Angelica Baburova Period 5 5/14/21 Day B

• Creativity & Fiction

• Craft a piece of fiction that addresses one or more of the following: 

• Literary elements (i.e. structure, tone, diction, mood, irony, and figurative language) to craft a narrative and/or poetry.

• Structural features of drama (stage directions, character attributions/tags, dialogue, monologues, and/or soliloquies) to craft a script.

• Multidimensional characters to develop themes and create socio-political metaphors.

Annie walked towards the shore and looked at the orange sunset. With a blank mind she stared at the serenity surrounding her. Although every decision she's ever made has been calculated, precise, and supposedly correct, she felt nothing.

Reaching the ocean she felt the cold water at her ankles and was brought back to reality. She drove to a beach on a tuesday evening for no reason, to do absolutely nothing. There was nothing that brought her to this moment, no calculation, and no planning. As she stood there, a glimpse of something caught her eye in the sand.

It looked like a watercolor painting had been swirled and made into a shell, there was no reason for something this beautiful and melancholy to be lying in isolation on the tattered brown shore.

The watercolor brought her back to her childhood. The pastel colors of pleasantries. Every goal was easily accomplished, and if not, there was no commitment. You had the time and ability to calculate, but also to learn from trial and error. Rushed back into reality she realized that the moments that have passed increase, and they do so rapidly. There is no more freedom and detachment from time and responsibilities. 

As she looked into the shell the world around her began to shift, the sky became a lighter color, everything seemed to grow around her. Alas, it was not that everything was growing, instead she was shrinking. Looking at her hands, she noticed they are no longer the hands of a 25 year old, but instead the hands of a child nearing 10. Looking to her left stood her mother, unaware of the shift that just occurred. Reaching for her phone she found her first flip phone instead. She has transported back in time. 

“Mom?” She looked up at her mother smiling at the sunset.

“Yes honey? Look at the pink sky!” Her mother replies, continuing to watch the sky surrounding them.

“I want to accomplish something. I want to succeed.” Annie said with a strange maturity for a 9 year old. Her mother turned to her. Without a second of doubt, her face turned serious. “I know you will”, she responded. This answer changed nothing, but Annie knew that this was her second chance. It was her chance to give her life meaning rather than follow the path others told her to follow, she could truly succeed.

But slowly this all faded. The colors of the sky swirled before the world around her turned to black.

Suddenly she was back in her dimly lit studio apartment, the cars outside loudly passing by. There is no such thing as a second chance.

She got out of bed and walked to the bathroom, looking at her sunken face in the mirror. She looked well over 25, the stress did not age her well. She painted her face with makeup, a mask to make it seem as though everything was ok. She practiced her smile before getting dressed and walking to work. Maybe today she would do something new, maybe she could be proud of the things she does today. Maybe, in the end, it's all worth it.