A Thousand Eyes

Moving isn’t really that fun if you think about it. Well, there was no stopping. We had to go. My family had to move across the ocean, to a place where only the population was approximately a 10,000 people. It was a very small island, according to the web. Though, they were not friendly. Always war or dividing land issues occur there because of some sort of argument all the time. I wasn’t really sure if that place was ever going to feel “homey”. I had a bad feeling, even had nightmares about the place. Gives me the creeps even just thinking about the move. But soon it was time. Right now, I was going to the place I never wanted to be, “Spirit Ridge" . Who would ever name an island like that!! I pondered and thought really hard about how the other kids would like me. If I would ever fit in and make friends. Would people like me, or just ignore me like my entire school did these past 5 years. I got disturbed by the sound of the moving truck. Suddenly I felt a little hungry. I took a quick snack and wondered if the food there will be the same as here.  

Sooner or later we had to start saying goodbye to our house. We were never going to see it again. Though in some ways I had a hint of relief in my heart. I didn’t have a single friend here. The neighbors' kids were never nice to me. So, I’m glad in a way because I never have to go through them again. Sometimes I even think that my teachers never really liked me in the first place. I don’t know why. They admit they like all the students, but I’m not too sure of that. Another reason why I am glad to leave this place is because of the horrendous and scorching hot summers. Seriously, everything is kind of extreme here. Even the winters are bone freezing and teeth chattering cold. After wearing more than 5 layers, I still felt very cold last winter. But I don’t know if Spirit Ridge is going to be any better. I had a little amount of hope that the media was going to be totally wrong about that and everyone was happy and cheerful in the small town, but I don’t know what the reality is going to be.  

We were a small family. It’s just me, my dad, and my mom. No other siblings, and no pets. Just us 3. The tickets to the place didn’t cost much. When my parents told their friends where they were moving, all of them made that look. Actually, I don’t know their facial expression since it was a phone call, but deep down, I knew I was right. They all stammered and said the same phrases, “...are you sure? I don’t know if moving there is the best decision.” but every time they say those kinds of words, my parents somehow sugar coat it. Telling the utmost lies they can to hide the fact that they were right.  Still, change is a big thing, and it can take some time to get adjusted and adapt to the new surrounding and environment. Plus, it was the first time that our family had moved to a different place. I was going to get the opportunity to meet new people and faces! I can make new experiences and memories there. This was going to be a big journey for me, at least I think so. I was hoping that this move was for the best.  

I wanted to see my room for one last time. Admiring the emptiness of it. It was like looking at a blank page of a paper. It is going to be a start of a new chapter. As I go, memories will be made and soon the pages of my book won’t be bland but filled with different emotions and thoughts. Judging a place before experiencing that place it isn’t something great. So, I decided to have two sides. One was my judgemental thoughts, and the other side was going to be reality.  My mom and dad were already tired by the numerous amounts of trips they had to take back and forth, and back and forth. Moving the boxes, packing some at the last minute they were moving fast. They asked me to look outside my bedroom window and admire the last moments of staying here. Now that I think about it, my entire life I watched myself grow up in this room. Leaving it forever wasn’t as easy as I thought it would be. Sure, I didn’t like many, many things about this place. But still that feeling of sadness keeps kicking back, like it’s talking to me.  

I heard the call from my parents. Finally. The moment that I was dreading the most. Leaving my hometown to a small island. Was it really worth it? Well, I was going to find out now. 

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I had double checked to make sure that I packed everything necessary. Lastly, I rushed outside the door, held my tears in, and finally spoke in a very sad, whispering, melancholy tone. “Bye-bye house. Bye-bye room. Bye-bye Green Shire. Bye bye!!” I couldn’t hold my feelings in anymore. I had to let it out. I was having mixed feelings and suddenly stomach started to hurt really bad. My parents turned around and hugged me. I also saw the tears in their eyes too. It was a family crying session for 5 minutes. It was never a good idea to bottle up your feelings, I guess. After that I felt a little better. My parents hugs consoled me and made me feel warm and comfortable. Like reading a good book next to the fireplace while it’s snowing calmly. Oh, that’s exactly how I had felt right now. Wiping my tears, I sat inside the car and instead of dozing off like I normally do, I took a good last look at my community, my school, everything.  

