Essays

Character Vignette

Okay so we had to write basically a narrative based on the book Seedfolks by Paul Fleischman(amazing!).

Sophia

Have you ever been labeled something because of the way you act or dress? I have, my whole life. Ever since my parents died two years ago. People still call me the frail little girl whose parents died. Well I'm fourteen now. I think I can deal with the fact that I will never see them again.

I was called into the office today. Since I've been "acting out",they gave me community service at a garden down the street for a whole hour after school. The principal said that gardens are therapeutic.

I have to work with the garden club and the other people that garden there. The teacher said I could plant something instead of picking up trash, which we both knew would take an infinity of lifetimes to clean. When we came back the next day I bought two packets of seeds. Lavender for my mom, and habaneros for my dad. My mom and I loved purple, and my dad and I loved spicy foods. I chose to plant them as a sort of memorial for my parents.

Even after I finished my sentence, I kept going to the garden. Over time the garden was cleared of almost all of the debri and more people from the neighborhood started coming. I saw people of all ages coming. From little five year olds to people that looked like they were here since the beginning of time and space. I kept on going way into the next school year, and so did the other people. When fall hit it was all gone in a flash. It became too cold for people to want to plant things even in the Central Valley. By December it was all gone... but it was nice while it lasted.

11-12-14