5th Grade: "I Got My Shirt At Walmart"

Once again, my family moved. Our new house was smaller than the one before, but it was in a richer part of town so it was all we could afford. I found myself going to a new school again. I wanted to look nice for my first day, so I asked my sister to help me find something to wear. We went through my closet and we put together an outfit that we both thought was really cute. She even let me borrow her nice earrings that she got for Christmas. My new school was huge, complete with a large swimming pool, two gyms, and several beautiful courtyards with fountains and colorful flowers. The kids in my class were nice for the most part, but they asked me odd questions like, "what do your parents do for a living?" and, "Where'd you get your clothes?". Well word got around that I wasn't rich, that my mom was at school, my dad didn't currently have a job and that my clothes weren't designer. I began to notice girls sneer at me when  I'd walk by and the other kids treated me differently. It hurt my feelings, but I had a couple friends that didn't care so it didn't bother me too much. A couple weeks later at recess however, all the kids were playing foursquare and since I was familiar with the game I joined in.

However, one of the more popular girls looked at me and said loudly and sarcastically, "Courtney, I like your shirt, where'd you get it?" and everyone stopped what they were doing and looked at me, waiting to hear what I would say. My face turned bright red and my throat felt dry but I managed to say "walmart" and all the kids started giggling. I felt a tear make its way down my cheek but I quickly wiped it away.

The girl wasn't done taunting me though and continued to say sarcastically, "Oooo I wish I had Walmart clothes, I wish my parents could afford it." and once again everyone giggled. The girl was wearing a Juicy Couture jacket and designer jeans. I felt like I was going to be sick, but I was to proud to run away so I stayed there waiting in line for my turn in foursquare. Once they realized I wasn't going to leave, they continued the game and said nothing more about my clothes.

However, when I got home I burst into tears, changed into my pajamas and threw my shirt into the back of my closet and never wore it again. I sat in the corner and cried, feeling so embarrassed. I never knew that it mattered where your clothes came from, Walmart and Meijer were the only places that we could afford to buy clothes. Anka came into my room, licked my face and laid down resting her head on my lap.

My parents felt horrible, and I felt so guilty when my mom came home one day with new Abercrombie clothes for me. I asked her to return them and told her I would wear my regular clothes. Everyday from that day on, I walked with my head up in the hallway and wore my non-designer clothes proudly. At first I was still mocked, but when the kids saw that it didn't bother me and that I was actually proud of what I was wearing, they stopped. Goes to show that confidence is key.

"What do You Think About That?" Montgomery Gentry