I was young and curious. I lived for the interesting and adventurous aspects and moments in life. It was a hot and warm summer day, and I was pondering about the actions and appearances of others. I remember starting grade one. The class was very different and void of familiarity, from my old school in Moosejaw. I cared for little to nothing, at the time.
I met an odd stranger, who stood out from the rest. He was a young Aboriginal male. He was spontaneous and loyal. We became very close best friends. I noticed that he was different from others racially, but in a way, we were both different and misunderstood. I was fascinated with human nature and emotion, while he was hyper and energetic. We both were neglected from the small society, that most people would call a classroom. However, I did notice that more white classmates, gave me attention compared to him. Our friendship was, implicitly, peculiar and frowned upon. From this point on, I realized that some people, had a disadvantage in society based on their skin colour and race. The thought appeared illogical and irrational, but was evident from my interactions and observations.
Eventually, I moved to Weyburn where I, currently, reside. He stayed with me and my Mother for the summer, but afterwards, I never saw him again. To this day, I wonder where his life took him. Hopefully, it was down a peaceful path.
Hi Brandon. I enjoyed reading your story.
“I met and odd stranger, who stood out from the rest”, and “I was fascinated with human nature and emotion, while he was hyper and energetic” are examples of rich text that leaves me deeply engaged in your narrative and develops a level of empathy for your situation.
I like that you describe the time of year and the emotions surrounding the place that you were in. You do leave the location a mystery, but I think that your decision to do so works well in this story.I would love to know more about the classroom. Did you notice a difference in racial acceptance and awareness in the classroom from the surrounding community? What are some of the other emotions that this environment brought on for you?
I see your friendship and the emotions surrounding it as being your artifact in this story. Although it is not an object, it seems that the “peculiar and frowned upon” relationship was central to this experience.
I appreciate the metaphors that you create for society’s racial disconnect using your childhood friendship.
There are many connections between your racial experience and my own. Both of our experiences took place at a very young age, when we were exploring multi-racial friendship possibilities. Yours is told from a place where you had experienced the connection that can form between people of two different cultural backgrounds, while mine is told from a place of uncertainty and longing for those same connections. I too wonder where my classmates’ lives have taken them, just as you wonder where your friend’s “life took him.” Another connection that I make is the feeling of being “neglected from the small society, that most people would call a classroom,” as I was very shy at the time of my racial discovery and had trouble fitting in among large groups of people.
You refer to a few normative narratives in your story. Your reference to meeting “an odd stranger who stood out from the rest” who was a “young Aboriginal male” points to the normative narrative that Aboriginal people stand out from the majority and are somehow “odd.” Another normative narrative is that non-dominant races are “neglected” and “misunderstood.” People having a “disadvantage in society based on their skin colour and race” is the third normative narrative that I see in your story.
Thank you for sharing this moment in your life. I really enjoyed reading it.
Awesome!
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