Let it Rain | Teen Ink

Let it Rain

May 26, 2009
By jennee21_ann GOLD, Helper, Utah
jennee21_ann GOLD, Helper, Utah
17 articles 0 photos 568 comments

Favorite Quote:
"Don't gain the world and lose your soul....wisdom is better than silver or gold."

"You can always close a book, but you can never close the mind of a writer."


I sat there the last day of school and watched the sky catch fire. I stayed curled up in a ball as the wind whipped my long hair around my face. I imagined gathering up all the memories in my mind and throwing them into the sky, laughing with delight as I watched them burn. But no such thing was happening as I sat there and said goodbye to my 8th grade year. The memories were only flowing down my cheeks in the form of small, silver tears.

I remember one year ago, the exact same day. I was swinging on the tire swing diagonal from me. I was listening to the moans of the river and the whispers of the wind. I remembered laughing with my heart as my eyes sparkled with the anticipation of summer. But this year, no such thing would happen. The wind only whispered the things I was longing to forget. And the moans of the river were only the cries of helplessness.

As the fire was doused in the sky and the dark blue night began to creep upon me, I could hear the chirping of crickets in the background. The river seemed to calm itself as it prepared for the night. The wind only whistled through the trees now. It seemed as if they were finally satisfied that they had broken me. It was as if they were proud of what they had done. But what had they done? Made me relive my memories…make my nightmares come to life? No, no. They had only made me remember what I wished would disappear.

I pulled my knees closer to my body and rested my head on my knees. A déjà vu floated into my mind. Hadn't I spent the last 180 days in this position as I curled up by my locker on the 2nd story hall? At that moment, the wind kicked up and rustled the leaves and the thick grasses. It echoed through the fields like laughter. The river gurgled quietly, just like whispers. The laughter, the whispers, and the fallen position…the story of my 8th grade year.

I looked up into the dark night sky and watched the stars appear. Some of them twinkled back and forth, as if a conversation was going on in the heavens. The falling stars were the ballerinas of the skies. All was peaceful and calm in the skies. Quiet. There was no wind or worry up there. It was almost as if everything wasn't really there. Maybe they're physical selves were in the sky….but was their mind "in the clouds", or on the ground?

The memories of that year came back in flashes. One certain thing could make me relive the darkest moments of that year. The quack of a duck reminded me of the squeaky shoes in the halls. A rusty swing swaying in the wind represented a ticking of a clock. And yet, I could find some noises that resembled happy moments. A horse's neigh was like the final bell. The sprinklers spraying the night were like the beat-boxers in my home room.

So for many, many hours, I stayed there and listened to the sounds of the night and remembered everything from that year. From the moment of my closing locker, to the yell of "Time Out" everything from that year poured out into the darkness and peacefulness of the night.

When the night grew old, and the sounds became still, everything from that year was lying on the dirt beneath me. Every bad memory was beneath my feet. Oh how I would have loved to stamp my feet on them and smothered them into the dirt. But would they have just crawled up my legs and found themselves into my mind again? I would have loved to pick them up and carry them to drown the memories in the river, but would they have floated to the top again? Not knowing what to do with them, I sat and waited.

The bright orange was peeking over the bowl and beginning to light the world. But somewhere in the far off distance, the rumbling of thunder could be heard. As if millions of horses were stomping closer to me, the storm moved in closer. It was almost near the end.

As I curled myself under the tree and left the memories beneath me, the heavens opened up. The rain came down in heavy, cold pellets and washed the Earth clean. As the rain came down and splashed, it carried all my memories away. As they slowly ran down the hillside and collected in a puddle, everything was washed away.

The only left to do…was to wash away myself. I ran out into the rain, hands out and head up to the sky. I let the stinging bullets pierce my skin. I let the rain soak my hair and drench my dress. I let my converse shoes fill with mud and I let my skin turn to ice. Because when it was done, I was a new person. The rain had washed the old me away, the clouds lifted, and I finally found myself again.

The author's comments:
This story is based on my 8th grade experience, and how I got rid of all the bad memories of that year.

