Page 8 - Pieces of Victory - Add - FlipBuilder.pdf

Ms. Arizona speaks in an informative tone, “Your mom went shopping and packed your bags with all new clothes. When you get out of the shower, pick out culottes and a shirt.”
I replied, “My mother wouldn’t buy me any clothes when I was at home! Now she is splurging?”
“Watch your attitude!” Josella snaps at me, like a drill sergeant. It is the last time I am permitted to voice anything truthful and negative about my parents.
There is a window in the bathroom. I peek out, becoming spellbound by the long desolate dirt road in the front. Was it the road to freedom? It’s too bad there is a 12 ft. fence with barbed wire on top barricading me in like an unruly animal. I’m like a tiny bird trapped in a cage, wanting to fly away. In my mind I fly away to escape what is in store for me.
I rummage through the suitcase and I see three pairs of culottes, three shirts, and bloomers for underwear. My mother hated my bikini underwear. She thought they were trampy. I snatch something quick without any concern of committing a fashion faux pas. After all, Joan Rivers is nowhere to be found in this lockdown, she would never be caught dead in this place! I sadly come to the realization that my creativ- ity and appreciation for the clothing industry is of no use to me now.
I make another remark, out loud, when I look at the suitcase my parents had hidden in the trunk of the car, “I can’t believe my mom went shopping for me! Where was she when I came home with a report card that any other mother would have loved to hold in her hands? Where was my shopping extravaganza for going the extra mile? Oh... I see. My gift, representing positive reinforcement for my behavior, is a reform school! At this point, a dog biscuit would have been a bet- ter choice!”
“Didn’t we tell you to watch your attitude?” Ms. Arizona reiterates in an authoritarian manner.
“Yes, but this is a good attitude considering I have been forced, against my will, into prison without having committed a crime!” I shout back hoping someone could identify with my justifiable rage.
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