Writing Is a Rainy Day

Tatiana Parrilla

Professor Katy E. Whittingham

ENL102 – 7101

February 24, 2016

Writing is a rainy day - revised

I was in 5th grade and right before we got released from class into our 2-week winter vacation my teacher gave us an assignment that upset everyone and gave me an instant anxiety. We needed to write an essay about our winter vacation. “Really? Write an essay about my vacation during my vacation?

In Rio de Janeiro, where I grew up, a cold winter day’s average 75°F and vacation exist so people can travel, go to the beach and the playground. Not for me, not on that vacation… my vacation was ruined because of that unfair assignment. I never liked to write and was “traumatized for life”, that teacher made it rain on my vacation.

Writing is a drizzling day, I thought to myself on my way home. So many things to do and the inability to get it all done. So many plans ruined... Play with my friends, visit some relatives, ride my bike, fly a kite, watch the sun rise and wait to see the sun set. But I couldn’t do any of that because I had an assignment to do.

Writing is like a rainy day, I kept on thinking. Wet and cold, cloudy and gray, boring and lonely. As if there was a cloud over my head, it didn’t matter what I wanted to do, it didn’t matter where my thoughts were, I couldn’t help but feel gloomy. All I could think was how unnecessary that assignment was. It was tedious, dull, and keeping me away from my friends.

Writing is as boring as a pouring day. Sad, maybe even depressing, suppressing at times.

How could I focus on anything? My friends would be outside, enjoying their childhood, running, screaming and laughing. Our entire group, everyone was playing and having their best vacation ever, but me. All I wanted to do was cry.

So I cried, but not until I was home and comforted by my mom. But even my mom was having a hard time calming me down that day. What a storm of bad feelings and thoughts in my 5th grader mind.

My mom sent me to the shower, to “cool off my head” and calm my mind. Like magic, I got out of the shower feeling better. Better yet when my mom told me not to worry and go outside to play, enjoy the rest of the day and “we would figure something out”. And so I did. I also enjoyed the next day, the one after that, and every day after; to the point I didn’t remember I had an assignment, I didn’t even remember school existed at that point! I did everything I was supposed to during my vacation. My parents were able to take some time off and take my brother and me to a water park and to visit some relatives. I also went to the playground almost every day and went to the beach quite few times. Perfect weather, perfect days. Until the rain came!

The winter in Rio is considerably dry, with very few rainy days. One of these few rainy days fell into one of my vacation’s day “Of course!” I thought. “Now what? What can I possibly do on a rainy day?” I asked myself. Kites can’t fly during a rain storm, and bike riding can be considerably messy and dangerous. But my mom had a plan.

Aware of the weather and of how bored my brother and I would get, and how annoyed and annoying we could become, my mom setup an indoor playdate with some of our best friends. It seemed like an okay idea since we had many things to do but were unable to get it done. It was wet and cold, cloudy and gray, boring and lonely. Sad, maybe even depressing, suppressing at times.