Usually, rides to the airport seem very long and boring for us kids. But for some reason everything seemed to go very fast. We had finally sat in the chairs of misery. Even though I had never moved before, I had gone to visit many places. But my number one most hated transportation was airplanes. For some reason I get airsick a lot. I feel very uneasy and almost suffocate when the plane is taking off. This time it was even worse. Half of my body felt airsick, and the other half felt grief, anxious, and nervous. My body couldn’t handle all those feelings. I stared at how high we were, high up in the sky. Looking the big, puffy clouds going by. The sky felt a little bit bluer today. I leaned my head on my mom’s shoulder, and before I even knew it, I dozed off.  

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I felt the shake of my mom’s cold, but very warm hands on my shoulder. I startled. I heard a soft whisper, “We’re here. Take your bag, remove your seat belt, and slowly but carefully stand up.” I couldn’t believe it. It was already 5:00pm. Time passed by really quick. I did as my mom had instructed me. I rubbed my eyes a few more times to see clearly. “We really are here.” I could spot the waves just a few minutes of walking distance. They were shiny, and smooth, yet rough. I held my mom’s hand and followed her until we exited the plane. “Wow. How can people ever be unhappy here! It’s amazing! The weather, the view, everything!!” I exclaimed; a bit louder that I thought. “We are going to stay inside the nearby hotel and then possibly tomorrow go to the place in which we will be staying. The movers should have done their job by some time at noon tomorrow.” dad told me.  

I felt a tingling sensation right when we were in front of the hotel. It was not a good one. Somehow, I sensed trouble, like something wrong was going to happen. I ignored that feeling and pushed the grand door open. Then, we felt it. Stares from everyone. People had just stopped doing their work that they were doing before. All eyes were on us. Pin drop silence. I quietly asked mom, “Did we do something wrong?” “No. Of course not. I don’t know why they are staring like that. Remember, just ignore them. Let’s just go to the front desk and try to act normal.” mom advised me and dad. We both nodded and took a few small steps. Though now everyone resumed their conversation, I still felt those stares.  

The front desk was no help either. They stared at us like we were aliens, or we had a mermaid tail! The two tall men were whispering to each other. Saying something, possibly talking about us. Mom and dad told me stand next to the suitcases. I felt so awkward. I knew that I was the center of the conversations that they were having. One lady whispered to the security guard and then the next second, I saw him coming straight to me. I felt scared. I knew I hadn’t committed a crime or anything. Was I getting arrested for not doing anything? I panicked. My feet were trying to walk back but I stood there like a statue. Soon the man reached me. “ Oh little girl! Your dress that you are wearing is made by us! We are known for our rich fabrics, and we are so glad that you are wearing one of the dresses we designed!" he told me, in a friendly tone. I was shocked to hear this! I felt somewhat, special. A feeling I had never felt back in the city. Finally, I felt like I belonged. Quickly I told my parents about this. They had a conversation with the guard, saying that it was a total coincidence.

After saying a special good-bye to the guard, we left the hotel. In less than 30 minutes we reached our community. It had a very fancy and welcoming gate. With the most beautiful flowers , lakes, fountains and an amazing view of the sunrise and the sunset. When we reached our building number, a man and a woman with their 3 kids walked up to us. My parents had a conversation with the adults and those 3 kids kept on talking and talking. " The ice-cream here is great!" said the little boy. " I am sure you're going to love the park! We can play everyday!" said another girl, who looked the same age as me. " Yeah! Everyone here is friendly! You can ask us any questions, we're here if you need us!" said the older girl. I felt a big, bright smile on my face. I realized why back in the city no one had liked us. It was their mentality and fixed mindset to open up to new people. Though the look of it was large, the hearts of theirs was small, and cold. But this small town, ironically have big hearts. Finally there were thousands of eyes welcoming us.