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I’m going to start posting a prompt every Friday and I encourage everyone to respond with your own thoughts on them. This could be a great self-reflection/self-discovery activity. Here’s the first one.
The two moments I’ll never forget in my life are… Describe them in great detail, and what makes them so unforgettable.
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Kool Idea!
Two moments I’ll never forget:
When I was in second grade I told my mother how fortunate I was that she has practiced fire safety with me all the time and we never had a fire in the house. That evening, as we drove into the driveway we could hear the smoke alarm beeping loudly. It was dark outside, but as my mother unlocked the door to the house, a gush of smoke blasted at us. The entire house was smothered in a foggy black smoke. My mother instantly called 911 (thank God she actually had one back then) and we walked over to the neighbor’s house while we waited for the fire department and police to arrive. It was a cold, rainy December day and I could feel this powerful amount of guilt consume me – I jinxed the house by saying we never had a fire before!
The neighbors across the street had just moved in, so it was quite an introduction to meeting them for the first time. The wife offered to let me stay with her while my mom was outside talking to the fire department. She gave me Chinese cookies and milk (I didn’t have the heart to tell her I couldn’t drink the milk, but I drank it anyway) and I played with her dog for a long time. After the fire was put out, I ran into the house with my mom searching for clothes for the following day. I had my first penance at the Catholic church the following day and had to wear black and white. When entering my bedroom, I could see huge shoe prints on my carpet leading to the windows of the bedroom – marked by the firefighters when trying to clear the smoke in my room.
The next day I went to the church for my first penance and confessed to the priest that I jinxed the house and as a result had a fire. The priest chuckled when I told him – as I think back to this event, I questioned why he laughed at my confession. Now I know, the fire wasn’t my fault, the furnace caught flame and I was not even home. I guess it took time to accept that I did not do anything wrong.
Another memory I have was when my family surprised me to go to a Billy Joel concert. My mom woke me up with a letter in her hand with specific instructions to finish an essay due the following week (it was February vacation). Of course, I followed directions and finished my essay and was given another letter to pack my suitcase, so I did. Before I knew it, my cousin arrived at the house and my mother, him, and I drove to Hartford. We arrived at a hotel and I was escorted to a hotel room, confused I asked, “What are we doing here?” My mom said “Well, we have a tv, a bed, there’s a pool!” and I looked at her funny and said “Why would you rush me to finish an essay for us to stupidly stay overnight at a hotel?”
Later on, we drove to a family friend’s house who I haven’t seen in a long time and had a wonderfully prepared dinner. Thinking, “Oh, this was the surprise!” We left and there was one last stop. My mom and cousin parked the car and we walked down the street – there were huge screens showcasing upcoming events. My mom asked “look up, what are we going to see?” I strained to read the screen, I didn’t have my glasses with me. “Silly Joe? We are going to see some comedian?” Both of them laughed and I checked the screen again, “Billy Joel! WE ARE GOING TO SEE BILLY JOEL!!!” It was an amazing surprise and he was fabulous in concert. If any of you have a chance to see a concert of his – you will absolutely love it!
Two moments in my life that I will never forget are:
1). When I was about 8 years old and I chipped my front tooth while on vacation in Puerto Rico. I was riding a scooter down a hill with many gravel-like pebbles, and all of a sudden my scooter got stuck, I flew over the scooter, and landed face first into the pavement. When I opened my eyes I remember crying, spitting out blood, my mom running down the hill with the rest of my family chasing after her (my family’s house was at the top of the hill), and they slowly got me up and back up the hill into the house. When my mom told me to smile once they stopped the bleeding, I remember her giving me a large, wide-eyed doll as she looked at my teeth. I had to go to the dentist to get my tooth repaired as soon as we got back to the United States from vacation. Since then, I’ve lost the cap on that front tooth about 3 times- once it came off while eating a sandwich, another while eating a french fry, the other I don’t remember- but the last one the dentist put on has remained on for about 8 years (of course the one that has lasted the most is the only one the insurance didn’t cover haha).
2). Another moment in my life that I will never forget is when I received my first check from my job on the Warmline through Join Rise Be and Advocacy Unlimited. When I began working for them over a year ago I had begun a process of self-transformation, and this was my first “real” job. I was ecstatic to get an interview, and floored when I got hired. When I got my first paycheck, I remember telling my coworker with the biggest grin on my face- “look, it even has the little hairs on it” – as I referred to the watermark characters on checks that make them authentic. (I know that that’s what they are now, not “little hairs” 🙂 )