In My Shoes Read Free Page A

but I do try to be positive and enjoy my life. I take
pride on being able to deal with every challenge that comes my way.
Today just felt a little heavier than usual. Tomorrow I may be able
to put it into perspective, but today it felt like it was more than
a little rejection. When you feel like you know what someone is
like, and you get blind-sided like that, it tends to leave a mark.
Nicole is someone I could really see myself being with. I felt like
something had ended before it even had a chance to begin.
    I was suddenly lost in thought. Five minutes
passed in silence, before my mother looked up and said, “I didn’t
even ask you about your day. Did you have a good day?”
    “It was okay,” I said. I didn’t make eye
contact and she noticed.
    “What happened? Was Mike getting on your
nerves today?”
    “You could say that.”
    “Tell me. I can’t help if you don’t let me
know what goes on in your life.”
    “It’s nothing, really. I…I tried talking to a
girl today. I thought it was going well, but all of a sudden she
was yelling at me and calling me a class clown.”
    “Why would she call you a class clown?” she
asked. “You’re not a class clown. Were you being silly in
class?”
    “No, it was a little bit of a
misunderstanding. I was daydreaming a little, and Mike startled me.
I jumped and the whole class noticed. Then, as I was leaving, Mike
tripped me. She noticed both times and now she thinks I’m a clown.
And…I think she called me a loser.”
    “Sweetie, you are not a loser,” she
reassured. “You are an amazing young man. You are handsome, and
smart and a good person.”
    “Thanks, mom, but all mothers tell their kids
that.”
    “Only the good mothers,” she said with a
smile. “Every parent should feel that way about their kids, but
that doesn’t mean it isn’t true. You have so much to offer, and I
am very proud of you.” She walked over and kissed me on the
forehead.
    “Now, I’m not condoning what this girl said,
and I don’t know anything about her, but she may have been having a
bad day. It’s easy to be angry at her, but you’ll be happier if you
forgive her and move on.”
    I knew she was trying to help, but she wasn’t
there, and she didn’t see how Nicole treated me. I smiled at her.
“Thanks.”
    “As for Michael,” she continued, “that boy
has way too much time on his hands. What that boy has going on in
his head sometimes…” she said, shaking her head. “He has no
business tripping you in class. His sense of humor needs to be
reeled in a bit. I’m glad you have better common sense than he
does. I know he’s not a bad kid, really, but he needs to start
thinking about his future.”
    “I said just about the same thing to him
today.”
    “Good,” she said. “He listens to you. Maybe
you’ll help straighten that boy out yet.”
    I didn’t know what to say. She was right, but
I didn’t really want to have this conversation with my mother.
Maybe it was my mood but I think that, even in the best of moods, I
wouldn’t want to discuss the fault list of my best friend with my
mother. True or not. “I’m going to do the dishes and then I’m going
to head up to bed.”
    She looked at me, so sadly, with her forehead
crinkled up. “I’ll do the dishes. Get some rest. You’ll feel better
in the morning.” She paused for a moment, and then added, “Don’t
let this girl get you down. She’s one girl. If she doesn’t
appreciate you, someone else will.”
    “Thanks mom,” I said, with my best fake
smile. I said good night and turned and left the room.
    I went to the bathroom, washed up, brushed my
teeth and went to my room. In my room, I undressed, turned out the
lights and crawled under my covers. I felt so beaten down that I
thought I would be asleep in no time. There I was, though, staring
at the dark ceiling an hour later.
    You know, when you’re a kid you learn lots of
sayings to help you cope with the cruel things other kids can do.
“Sticks