Afterwards

The next morning, I had a chat with Ken Barchet. I told him why I did not go out for the team. Maybe I should have asked her for extra work for credit. I met another friend of mine, Allison Doresett, as well. She thought what I did was pretty mean and I was just doing that to annoy Narwin. She also felt that Miss Narwin is very fair, which I thought it was not true.

When the national anthem was playing, I did not feel like singing even when Mr. Lunser asked me to. I was bugged by my friends on the way to my first class. They all thought it was good to be famous, but I feel that it is annoying when your friends keep pestering you. I received some more letters from unknown people. All of them support my doing.

When I tried to ask for extra work, Narwin told me that I had been transferred to another class. Coach Jamison felt that I had gone too far as she is a good person.

Now it is all unfair. Everyone in the school thinks Narwin is great. Nobody pays any attention to what she did to me. Even Coach Jamison would not let me on the track team. I hate the school and I will not go back there anymore. The next day, I reluctantly took a bus to school with Ken Barchet and then returned home again. My parents could not do anything to make me go to school. Left with no choice, they sent me to Washington Academy instead.

Unfortunately, they did not have a track team there - only soccer. Maybe I will just try that. The truth was revealed in class when Miss Rooney, the homeroom teacher, asked me to lead them in singing the national anthem.

I started to cry. I did not know the words.

Published News

The first news article was published on the Manchester Record by Jennifer Stewart on 1st April. I thought it was an April Fool joke when my friend, Ken Barchet, told me to read the article, but I realised that it was real when my parents showed it to me about half an hour later.

I was kind of surprised. I did not expect the reporter to publish the news so quickly. My parents are excited - mostly Dad - by it. I wonder what will happen now. Maybe they will expel Miss Narwin from the school. I wonder if she even saw it. Anyway, it is her fault, not mine.

The second news article was published by the Press Wire Service on 2nd April, just one day after the first news article was published. Ken Barchet called me and told me that the principal, Dr. Gertrude Doanne, called him in to find out what happened. In the afternoon, I also received a telegram from "Society for the Preservation of Free Speech":

We applaud your defence of the freedom of speech in a public arena. One is never too young to fight for our constitutional rights, which are under constant assault from right-wing forces. Stand firm. Stand tall. Please call upon us for active support.

That evening during dinner, my parents continued to praise and support me. I would be in Mr. Lunser's class instead when school starts for me the next day. I could not wait for it as I hate sitting around, doing nothing.

Before The First Piece of Published News

Dr. Palleni told my mother that I was creating a disturbance. No matter how hard my mother tried to express her thoughts, he always interrupted, not allowing my mother to voice out her opinions. In the end, we just left the school.

That evening during dinner, I told my parents about the situation and that Narwin threw me out twice that week. They thought it was outrageous and the rules were stupid. That is when my father decided to let Ted Griffen, a neighbour running for the school board, know about the situation.

We told Ted Griffen about what had happened and he was surprised. Coincidentally, Jennifer Stewart, a reporter from the Manchester Record, was at his place. Jennifer Stewart does the educational stuff and covering school board elections around the state. Ted Griffen decided to let my father and I tell her more.

The whole thing was stupid, but everybody said I was right, and I was. I had been trying to figure a way to get on the school track team. I hate working out without a team...

The Star-Spangled Banner

Every morning, after the introductory message, the national anthem (The Star-Spangled Banner) will be played on tape, followed by announcements.

Wednesday March 28 is my first day in Narwin's homeroom. The national anthem started playing and I started humming (which I used to do in my previous homeroom) to the tune. Narwin heard it and requested me to stop, so I stopped reluctantly after trying to reason (but failed) twice. Can you believe it? I was just humming! No way will I stay in her classes.

That evening during dinner, I asked my parents for their opinions if a teacher said I was not allowed to sing or hum the national anthem in class and got mad and started to yell at me to stop when I just hummed softly. My parents agreed with me and too felt that it was not fair. They were on my side and think that Narwin was wrong as they feel that she should not put me down like this.

On Thursday March 29, I decided to get back at Narwin for yesterday's situation. I started to hum along with the national anthem. This time, I did not stop when Narwin asked me to, so she sent me to the Assistant Principal's (Dr. Palleni) office. I told Dr. Palleni that I was just humming to myself and it is sort of a patriotic thing with me, but the whole thing is, Narwin always has it in for me. However, he somehow succeeded in putting the blame on me by saying that I was disobedient and broke a rule.

That evening during dinner, I brought this up again, adding that Narwin sent me to Dr. Palleni's office and he sided with her. My parents supported me and asked me to stick up for myself and do what I feel is right.

On Friday March 30, as the national anthem played, I started humming. When Narwin asked me to stop, I told her that I had the right to do it and I was just being patriotic. She sent me to Dr. Palleni again. Since that was the second time in a week, I had to be suspended. He gave me a chance to apologise to Narwin. However, I stood up for my rights and refused to do so no matter how Dr. Palleni advised me. Finally, he decided to give me a 2-day suspension and called my mother.

The Beginning

I love track and I can run - just like my dad. I hope to join the track team. Coach Jamison is the coach of Harrison School District's track team. He thinks highly of me. This should have increased my chance of getting into the track team. I really admire Steve Hallick. He is just 17 and he is doing the 55 meters in 6.51 seconds as well as running a mile in four seven!

I hate literature. Personally, I feel that literature is boring. Miss Narwin was my Literature teacher. She is as boring as literature and does not know how to joke. The worst thing was, she was also going to be my homeroom teacher.

Then came the winter term examinations. On the English paper, there was a whole segment in reference to The Call of the Wild. That book was so boring that I did not finish it, so I just made up my own answers to the questions. When the term grades were out, I got an A in Mathematics (awesome), B in biology (still okay), C in history (cool - all of that stuff is dead anyway), straight B in health and... I got a D in English! Narwin sure hates me.

This D in English cost me a place in the track team. To get on a team or even try for one, I had to get a passing grade in every subject - at least a C minus. Coach Jamison suggested that I could ask Miss Narwin for extra work, but I felt that it was a personal thing with her.

I was disappointed when I heard about the district rule. I hated Narwin for giving me a D. I hated her for being so boring. I hated Narwin for being my homeroom teacher starting the next day. I decided to get back at her.