A World of Colors and Sunshine

Joy Sarsgard sat in the front row of the class. Her eyes moved meticulously over the board as the teacher outlined the next assignment. Joy groaned inwardly as the reading assignment turned out to be an essay. Essays were so hard for her. Joy had a disadvantage, she had something called dyslexia. While she did not fully understand it, she knew it made reading and writing very hard for her.1

Sometimes she felt like the outsider, and most of the time was treated accordingly by her classmates. “Joy!” the teacher said loudly. Joy snapped her attention back to the classroom. 2

“Yes Mrs. Evans?” she responded quietly. Her cheeks flushed furiously as the scattered giggles filled the classroom.3

“I have to leave the room for a few minutes. I would like for you to be class monitor for a few minutes. If you can stay out your daydreams that long,” Mrs. Evans said, picked up some papers from her desk.4

“Yes, ma’am,” Joy murmured. She did not want to be class monitor. If she dared tell on anyone acting up they would give it to her good after school. 5

Mrs. Evans nodded and headed toward the door. She paused with her hand on the doorknob, “I expect each of you to behave in a manner suitable to your age.” Joy looked down at the blank paper in front of her. She would just work on her essay and pretend the other kids were not even there. She looked up toward Mrs. Evans, but she was already out the door.6

“Joy,” someone whispered. Joy lowered her head and began to write frantically. If you don’t hear them they can’t hurt you. she thought. The problem was she could hear them and they had hurt her before.7

“What choo got there?” a voice mocked. “Whazza matter you stupid, Joy?” Mason Bailey mocked and grabbed at the paper Joy had been writing on. He read it carefully, and then read it again. “You are stupid aren’t you, Joy? You can’t even spell. You spell everything wrong. You can’t read either. My sister said you are the dumbest kid in the fourth grade. I think you are the dumbest kid in the whole school.”8

Joy kept her eyes turned toward the desk as Mason searched the room. He returned with a giant megaphone they had used as a prop during a play they had done the day before. He placed it with fiendish delight over Joy’s head. He laughed madly as snickers and sporadic applauding of approval filled the room. 9

Joy held her breath so that the tears would remain at bay. “There, now we don’t have to look at your ugly face either,” Mason giggled as he returned to his seat. 10

Joy sat perfectly still, the megaphone still covering her head. She moved her fingers over the smooth surface of the desk until she felt a book she had been looking at earlier that day. She opened it and laid it on the desk. Though she could not see it she had to find some hint of normalcy. 11

Mrs. Evans returned to the room, though Joy could not see her she could hear the clicking of her heels on the tiles. “Oh Joy, what are you up to now?” Mrs. Evans asked, Joy could hear the humor in her voice. Mrs. Evans was laughing at her! 12

Tears began to stream hot and salty as Mrs. Evans removed the megaphone. Mason Bailey burst into gut splitting laughter. Several of his friends joined in. Soon the entire class was laughing. Mrs. Evans was loudly demanding order. 13

Joy suddenly hated Mrs. Evans. She had been able to hold on and not cry until she laughed at her. She always thought Mrs. Evans was a nice teacher, but now she knew she was just like everyone else and no one could be trusted. Hatred pulsed through her like a rampant cancer, consuming and uncontrollable.14

She leapt to her feet and ran from the classroom. Once in the halls she slowed to a fast walk. She hoped no one would question her not being in class. She neared the exit and again broke into a run. She ran down the street, attempting to escape the ridicule she knew awaited her everyday. 15

She kept running until she reached the beach. If the other kids had accepted her it would be fun to have the beach so close. They could have gone swimming everyday. But that was a happy place full of colors and sunshine. Joy’s world was black and white; there were no gray areas or any colors to define anything other than the black staining her soul. It was always cold and always miserable in Joy’s world.16

She watched the tides roll in and out again. At first she had just thought to get away from her tormentors, but now she knew she had ended up at the beach for a reason. She had once heard one of her dad’s girlfriends talking about fate. As Joy watched the tide she knew she would meet with hers very soon.17

She waded into the cold waters. She hitched a breath as the cold invaded her skin. Her heart seemed to stop for a second then resume. She paused as she noticed how badly her hands were shaking. She walked faster, as fast as the water would allow. If she delayed she might change her mind. That was simply not an option.18

The waters soon pulled her under. She had been lucky enough to encounter what her mother called a riptide. Her lungs began to burn as they screamed for air, as they begged her to breathe, as they threatened her life if she did not. The world began to go gray.19

Joy opened her eyes. The sun shone on her face, warm and inviting. She sat up and looked around. Palm trees surrounded her. It was sunset and the sky was aflame with colors. Purples streaked across the horizon, reaching up to touch the hot pink over it. The water reflected a mirror image, making it impossible to tell where the horizon ended and the water began.20

“Joy,” a voice called. Joy flinched involuntarily. A gently hand rested on her shoulder. She turned to see a beautiful young woman kneeling beside her. “It is time to go. This is only the beginning. From now on your world will be colorful and happy. You have come home, Joy Sarsgard.”21

Joy’s funeral was the following Friday. Three people were present, Joy’s father, mother, and the minister. None of her classmates, nor her stepmother or stepfather had cared enough. But it did not matter to Joy. She finally lived in a world of color and warmth.22