The Girl with the Red Hair

My first day at Holbrook High School was kind of scary and lonely. My older brother was a senior, and obviously he didn’t want to be seen with a little freshman, so I think he avoided me.  When I was walking to first hour, I remember seeing Gabriel in plaid shorts, it looked like he was about to go golf, but he looked scary. Maybe it was because it was my first time going to school with non-Natives. I remember my first time walking into Pre-AP English.  I was so scared. I remembering seeing a girl with red hair walk in. She seemed kind of scary and to make things worse she was like half a foot taller than me. I never talked in that class until a few short weeks passed by I was talking to the girl with the red hair. She was actually very nice and smart. Sophomore year, we took AP-World History together, so we became closer. As each year passes by, Samantha and I become closer. This year we have grown so much closer. I spill my life to her, and she understands. She never judges me, and she listens. She has helped me through my darkest times, and she has been through my happiest times with me. Samantha and I have a strange bond. We understand each other. I think it’s because we come from very similar families. We grew up the same way, and we were taught the same things. She definitely comes from a strong family, and they have taught her well. She respects others and most importantly, she respects herself. She is extremely smart, pretty, and talented. It seems like she doesn’t even try, but I know she tries very hard. Some friendships come and go, and over the past four years I have lost more friends than gained, but I am very thankful Samantha and I are still friends. She has come a very long way with school, herself, and basketball. Every year she gets better. She is going to be playing in the final four for basketball, and I just want her to know I am so very proud of her. She has so much heart and potential. She is a hard worker. But just remember, Sam,  you are going to be playing in front of thousands of crazy Natives, so just promise me you won’t fall! Haha. I know she’ll play good because she always does. Overall, I am very glad I came to school here, and I am very glad the girl with the red hair talked to me. She is my best friend and my biggest motivator. Thanks, Samthurrrr.

January 13, 2013

      On January 13, 2013, I received a phone call at 3 a.m. from my dearest friend, Stenson. He asked me for a ride back to his house because he was very drunk. I tell all of my friends to call me if they are drunk, and they need a ride, no matter what time it is and where I am at, so he did.  When I was getting ready to pick him up, he was called again. I answered. He said, “Hey. I found a ride.” I told him to call me when he got home, so I was trying very hard to stay awake. It was about 4 a.m., still nothing. I eventually fell asleep. I woke up around 7 a.m. again and checked my phone. I had seven missed calls and eighteen text messages. They were all from my friend, Christian. Christian was with Stenson that night. I called Christian back. He asked if I had heard from Stenson. I replied, “No.” He hung up. I grew more and more worried about Stenson. I called almost everyone in my contacts and asked for Stenson. No one knew where he was. About thirty minute later, I get a call from an unknown number. I answer. They say, “Courtney?” I reply, “Yes.” There was a long pause. They finally said, “Stenson got into a car accident. He didn’t make it.” I started crying. I ran to my mom’s room and hugged her. I couldn’t stop crying. I just wanted to go back in time and take him home safely. A few minutes late, Christian was calling again. I pulled myself together and answered. He says, “Have you heard anything yet?” I never answered his questions, but I did say, “Who are you with, Christian?” I didn’t want him to be alone when I told him. He said, “With my mom.” I say, “Christian. Stenson didn’t make it home. He got into a car accident.” Christian and Stenson were best friends. I heard him yell, and say, “No! Please. No!” I start crying again. He hung up. I didn’t know what to do. I should have given him a ride home. I should have woken up faster and drove as fast I could to Stenson. I thought of so many possibilities and things I could’ve done to save him. But blaming myself never helped. I miss Stenson every day. I surely do miss our late night McDonald runs and playing guitar for hours. I miss talking to him and seeing him. He was the greatest friend anyone could ask for.

            A couple days of nonstop crying, I finally got the urge to sleep. That night I dreamt I was with Stenson. We were playing pool, and he said to me, “Courtney. Promise me something. Don’t ever give up on anything. Stay in school for as long as you can.” I kept questioning him on why he was saying this. He never answered. I will never forget that dream. I believe it was his way of saying goodbye. I think about him every single day, but I know he is somewhere watching over me. So, please, if you ever are drinking, please do not drive. Call someone even your mother. She will get over it easier than losing her own child.

The Little Things.

            High school for me isn’t the best experience nor is it the worst, but one thing that really changed that all around for me was being the football manager. Those boys have so much heart and determination. I am very glad I let my barrier down and got the guts to be the manager. Every practice and game, I learned a little more about the boys. They became my brothers. They never disrespected my sister and I. They said please and thank you. I do not think any of the boys know nor have the slightest idea that they have taught me so much. They have taught me to be myself, and generally just enjoy the little things in life.

One game I will never forget was the Winslow game. I swear that moment changed my life. They were down, and some of them were mad. I understand why. They worked so hard at practice. They never gave up. One of the boys was standing there and just staring at the field, and I asked if he wanted water. He never responded, so just when I was about to walk away, he said, “I’m freakin’ tired of losing.” Of course, he didn’t say “freakin,” and he said other things to me, but I understood. Tears rolled down his face, and I didn’t want to cry, so I walked away. I didn’t know what to say. There were so many emotions flying around, and I was in the middle of it. I tried to stay out of everyone’s way and be the best help I could be. After the game, the boy apologized. I still didn’t know what to say. I told my mom everything that happened. She told me, “Those boys have the biggest hearts ever. They were losing, and they never gave up.”That was exactly true.

The Monday we came back to school, I heard some person say, “The boys lost. Of course, they never win. They suck.” That comment just really made me mad. They didn’t know how hard they worked at practice. They didn’t really know anything about those boys. I didn’t say anything, but later a boy said to me, “The football team got beat so bad by Winslow.” Of course, I had to say something I cared about those boys so much, so I said, “You don’t know how hard they work, so as long as you aren’t trying out there, don’t say anything.” He is a friend of mine, and he didn’t say anything back. Later that evening I went to practice and the boys were back to themselves, hilarious and weird.

 I’ll always remember the most humble player saying to the team, “Don’t give up, guys.” Then he tapped his brother on the shoulder. I’ll always remember freezing, and trying to keep warm. I’ll always remember tripping over the water bottles when Daniel intercepted ball, and there were so many people at the game. I’ll always remember these were the greatest moments in high school. I’ll always remember senior night crying, and one of the boys said to me, “Thanks for everything.”

They have taught me to be me again. I will never regret being the football manager. So take chances, and go out of your comfort zone and do something you’ve always wanted to do.