Pollen

Bees & Flowers

"Now, remember, Lily." She kneeled down in front of me, taking my little hands in hers.

"Be as strong as a bee, but -" she stopped herself, waiting for me to finish my favorite sentence.

"...as kind as a flower," I added, smiling.

She gave me a kiss on the cheek, pulling me into a hug. She squeezed hard, and I tried to squeeze back. I love how she always smells good.

"Good luck," she whispered in my ear before pulling away.

"I love you, Lily." Her eyes were wet.

"Love you, mommy." 

She walked away, and I waved goodbye. I turned to the door, feeling butterflies in my tummy.

There were a bunch of kids walking around, trying to find their desks. A woman stood at the front, with short black hair and a pretty purple dress on. She was smiling, waving to all the kids that came in.

I quickly went in, keeping my head down.

Mommy told me I shouldn't be shy, but I can't help it.

I found an empty desk and sat in the chair, putting my backpack on my lap. I pulled out a pencil and a piece of paper.

I had never seen so many kids before, except at the playground. I looked around and saw people that were all different colors, kind of like candy.

A caramel boy sat next to me, and he looked really heavy. His face was puffy, and so were his arms and fingers.

A chocolate colored girl went up to him. "What's wrong with you?"

He was quiet.

The teacher spoke. "Alright, class. My name is Mrs. Munder, and I will be your teacher for the year. I know you're excited about your first day, but let's all find our seats so we can get today started."

The chocolate girl left and sat down, but I still looked at the caramel kid. He looked really sad.

"I will be doing attendance to see if you are here today. If you are, raise your hand and say 'here' when I say your name." 

She started reading off the list, saying girl and boy names. Everyone looked at the person that raised their hand.

"Lillian White?" She looked up from the paper and saw me, giving me a smile.

I took a deep breath.

Be as strong as a bee... 

I raised my hand, and smiled.

"Here," I said. 

I felt everyone look at me, but nobody said anything or looked at me funny.

I guess mommy was right. I shouldn't be shy.

"Gabriel Santoro?"

I looked over at the caramel kid next to me. He was still looking down at the desk, and didn't hear the teacher.

"Gabriel?" Mrs. Munder asked again.

He looked up at me, and I gave him a big smile.

I leaned close to his desk.

"It's okay. If I did it, you can too," I whispered.

He smiled at me, then stuck his hand up.

"Here!"

... but as kind as a flower.