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This article has 52 comments.


on Aug. 7 2009 at 3:09 pm
tigeress3 PLATINUM, Dayton, Ohio
35 articles 0 photos 78 comments
Beautiful. You have a brand new fan!

SaraB. GOLD said...
on Aug. 7 2009 at 12:58 pm
SaraB. GOLD, Phoenix, Arizona
12 articles 6 photos 215 comments

Favorite Quote:
"Whatever you are, be a good one" Abraham Lincoln

Wow, that was really good. It kind of epitomizes how I felt leaving 8th grade. (By the way, the story you commented on of mine is fiction. That never happened to me, and my name is not Casey. I don't live in MN.) I had to read this twice because I was a littel confused, but it's very good.

on Aug. 7 2009 at 12:04 pm
Mandiella DIAMOND, Plaistow, New Hampshire
73 articles 58 photos 349 comments

Favorite Quote:
Don't waste time. Start procrastinating now.

Great story! But I don't really understand what was happening. Was there a forest fire?

on Aug. 7 2009 at 5:21 am
liz_graham BRONZE, Newark, Delaware
3 articles 0 photos 33 comments
wow tht wuz great!!!!!!!!! n thnxs for comenting on mah work!!!

Lynette BRONZE said...
on Aug. 7 2009 at 4:10 am
Lynette BRONZE, Rio Grande, Texas
3 articles 0 photos 20 comments

Favorite Quote:
“Love is when the other person's happiness is more important than your own.”
H. Jackson Brown,Jr.

So wonderful....i have always tried to write something like this but always ended up wondering what to focus on....this is amazing i loved it thanks for your comment on my own work=)

LIKEwhoaa GOLD said...
on Aug. 5 2009 at 4:47 pm
LIKEwhoaa GOLD, Carrollton, Texas
13 articles 0 photos 126 comments

Favorite Quote:
The important thing is this: To be able at any moment to sacrifice what we are for what we could become.
-Charles DuBois

ohhmygoshh. that was sooo beautifully written, all the metaphors and imagery really made the story absolutely perfect. GREAT job <3

Schubster said...
on Aug. 5 2009 at 4:19 pm
it reminds me a lot of my 8th grade year, too...very powerful and uplifting story. loved it :) oh, and thanx for posting on my poems, but i think you're the great writer here.

on Aug. 5 2009 at 3:36 pm
distant_dreamer GOLD, Belmont, New Hampshire
12 articles 6 photos 497 comments

Favorite Quote:
"Life's a climb, but the view is great!"

Wow!!! Great Job, I love it! You are such a natural!!! Keep writing! I know how the 8th grade can be, trust me I've been there, done that! lol

on Aug. 4 2009 at 10:28 pm
Dream-Junkie SILVER, Wahiawa, Hawaii
8 articles 5 photos 6 comments
I love your ability to describe things! It's incredible I could read this a million times more

Iamme BRONZE said...
on Aug. 4 2009 at 9:39 pm
Iamme BRONZE, Parker, Colorado
4 articles 0 photos 8 comments

Favorite Quote:
"Love, in the universal sense, is unconditional acceptance. In the individual sense, the one-on-one sense, try this: we can say we love each other if my life is better because you're in it and your life is better because I'm in it. The intensity of the love is weighted by how much better." - Chris Crutcher

Wow, very beautiful, very powerful. I wonder what happened in 8th grade to create such a longing for renewal, but I liked that you didnt just come right out an dsay it, you let the reader imagine. Very good. Keep Writing!

on Jul. 31 2009 at 5:36 pm
GlassHeart SILVER, Black Earth, Wisconsin
7 articles 8 photos 167 comments
That was amazing! Good writing. I'm going into 8th grade, lol.

Zero_K DIAMOND said...
on Jul. 29 2009 at 4:49 pm
Zero_K DIAMOND, Moosic, Pennsylvania
83 articles 0 photos 435 comments

Favorite Quote:
"Life's no fun if you're not insane, otherwise you grow up to be an accountant." -Moi

WOW, with a capital WOAH. This is amazing. I am speechless. Almost. How bad was 8th grade to inspire such beautiful writing? Bravo!

ZERO