My Only Connection

New Surroundings

A new school year is always exciting. Everyone gets new teachers, new classmates, and new classrooms. Once in a while, if you're lucky, you have a whole new school. This year, I'm the lucky one. 

"Mom, where are my boxes of books?" Cassie asked while looking through the stacks of moving boxes in the Uhaul truck. 

"I put them in your closet. They were with the office boxes." Mom answered. 

I had more books than any kid in the fifth grade last year when we did the Read-A-Thon. Jordan walked in and handed me a few of my boxes that got mixed into his section. Jordan is my little brother and he is six years old. He loves doing anything that's outside and involves nature. We don't have a swing set or a trampoline to play on. We just have the dirt and grass. 

"Here's a postcard from your new teacher. It came in the mail." 

"Thanks," I told him as I placed them in my new binder. 

I finished putting everything in its place and started choosing my outfit for tomorrow. 

"Dinner's ready. Come on downstairs." Mom called. 

Before I even got to the kitchen, I could smell the amazing smell of delicious pasta with beef and tomato sauce. Next to the pasta, I saw a big, fresh green salad from our garden leftovers. 

"Mmm. Smells good." 

I sat down in my spot next to Jordan and got ready to bless the food. Mom said the blessing. As we ate our food, we made sure we had all the school supplies that we needed and discussed our transportation options to and from school. Turns out we can't afford the bus, so we made the decision to walk to school. 

After dinner, I was about to go upstairs when I heard Mom. 

"Make sure Jordan is ready for school tomorrow."

 Tomorrow is our first day of school at Northpoint Acadamy in Lakeshore, Chicago. Jordan is way too calm about his first day. I'm as stressed out as I've ever been. Well, I don't understand him. I walked upstairs and started reading after I got ready for bed. I read for a long time, waiting for Dad to come home, but I fell asleep before I heard anyone open the front door. 

It's light outside. Today is August 22nd. Today's the first day of school! I hurried and got dressed and ran downstairs. Mom was cooking pancakes for breakfast. 

"We're going to be late on our first day!" 

"Don't worry. I'll drive you to school today, but we need to get up earlier for tomorrow."

"Phew."

Jordan walked in the kitchen, still in his pajamas. 

"What's for breakfast?"

"Jordan, you have to get dressed. We're going to be late!"

"Okay, Cassie. Now just calm down and eat your pancakes. As soon as you guys are done, get your stuff ready to go."

In fifteen minutes, we were out the door and on the way to school. Chicago is a lot different than Alabama. There are a lot more houses and they are closer together. When we got to school, there was already a long line of cars waiting to drop someone off. We hurried and got out and found our classes. Some students were already sitting in their seats and others were talking quietly. 

I went through the day quicker than I thought. I met Jordan outside and Mom picked us up for the ride home. 

"Mrs. Evans is my new teacher and her class was really fun."

"Who is your teacher, Jordan?" Mom said.

"My teacher is Mrs. Blake."

"I made some new friends. Their names are Maybelle and Jessica. Maybelle said that we should all work on our science project together."