he wrote about his family as an end of year final project. I remember reading a little bit of it and thinking ‘Damn, is that how Kier sees us?’ It wasn’t a bad thing; it was making our lives seem like fiction. It also made me laugh. I remember reading it; I think it went something like:

My dad is a rock star, my mom is a business woman, my older sister is in a band and my little sister thinks she’s something new everyday. Yes my parents are gone alot, my dad’s either in the studio or on tour or doing an interview and my mom is either in a meeting or at the warehouse but they always manage to give us a hundred percent of their attention and keep a healthy marriage. My older sister seems to have no personality and my younger sister, well she has multiple personalities. Now my life may seem horrible because there are very few days in the year where I get both my parents alone with just me but I don’t mind it.

I’ve been asked if I could have two normal parents, would I? I ALWAYS say ‘nope’. Why, because I love going to see my dad’s shows or seeing his interviews or pictures in a magazine. I love my mom being an independent woman, setting an example for my little sister. I’ve been taught that just because the odds are against you don’t mean you can’t break through and be the person you want to be. My dad was kicked out of High School and deemed a ‘loser’ but look at him now. My mom left College to be a mom but look at her; she’s running a successful business. They both have been labelled losers or outcasts but they’re both living their dreams. They also taught me about love and what a soul mate is. My mom almost lost all her family when they found out she was having me outside of wedlock so she ran away but my dad went looking for her and told her that he was all she needed. I’ve seen what happiness truly is: I call them mom and dad.

And my little sister has taught me to not care about what people think. If she wants to dress like a boy to go out for dinner then she does, if she wants to go to the supermarket dressed like a shaggy dog then she does that. She dresses like a princess to go see dad at a show. She doesn’t care when a lady tells our mom that she should dress more like a girl while we’re in the store. She doesn’t care when she gets strange stares while we’re at a concert and she’s on stage before the show dressed like Jane from Tarzan. Alfie’s been called crazy or strange because she is a different person every day but she doesn’t care; not because she’s too young to understand but because she just doesn’t care for your opinion about her. She taught me the real meaning behind freedom.

My older sister has taught me how to stick up for myself when people try and tear me down. She taught me how to fight for something I believe in with my entire heart. She’s gotten into many fights, yes but only because she’s had those people try and tear her or someone she cares about down. She’s spent hours of working on her music and no matter how much hate she gets or how many people tell her she’s not going to make it, she still does it because she wants to prove herself. Not to those haters but to herself. She does things like go on a strict diet every summer; not to prove her to others but to prove herself to herself. She eats healthy and exercises religiously for herself. She’s taught me determination.