Seventh Grade Narrative

My transition from sixth grade to seventh grade was the best and worst year of my life but this was also the year I realized how grateful I was. I remember one important day so vividly. It was a rainy day and I was in my sixth grade social studies class, eager for the clock to hit 3:00. With fifteen minutes of class left, my assistant principal walked into the classroom and called ten students- including me- to step outside. Outside, he handed each of us individual letters and mine read, “To the Parents of Meera Kisan.” It could not be good news if the assistant principal personally came to deliver it to us, but then with a smile on his face, he said, “Congratulations, students, you have been accepted to MLK High School for seventh grade.” MLK is the second best ranked school in Tennessee so I knew this was a monumental moment for me.

I remember barging into the house, dropping my backpack and lunchbox right in front of the door, and screaming, “Mom, Dad look what I got today!” I saw my mom sitting on the rocking chair in the living room drinking her chai that filled the house with a familiar spicy smell. Something seemed unusual. She didn’t have her usual smile on her face and didn’t ask me how my day was like she did every day. I gave her the letter and she read it and said, “I’m so proud of you, congrats. I knew you were going to make it in.” She had this fake smile and from her tone, I could tell that she had been crying. In that moment, I knew something was wrong and my joy