Blessings and Amends | Teen Ink

Blessings and Amends MAG

June 27, 2008
By Aliza Gans BRONZE, Woodbridge, Connecticut
Aliza Gans BRONZE, Woodbridge, Connecticut
4 articles 0 photos 0 comments

It was the November of second grade, and strep throat had been spreading like the plague through my class. Two girls and I were absent toward the end of the outbreak, experiencing scarlet-striped throats and aching bones. We missed an entire week of work on our rainforest project, so my second-grade teacher, Ms. Giannopolous, sent us “streppies” to the computer lab.

At eight years old, we had mastered a variety of technical skills. We used KidPix – a program that I now consider a dumbed-down version of Photoshop –
to paint an infinite number of complex ­designs on our computerized canvases. That day, one of my fellow streppies, Kelly, showed me how to invert my rainforest landscapes so that the sky turned orange and the trees purple. My spec­ialty was adding sound effects for each brightly colored slide. My skills came in handy for Jillian, the other streppie, when she needed to insert a howler monkey scream for her emergent-layer rainforest slide.

While we were debating the correct spelling of “lemur” and “toucan,” Mr. Reynolds, our school’s technology teacher, was conducting a computer class for the elderly, instructing them on how to copy and paste text into a word document. How sad, I thought. They’re going to die soon and they’re only on copying and pasting?

While logging out of my account ­(Apple Q, Apple Q), I noticed Ms. ­Giannopolous’s name flashing on the staff log-in list. I secretly admired her: the Dannon Lite yogurt she ate (which varied in flavor from day to day), her shiny leather boots, her long, layered black hair, perfectly even teeth, and the blue and purple Koosh ball she kept on her desk. I wanted to tap into her account and learn some secret information about her that I couldn’t grasp by just observing her movements, things that simply needed a password to reveal themselves.

I clicked on her name, and thought of all the possible combinations that might unlock her account. Kelly glanced at my screen and saw what I was up to.

“Try Theresa. That’s her first name,” she suggested.

“Don’t you think she’d pick something harder to figure out?”

Jillian noticed what Kelly and I were doing.

“Try drachma. That’s the money they use in Greece, and she’s from Greece.”

We streppies tried a number of combinations until the screen suddenly froze, and the happy Mac log-in page began ticking rapidly. Not knowing what to do, we asked Mr. Reynolds to help us repair the twitching computer. He clunked over in his orthopedic shoes, his bald head shining under the fluorescent lights. He took one look at the flashing Mac and exhaled through his teeth.

“I know what you’ve been up to. You’ve been hacking into the faculty system!”

We shook our heads with the same trembling that shook the computer screen.

“You know that’s against school ­policy. I will have to tell your teacher about this.”

“It wasn’t my idea,” Kelly said, pointing to me. “It was Aliza’s.”

I winced. It seemed that experiencing high fevers, aching pains, and intense nausea at the same time hadn’t bonded us as tightly as I thought.

Mr. Reynolds glared at me and tisked. I hate it when people tisk at me. I feel like some un-potty-trained dog being scolded for wetting the carpet. It’s very demeaning. I felt my cheeks get puffy and hot. My eyes started tearing like pin-pricked water balloons, and my hair began sticking to my face. Snot dripped onto Mr. Reynold’s shoes. I had been betrayed by my classmates, scorned by a computer teacher (with bad taste in sneakers), and now I would never win the approval of my second-grade teacher.

Mr. Reynolds patted me on the back, which was probably supposed to be comforting but felt far from it.

“Go to class now, Aliza,” he mumbled.

Entering Ms. Giannopolous’s empty classroom, I could hear faint screams and laughter coming from the playground. Ms. Gianno­polous was at recess with the rest of the class. My face was still red-hot, so I hid behind the book shelf, and stuffed the purple and blue Koosh into my backpack. Hacking into computers, stealing Koosh balls … at the rate I was going, I would receive a red-light badge next to my name on the bulletin board, and get a call home.

The ball was pretty, I guess. It had a soft pom-pom look. The jelly-like ­plasma center squirmed in my hand pleasingly when I squeezed it, and the rubber spikes gave my fingers something to grip.

When I got home that Friday, Shabbat evening, my mother had already been cooking for hours, and the house was permeated by the greasy smell of matzo balls and the sweetness of challah. My younger, yet domineeringly taller sister, Sarah, insisted that I dance with her as we did every Shabbat after school, but today I was in no mood. ­Instead, I lay on the couch with my new Koosh ball and squeezed it until my hands felt numb.

“Where’d ya get that?” Sarah asked. She was wearing a bright tulle tutu that embellished her wild dance moves.

“I won insect bingo at school today,”
I lied.

“Can I play with it?”

“No, you can’t even touch it.”

On any given day, Sarah would normally torment me until I handed over the ball. She was an expert kicker and hair-ripper, but tonight she knew I ­wasn’t to be trifled with.

“Girls!” my dad shouted, “It’s time to make Kiddush. Aliza, it’s your turn for a blessing.”

