One cool Autumn day,  I woke up and got ready for another regular Saturday. That all changed when I walked into the kitchen and saw my dad cooking some delicious blueberry pancakes and hickory smoked bacon.

“Guess what, Carson?” my dad asked. “Today’s your lucky day. We’re going to the Nike Employee Store!”

I could hardly belive my ears! I ran around the kitchen feeling like I was running on air. I was so excited! The Nike Employee Store is an amazing place and has everything an avid sports lover, like me, could ever need. My head exploded as thoughts of what I could buy raced through it. I knew I wanted to look at the brightly colored and very stylish Converse high tops. I also thought of the amazing basketball jerseys representing the talented players that I love. They even have Portland Timbers soccer gear, which was great since I was in the middle of my soccer season at the time. The twenty minute car ride seemed to be an eternity. It appeared as if everything was going in slow motion. After what seemed like forever, we made it to Beaverton and pulled into the employee store parking lot. The parking lot was packed with cars and we had to park in the overflow parking lot. As we approached the entrance, we saw that the line to enter the store was winding around the building like a snake. I was so eager to get into the store and could hardly wait. When we were outside waiting to go in, we were all talking about what we wanted to get.

I asked my middle brother, Landon, what he wanted and he said, “I want some white shoes.” I personally thought white shoes looked ugly,

My oldest brother, Noah, said,  “I want a hat.”

My mom replied, “I want some exercise clothes.”

My dad said, “I need some new golf gear.”

Once we got in I said,  “Dad, I’m going to go to the shoe section.’’

I quickly slithered my way through the crowds of people and found the shoe section.  I went to the Converse section and found the high tops that I had wanted for a really long time.  There they were! The long awaited Converse high top Chuck Taylor All-Star. I loved the jet black color and white laces with the Converse logo on the side. I couldn’t wait to get them. They looked just as stylish as they did when I saw all of my other friends wearing them at school. I excitedly showed them to my mom and she thought they were nice looking. After rummaging through the thickness of the employee store crowd, I finally located my dad through the maze of basketball jerseys. I proudly showed  my dad my amazing find. To my surprise, he glanced at them and hesitantly said, “Yeah, those are nice.”

“Nice?”, I shrieked, “Don’t you mean amazing?”

I learned later that he responded this way because of a surprise he was planning, and he suggested that I get a Blazer jersey.  Unfortunately, I stuck with my choice and decided to buy the Converse.

At the time, I was not aware that I was later going to regret this impulsive choice. When we got home, I went and tried the shoes on and they fit pretty well. I felt ok about my choice, but not as excited as I had been in the beginning.  A nagging sense of regret seemed to be replacing my former excitement.

The next morning I woke up and soon after and my dad came downstairs.  He excitedly told me that he was going to take me to a Blazers game in a few weeks! I was so surprised and happy that we were going to the game. Then, I remembered that I bought the shoes instead of the Blazers jersey and the nagging sense of regret returned.  It would have been so cool to be able to wear a Blazers jersey to the game and show my team spirit. Also, I have not worn my Converse as much as I thought I would. I have only worn them a couple times since buying them last year. Despite the fact that I was very disappointed with my choice, I learned a valuable lesson that day.  I should always listen to my parents’ advice in every situation.