By: augustkinge.near
Gabriel
“The Sunshine Is Most Beautiful Today”
MarmaJ read the tweet from her favourite author aloud, and looking out of her bedroom window, she couldn’t agree more. The morning sun in summertime dropped its golden ray ever so gently, carefully resting on rooftops, and on oak trees, the roads glistening under the shimmering beauty of this burning star.
It was a great day to go have fun at the park. Since the start of Summer, she has practically lived in the park. She had already got herself the most gorgeous tan from being outdoors so much. So, she prepared to leave, singing along and dancing, as Jimmy Cliff’s “I Can See Clearly Now” wafted softly from her sound system.
Being at the park was one of her favourite things to do. She loved people – loved to watch them have fun, to watch her dogs run around with other dogs, to hear children’s innocent laughter ring in the air… And speaking of the air, it tended to smell so clean and crisp during the Summer, she’d find herself just breathing in lungfuls of summer air and giggling like a child. Most of all, it was the precious conversations and unplanned encounters she’d have with random people, the opportunity to get to know them better that she loved the most about going to the park. MarmaJ loved the trees; their green just made her soul brim with happiness. The park was in fact her happy place, and the children playing there made it even more special.
Later in the morning, as she was entering the park on her skateboard, she spotted a small group of boys. They had gathered around a boy who was trying hard to get out of their midst before getting shoved to the ground. The four of them hassled this smaller boy, they wanted to take something from him, but MarmaJ couldn’t tell what it was from where she was.
So she pumped her leg and skated over, rushing over to pick the boy up and set the bullies straight, but they all scampered across the park before she got there.
The boy (she couldn’t tell his age by looking at him) was already up when she got to him. MarmaJ noticed that he had a skateboard, with “Jason” stylishly emblazoned across the board and the brightly coloured metal pins glued to the side of the board.
“Cool board, Jason”, she said to break the ice.
“Yeah. Not as cool as yours, though”, he replied. His eyes resting on MarmaJ’s fiery skateboard were round with awe.
It turned out the bullies had wanted to take his board from him. “They called me a nerd… said I didn’t deserve the board because I can’t ride”.
“You can ride though, can’t you?”, she asked.
“They didn’t lie. I suck”.
MarmaJ wanted to be sure. “Let me be the judge of that. Show me what you can do”
After a few minutes, it was clear that the boy didn’t suck but could use some help. She also noticed how he was deliberately mum about what had happened with the other boys. Apparently, he was not new to being bullied. MarmaJ broached the subject delicately by sharing stories of her own experiences dealing with bullies. She told him to not let their words or actions put him down. “You are not lesser than anyone, you should not let these boys make you feel less or small”.
“Let me show you a few things if you don’t mind”.
She taught him some basic skills and a few neat tricks. Jason lit up like a light bulb. He was such a quick study. In 2 hours, he’d learned some impressive moves. He was so excited at some point that he raised his hands and yelled “I am going to be the coolest kid in school!”
After about two hours, the lessons ended, and MarmaJ and Jason were flush with excitement and heat. They had to part ways, but before MarmaJ could leave, Jason gave her a big, tight hug, looked up at her and said, “You’re my hero” and rolled away on his board, doing some of the new moves he just learned.
MarmaJ stood and watched as he left, wondering if it was the wind or if she was crying.
She had made a new friend today at the park and maybe they would yet make a professional skateboarder out of Jason.
MarmaJ looked up at the sun again and smiled.