Every Shabbat, my dad blesses us ­before we make the blessing over the wine. I am always first, being the oldest child. My dad wrapped his arms around me. I felt his palms lightly touching my hair as he blessed me with his deep voice, barely audible.

“Yevarech-icha Adonai v’yish-marecha. May God bless you. You are such a wonderful, beautiful girl. You are so nice, caring, and honest …”

Oh, God, I thought. I’m such a sinner! If Jews believed in hell, then I would be signed right over, next-day shipping, to the fiery pits.

“You do so well in school,” he continued. “You light up my life, and may God allow you to keep growing in the beautiful way that you’re growing right now …”

Yeah, grow up to be a liar and a teacher-moocher?

“Amen.”

As my dad kissed me on the forehead, I tried to look into his eyes, but mine were weighed down toward my feet.

Before dinner, my dad put on a new CD he’d brought home from the Judaica shop. It was Shlomo Carlebach, a Jewish folk singer he was fond of. The roughness of Shlomo’s singing accompanied by the sweetness of the violin ­reminded me of Mr. Reynolds and Ms. Gian­nopolous’s distinct voices. Later that night, I would put that CD into my Walkman and listen for hours before bed, hoping that hearing their voices would rid me of my guilt and help me survive the rest of second grade.

Now, eight years later, Ms. Gianno­polous is married, they use euros in Greece instead of drachmas, and the Shlomo CD is scratched and skips when played. But it wasn’t until last month that I decided to return the Koosh ball to my second-grade teacher.

When I entered her classroom, it was dark and empty like the day I’d stolen the ball so many years before. The dim light from the windows shone on the same world flag posters, multiplication charts, and tattered carpet squares in the meeting circle. The scrawny spider plant that our class had put in a terracotta pot now dangled thick and leafy down the bookshelf onto the floor.

Now, different names were printed on the bulletin board. No Kelly. No Jillian. No Aliza. It was as if I was hugging my mother and noticed the smell of a new perfume. The simple changes made the room feel strange.

My uneasiness led me to reach into my hooded sweatshirt pouch, pull out the Koosh, and place it on Ms. ­Giannopolous’s desk near the new Mac computer, filled with her updated, ­personal, intriguing information. Maybe this computer contained
an e-mail ­exchange between Ms. Giannopolous and her husband, pictures of her and her ­relatives soaking in sunlight on the Greek island of Santorini, or a short poem about her childhood crushes. My hand had been clammy from squeezing the Koosh ball, but now that it was empty, the sweat evaporated in my empty palm, leaving it cold and dry.

Someone blew a whistle on the playground, signaling the end of ­recess. I scanned the classroom and rubbed my hands down my legs, making sure I hadn’t in my anxiety taken anything else from my ­second-grade teacher that I would need to return. My pockets were empty, my hands were bare, yet my cold palm itched for the ­familiar plasma squirm and gripping spikes of the Koosh ball. But now the ball looked spiny and urchin-like on Ms. Giannopolous’s desk. If I touched it, the poisonous barbs would pierce my seven layers of skin, and the toxins would travel through my bloodstream, circulating through my veins and marrow. Better keep my hands glued to my pockets.

I heard the slapping of a dozen rubber soles on linoleum down the hall: crusty-nosed second-graders were coming in from recess. I hurriedly stepped out of my dark second-grade classroom. My eyes had not quite adjusted to the bright light in the corridor, so I could see only the outlines of everything in front of me. The hallway walls were lined with elementary Chuck Close paintings – ­little squares pasted together to make larger pictures. I reached the end of the hall and pushed open the double doors the same way a puny, roller-backpack-wheeling elementary student would.

Shabbat was the following night. At sunset, my family would sing the same songs from the Shlomo CD at the dinner table, drink wine that always tasted too sweet, and I would receive a new blessing from my dad.

My sister and I no longer twirl and leap clumsily across the living room floor. Instead, we joke about what happened that week with tears of laughter washing away the uneasiness of Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and every gap of time in between.



Similar Articles

JOIN THE DISCUSSION

This article has 52 comments.


on Oct. 20 2015 at 9:52 pm
ThrillQueen126, Seattle, Washington
0 articles 0 photos 46 comments
This reminds me of when I was little- always feeling horribly guilty for everything I did "wrong". I remember once I accidentally read two words of a 4th grade girl's private letter, and it weighed me down for the rest of the week.

on Nov. 27 2012 at 6:04 pm
Deej6595 BRONZE, Billerica, Massachusetts
3 articles 0 photos 369 comments

Favorite Quote:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I--I took the one less traveled by, And that has made all the difference.

This has made me feel very nostalgic about my elementary school years. Your voice is very relatable and smooth. It doesn't sound like you are telling a story but more like a conversation.

on May. 27 2012 at 1:57 pm
Eliahumandoglover SILVER, San Francisco, California
5 articles 0 photos 29 comments

Favorite Quote:
"Don't say the old lady screamed. Bring her on and let her scream." --Mark Twain "Being tactful is saying someone is open-minded when they have a hole in their head."by???

