Formerly Shark Girl (4 page)
Read Formerly Shark Girl Online
Authors: Kelly Bingham
Ms. Edmonds, our English teacher,
asks, “What did everyone think
about the main character
having a bucket list?”
Nathan raises his hand. “I didn’t like it.”
Ms. Edmonds cocks an eyebrow.
“Can you tell us why?”
“The whole idea of a bucket list
is weird,” Nathan answers.
Elizabeth interjects, “No, it’s not.
It’s just a way of saying ‘goals,’ really.
What’s wrong with setting goals for yourself?”
Emily smacks her gum. “His goals were
stupid.
”
“Who are we to say they’re stupid?”
I ask. “They were
his
goals, not ours.”
Emily rolls her eyes. “One of them
was to eat a pizza on the beach.
That’s not exactly
profound,
is it?”
Mrs. Edmonds steps in. “Goals and desires
don’t have to be profound to be meaningful.”
“Besides, a bucket list is personal,”
Elizabeth adds. “You wouldn’t go around
showing it off to everyone.
So what difference does it make if the goals
are small or large, or sound weird?
No one else is going to see them.”
“I’m glad you all have an opinion on this,”
Ms. Edmonds says. “Because today
we are going to write our
own
bucket lists.”
There is a small groan from the back.
Ms. Edmonds begins writing on the board.
“You must write at least ten goals
that you want to accomplish
in a specific time period.
You don’t have to show this to me.
I am putting you on the honor system.
This is something you can do for
you.
Think about it.
This may actually mean something
if you want it to.”
As if my mind has been waiting
for this opportunity, my left hand
begins scribbling as fast as it can,
which is not very fast. I watch
the list unfold,
as though watching a movie.
Well. What do you know?
I have goals.
Some of them I am working toward,
and some I just now formed.
Seeing them written out
makes me realize:
I have a lot
of work to do.
1. Apply to nursing school and art college.
2. Choose one or the other.
3. Become fully certified in CPR, first aid, and triage.
4. Enter the school art competition.
5. Win the school art competition.
6. Qualify for and enter the West Coast Wings art competition.
7. Win the West Coast Wings art competition.
8. Go to prom.
9. Bake a wedding cake.
10. Save a life.
Justin and I stand in his bedroom,
contemplating the small sketch
taped to the center of the large white wall before us.
“I don’t get it,” Justin says. “How are you
going to take that little drawing
and turn it into a mural on this big wall?”
I lay my arm across his thin shoulders.
“I’m going to have you help me, of course.”
He laughs, then walks over to study the sketch.
Justin has a fake leg, but you’d never know it.
That’s how we met, Justin and I. In the hospital.
He lost his leg in a car crash at the same time
I lost my arm to a shark. Though Justin is a lot younger
than I am, he is one of my best friends. And honestly?
He’s an inspiration. Justin doesn’t dwell on his lost leg.
He is too busy living life.
“First,” I tell him,
“We’ll transfer that sketch onto the wall.
Then we’ll be ready to paint.”
Justin’s dog, Spot, sniffs my shoe. Justin asks,
“But
how
do we transfer the drawing onto the wall?”
I lay a piece of graph paper over the sketch Justin has directed:
a sunny park scene with grass, trees, fields of people
playing soccer,
and children playing with a dog that looks a lot like Spot.
“See how the graph paper
divides the drawing into squares?”
Justin nods. I go on. “We’ll draw a really big graph
on your wall. Then we’ll refer to this sketch,
one square at a time.
We copy what’s in each small square
over to each big square
in the wall. When you break it down into these small
squares,
it makes it easier to transfer the entire thing over.
See what I mean?”
He nods, though a little slowly. “I think so.”
I point to the graph. “We just draw one box at a time.
It will work. Trust me.”
He nods again, “I trust you.”
That’s one of the things I love about Justin.
He has more trust than I do, that’s for sure. In himself,
his family, and his friends. In life. The truth?
I envy that about him.
“Let’s get started,” I tell him, picking up the ruler.
Picking up his own ruler, Justin stands by my side.
Together, we begin.
Hey, Sis. I found this by the computer. Your “bucket list”?
Michael! That’s
private
!
Well, try not leaving it out in
public,
then.
Sheesh.
You
wrote on it
!
Cute, huh?
“Number eleven: Become the left-handed arm-wrestling champion of the universe.”
No,
it’s not
cute.
And you shouldn’t have even read it!
How can I resist anything titled “Bucket List”? Besides, if it’s any consolation, I like what you’ve got going there. Some very nice goals.
Go ahead. There’s a zinger coming.
I particularly like the way “Go to prom” comes before “Save a life.” Nice priorities.
Michael. I hate you. Very much.
No, you don’t. I saved your life, remember?
Of course I remember, you moron.
Touchy, touchy.
They are not listed in order of priority, okay? They’re just . . . things I want to do this year. Some of them are more realistic than others. It’s not like I want to be in the
position
to save a life. I guess I’d like to know that if I had to . . . I could. You know?
I do, Jane. I see you taking all these medical classes and doing your time at the hospital. I see how much you care about this nursing thing. And I’m just kidding, anyway.
Really?
Really. I think you’d make a
fine
wedding cake. Chocolate, I hope?
Isn’t it time for you to head back to the dorms now?
Yep, I was just leaving. After I find my laundry. See you around, Jane.
Bye.
I did not put that one extra thing
on my bucket list for senior year,
the one thing
that is too private to even write down
and see in stark black
words.
Michael would have said something awful
if he’d seen it.
All of my friends
have already had one.
Not me.
I may not have written it down,
but in my head? My heart?
It’s there, on the list:
My first kiss.
Valley Magazine
, October Issue
Star of the Month: What Ever Happened to . . . ?
This month, our segment goes to Jane Arrowood, a high-school student from Santa Clarita. You may remember Jane as the 15-year-old who was attacked by a shark at Point Dume two summers ago. The attack was caught on tape by an anonymous beachgoer. Jane lost most of her right arm due to her injuries from the shark attack. She nearly died from the trauma and was in a coma for several days. Throughout her recovery period, Jane has been notably reluctant to be interviewed and facts about this young lady are hard to come by.
But many of our readers have asked about her, so here is what we know: We did contact Ms. Arrowood and ask for a full interview, but she declined. However, sources tell us that Ms. Arrowood is doing remarkably well and has resumed leading the full, normal life of a high-school senior. She attends SCHS and will graduate this spring. She is said to be friendly, popular, and well liked. And best of all, Jane seems to have taken her personal experience and transformed it into good: She did confirm that she now volunteers at Santa Clarita Hospital and that she intends to become a nurse in the future! We applaud Ms. Arrowood for this decision. Surely she will bring a great deal of personal experience and empathy to her future patients.
We wish Ms. Arrowood the very best in her future, and we are confident she will go far in life, having demonstrated a great deal of will and determination already.
Hats off to Jane Arrowood, our
Valley Magazine
Star of the Month!
Dear Ms. Arrowood,
I hope you had a chance to read the article we wrote about you for our publication,
Valley Magazine.
I wanted to share with you that we have had a
lot
of follow-up mail from our readers. I will forward it all along to you.
Many readers have asked if you’ll write a book about your experience. Some wonder if you’ll ever do a TV interview. Many have commented that they’
d like to meet you someday. And overwhelmingly, readers tell us that you are an inspiration to them.