Take In Everything!

• Chloe Walton, Grade 6
• Short Story
• 2019

Why do we always close our eyes before big moments? Well make sure you don’t ask me because I have no clue why, but if you don’t know what I mean then listen up this is a story when I closed my eyes before for too long. When I, Brooklyn, was 10, I had my AFL grand finals, Wallabies vs Giant Pandas. I was walking through the long hallway to the stadium grounds I could hear the stadium roaring with cheers “Pandas, Pandas, Pandas!”
I was wearing my long black and white socks and my grand final footy top. It was black with a patterned panda on it. While I was walking my footy friend’s brother, Oliver, ran in front of me and suddenly stopped. “Do you need a drink, you must need a drink, I’ll give you a drink, why don’t you need a drink, you’re the best AFL player in your team actually in Victoria! And…” I stopped him mid-sentence. “Take a breath Ollie I’m all good is something wrong?” I said in a cool voice. “Um…well yeah if you mean that my sister just fainted that, that is something why I might be stressed out then yes something is wrong, but don’t worry about it she will be fine she is on her way to the St Kilda Hospital.” He said very quickly.
“Sometimes I have no idea what you’re talking about or what you are saying. Anyway, how did she faint, I know that she can faint very easily but why!?” I said very confused. “She was so pumped about the game that she started to think about what could go wrong and then she thought about her getting hurt and it got gruesome and then well yeah I think you get the picture!” Ollie said in a blurred kind of way. This does happen a lot she gets so excited that she faints. “Oh, that makes sense! Anyway, bye Ollie the game’s about to start so I will see you soon.” I say. “Good luck, break a leg don’t actually but bye!” He said in very high pitch voice.
I was very excited and nervous at the same time, the cheering was getting louder and louder, I stopped at the opening to the stadium and for about three seconds I closed my eyes I could feel a cool rush of energy flowing past me. When I opened my eyes, my whole team was already on the field in their places waiting for the toss off so they were waiting for me the team captain. I ran as fast as I could to the ground, I felt like I had missed about five seconds of my life. Anyway, we tossed off and started the game. I got the first goal! We won and the team said, “Don’t close your eyes or you’ll miss the best things in life!” And now you can ask me why we shouldn’t close our eyes!