All I ever wanted was to belong, to wear that hat of belonging.
In seventh and eighth grades I still 1 about forty pounds, which is too skinny. I was twelve years old and had been getting laughed at for my 2 looks for most of my life.
But I was funny. So the popular kids let me 3 with them, go to their parties and watch them have fun with each other. This, as you might imagine, did not help my 4 a great deal. I thought I was a total 5 .
But one day I took a notebook and a pen when I went to Bolinas Beach with my 6 . Like a writer, I wrote a (n) 7 of what I saw: "I walked to the lip of the water and let the tongue of the rushing water 8 my toes. A sand crab dug a hole a few inches from my foot and then disappeared into the damp sand. . . With a sense of 9 , I began my walk back, leaving the beauty of the moment behind. "
It goes on for quite a while. My father 10 me to show it to a teacher, and it ended up being 11 in a real textbook. This deeply 12 my teachers and parents and a few kids, even some of the 13 kids, who invited me to their parties even more often. This changed my life, showing me that true 14 comes from
within, not just 15 .