How was it like at school without the koosh ball? Did the teacher think someone took it?

I like this piece a lot. I don't usually enjoy nonfiction (like ever) but this was so real and funny i couldn't wait to see what happend. I like how you tell the story from the view of a seond grader. I like how you skipped a couple of years and explained how times have changed those years. How come it took you so long to return it?

 

This reminds me also of when I was in kindergarten and I burrowed a little plastic toy turtle. It's a very different story. I kind if lost it and forgot about it and didn't return it until like 3rd or 2nd grade.


ufail2bad said...
on Dec. 8 2011 at 2:07 pm
hey people

son of god said...
on Dec. 8 2011 at 2:06 pm
great story keep it up

byebye said...
on Nov. 16 2011 at 7:56 pm
byebye, Nevermore, Other
0 articles 0 photos 250 comments

Oh my god...I stole two pencils just today :)

Live and learn.


Audrey2 BRONZE said...
on Nov. 16 2011 at 7:06 pm
Audrey2 BRONZE, Germantown, Maryland
1 article 0 photos 6 comments

Favorite Quote:
"I love you, master."

I like the word choices!

on Oct. 25 2011 at 7:14 pm
Victoria.S BRONZE, Dallas, Texas
4 articles 0 photos 24 comments

Favorite Quote:
"Someday you will look back and know exactly why it had to happen."

That was really good. I liked how you realated to things in your story, such as "The names were different, like the smell of my mother's new purfume..."
Or something similar to that. Great piece! Don't stop writing!:)

SammiWeiss said...
on Oct. 6 2011 at 4:55 pm
There is so much potential in this story. You make great remarks and have an interesting insight, but I believe there is so much you can do with it to make it fantastic. Keep writing and I hope to see more from you!

on Oct. 3 2011 at 9:52 am
hobo12321 PLATINUM, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
20 articles 11 photos 62 comments

Favorite Quote:
none, there's too many, although the one about the grapefruit is good. Any by Douglas Adams

Mr. Reynolds sounds exactly like a teacher at my school. You must have been so proud of returning the Koosh (what exactly is a koosh?) anyways, great peice, and good writing!

Naomi518 GOLD said...
on Sep. 11 2011 at 8:40 pm
Naomi518 GOLD, Windsor, Connecticut
11 articles 15 photos 59 comments

Favorite Quote:
"Happiness can be found, even in the darkest of times, if one only remembers to turn on the light" ~Albus Dumbledore

this is the non-fiction section. non-fiction means true. therefore the story is true.

on Jul. 29 2011 at 10:19 am
KaitlynMarie GOLD, Northborough, Massachusetts
10 articles 0 photos 23 comments

Favorite Quote:
"I finally understood what true love meant...love meant that you care for another person's happiness more than your own, no matter how painful the choices you face might be."
-Nicholas Sparks

This was absolutley an amazing piece of work! keep it up!

on Jul. 7 2011 at 8:40 pm
Autumn-Rain SILVER, West Lafayette, Indiana
9 articles 1 photo 74 comments
I really liked it... You described everything so well that i could imagine I was there...

on Jul. 7 2011 at 10:54 am
hedwigy13 PLATINUM, Piscataway, New Jersey
27 articles 2 photos 21 comments

Favorite Quote:
"Only in the dictionary does success come before work." -unknown

Well written! I can relate. In fourth grade I stole a pencil, but later returned it.

on Jun. 15 2011 at 9:28 pm
flyinggemini GOLD, Wayne, Pennsylvania
18 articles 0 photos 18 comments
where have i seen this before???? i read it and could predict it cuz i'd read it before... but it was original... hold on... ????

drew said...
on Jun. 15 2011 at 1:31 pm

im speechless cause i agree totaly

 


drew said...
on Jun. 15 2011 at 1:29 pm
this book was awsome..............

on Jun. 15 2011 at 1:21 pm
i agree with you and i think that they should have a main idea than and i like this story

on Jun. 15 2011 at 1:18 pm
i think that the story is okay and i like this story and i was wondering if the story was true and what the stuff was because i dont understand it.  like i said love this story and i think i was a better one one

on Jun. 15 2011 at 8:35 am
TheLemonadeCrusade SILVER, Huntersville, North Carolina
9 articles 0 photos 25 comments

Favorite Quote:
"Imagination is more important than knowledge. For knowledge is limited to all we now know and understand, while imagination embraces the whole world, and all there ever will be to know and understand"

i like how you wrote this from a very mature perspective and then contradict that with your more innocent chidlhood emotions. you portrayed yourself very well as a guilty little girl who knows she's done wrong, yet i think it was also really nice how you did make amends all these years later over a small thing such as a ball. overall it was rally well written. my only critiique to it may be i think the plot isnt very clearly defined and you should maybe more directly restate the lesson or moral of the story