Valentine’s Day Most people think of Valentine’s Day as a romantic holiday filled with delicate heart-shaped chocolates and dozens of red roses. As for me, I do not think of such things. Hospitals and sadness comes into my mind when February 14th approaches every year. Every winter I participate in an annual swim meet held in Rochester, Minnesota, this year it happened to fall on the weekend of Valentine’s Day. Me being 14, I was beyond ecstatic to spend the weekend in a hotel. That cold Friday afternoon, I traveled with my team to Rochester while my parents worked. They assured me that they would be coming straight from work to see me swim.
In my mind, my whole world revolved around swimming. I would be filled with guilt if I ever missed …show more content…
My team and I hopped in the pool for warm up as soon as we arrived at the pool. I was beyond excited to get my feet wet because this was the first big meet of the season. With my suit, goggle, cap and game face on I walked up to the starting blocks with confidence. Adrenaline and excitement filled my body from head to toes. Like always, I turned my head to look for my parents. They tended to sit right in the front so the could get a good view of my race. Instead of seeing them all I could see was a cloud of pink and red hearts on people's shirts A moment of panic fills my body but I then soon calm myself down because I need to relax for my race. A screeching whistle signals the start of my race and I step up on the blocks. My body shakes from the anxiety coursing through my veins. I take one last glance into the stands to check if they are still there but sadly they are …show more content…
Did they get into a car accident? Pulled over? Did my dog die? The ringing of the phone seemed to last hours. Finally a shaky voice sang from the phone. “Hannah? I’m so so sorry we couldn’t see your swim! We feel really bad, how was it?” My Mother's voice is shaking and I can tell that she has been crying. I do not answer her question, “ Something seems wrong. What is going on? Where are you?” After letting out a deep breath my Mom explained everything with a heavy heart. “Hannah right now your Dad, brother, sister and I are at the hospital. You sister Ayla had a fever this morning and began throwing up blood so we took her into urgent care. They tested her blood and found that her blood counts were off. Hannah she has cancer, Leukemia. She may not make it through the night. We are staying here with her at the hospital. The Fleming family said that you can stay in their hotel room for the rest of the weekend. This is really big news Hannah and her only being a year and a half decreases her likeness of her surviving this battle. We will keep you updated and see you on Sunday when you get home. Your Dad and I love you Hannah. Swim fast.” A mixture of tears and chlorine droplets from the pool drip down my cheeks. The only words I can say before my Mom hangs up are “I love you, bye”. With my goggles on I jump into the pool to cool down my body and
In my mind, my whole world revolved around swimming. I would be filled with guilt if I ever missed …show more content…
My team and I hopped in the pool for warm up as soon as we arrived at the pool. I was beyond excited to get my feet wet because this was the first big meet of the season. With my suit, goggle, cap and game face on I walked up to the starting blocks with confidence. Adrenaline and excitement filled my body from head to toes. Like always, I turned my head to look for my parents. They tended to sit right in the front so the could get a good view of my race. Instead of seeing them all I could see was a cloud of pink and red hearts on people's shirts A moment of panic fills my body but I then soon calm myself down because I need to relax for my race. A screeching whistle signals the start of my race and I step up on the blocks. My body shakes from the anxiety coursing through my veins. I take one last glance into the stands to check if they are still there but sadly they are …show more content…
Did they get into a car accident? Pulled over? Did my dog die? The ringing of the phone seemed to last hours. Finally a shaky voice sang from the phone. “Hannah? I’m so so sorry we couldn’t see your swim! We feel really bad, how was it?” My Mother's voice is shaking and I can tell that she has been crying. I do not answer her question, “ Something seems wrong. What is going on? Where are you?” After letting out a deep breath my Mom explained everything with a heavy heart. “Hannah right now your Dad, brother, sister and I are at the hospital. You sister Ayla had a fever this morning and began throwing up blood so we took her into urgent care. They tested her blood and found that her blood counts were off. Hannah she has cancer, Leukemia. She may not make it through the night. We are staying here with her at the hospital. The Fleming family said that you can stay in their hotel room for the rest of the weekend. This is really big news Hannah and her only being a year and a half decreases her likeness of her surviving this battle. We will keep you updated and see you on Sunday when you get home. Your Dad and I love you Hannah. Swim fast.” A mixture of tears and chlorine droplets from the pool drip down my cheeks. The only words I can say before my Mom hangs up are “I love you, bye”. With my goggles on I jump into the pool to cool down my body and