I'm Squished

By, Crystal S. Kauffman, Contributing Writer

I could not sleep tonight, due Lacy's snoring or Gillian's restlessness. I stared at the dark shadows that were dancing on the ceiling. The whispering branches of enormous willow tree outside my bedroom danced in harmony to the wind. The branch's shadows felt rather comforting to me. I sat up in my bed and gazed at my tiny but cluttered attic that I share with my sisters. My sisters sleep on a wooden bunk bed, while I slept on an old twin bed that is crammed into an old walk-in closet. I watched Lacy toss and turn on the top bunk, while Gillian's snoring grew louder. I couldn't take no more, so I began descending down the ladder into the hallway. I walked to the hall closet and pulled out my favorite pink throw blanket.

I laid down on the overstuffed black love seat and began thinking about how squished I feel. We share a room and a bathroom, which can be very annoying at times. Our room is completely stuffed with all sorts of different things that my sisters and I collect. For example, I collect porcelain dolls and stuffed animals, but Lacy mainly collects computer stuff. However, Gillian collects anything with fairies and frogs on it. So, our room is cluttered and messy looking at all times. Thankfully, I just turned twelve last week right before school let out for summer vacation.

Tomorrow, my sisters are going off to a summer camp for five days and I cannot wait until they leave. I usually go to summer camp, but this year I really didn't want to go. My mind was racing with different thoughts about how I can gain some freedom from my sisters. I tossed and turned on the love seat until I finally fell asleep.

My dad yelled, "Girls, let's go now! We have to meet the bus at the church." This woke me up, so I threw the pillow over my head as my sister’s began yelling as well.

"Yes Daddy, we are coming." Lacy called out.

"Marley, I will be back soon."

"Can I go? It won't take me long to change out of my pajamas and get ready to leave."

"Hurry up, Marley!" He said.

I nodded with a smile and headed straight to my room, where I found Gillian still packing her last suitcase. My dad carried out my little sister's suitcases, while I rushed upstairs to get dressed because I wanted to go with them. Once I finished getting ready, I helped Gillian carry her last suitcase to our car. Lacy was already sitting in the front seat on the passenger's side, so Gillian and I climbed in the backseat.

My dad decided to give my sisters some safety reminders, after we drove into the church parking lot. I hate to admit it, but I will miss my sisters a little. However, I am looking forward to the peace and quiet. I will be able to do pretty much anything I want. Lacy is fourteen-years-old and extremely popular, so she joined the other teenagers who were waiting on the bus.

Lacy is a tall yet slender with short brown hair with red highlights and big brown eyes. Last month, she donated her long wavy hair to a foundation, which makes free wigs for children with cancer. My oldest sister is always hogging the phone and the bathroom, which completely annoys me. However, Gillian is a petite eight-year-old with auburn colored hair and eyes that reminded me of a deep blue ocean.

She is always tattling on me or following me around like a lost puppy. We watched my sister's safely get on the bus and we waved good-bye as the bus pulled away. During the ride home, I had an idea pop in my head that would give me my own space. However, I must get my father to agree to it, which will take some begging and pleading.

In about twenty minutes, my father was pulling into our driveway and I could barely contain my excitement. We both walked inside the house and we each went our separate ways, which allowed me to scream into a pillow and gain my composure once again. He sat down at the kitchen table with his morning newspaper and a cup of coffee. I headed toward the bathroom and then I noticed a door that was locked. The mysterious door was just behind the stairs that lead to the attic.

I asked, "What does the door in the hallway go to?"

"The door goes to the bathroom." He smiled.

"No, the door behind the stairway that leads to the attic."

"Oh that door! It is a small storage room, where I put everything that we do not use."

"Can it be turned into a room?"

"What is your sudden interest in that room, Marley?" He asked.

"I am squished, I want my own room!" I stated with a frown.

I made us some cereal for breakfast, while my father read the local newspaper as he did every morning. I waited anxiously for him to respond, but he remained silent. Finally, I couldn't contain my excitement, so I decided to refill his coffee.

He took a sip of his coffee as he replied, "That room needs a lot of work and I don't have the time to fix it. You will just have to wait, until I find some free time."

"Can I fix it up by myself…please?" I pleaded on my hands and knees in front of him.

"You can't fix the room by all by yourself. The room will need cleaning out and a few coats of paint."

"I can do it daddy and I won't need your help at all…I promise!"

"Okay, I will make a deal with you?" He answered, "If you clean out the room and fix it up, then it will be yours. You can have a yard sell using the stuff you find in the room, in order to earn the money that you will need for supplies.

"Thank you, Daddy!"

I began cleaning the storage room out and gathering things to sell at my yard sale tomorrow. I kept an antique solid oak desk and a black touch lamp that just needed a little cleaning up. The next morning, I spread out every item that I wanted to sell on three fold out tables and I quickly wrote "YARD SALE" on several old white poster boards with black permanent marker. My father offered to put the signs out in the neighborhood, on his way to work. My mom and I sat outside all day, as people stopped by to inquire and buy our old stuff.

Just before it got dark, I took everything that was left and put it neatly in the garage. I sat down at the kitchen table and began counting the money I had made today. My dad came in from work; just as I announced, "I made seventy-eight dollars and twenty-five cents!"

“Good job today…Marley! I stopped by the hardware store and picked some painting supplies, as well as five gallons of a light pink color for the walls. In addition, I grabbed two gallons of white paint for the ceiling, door, and trim.” He said with a smile.

"Here is the all money I made today. If I have enough money leftover, will you buy me a ceiling fan with a light?"

"I will see what I can find tomorrow at the local hardware store."

I filled a bucket full of all the cleaning supplies that I needed and headed to my new room. I turned on my radio and began scrubbing the windows, walls, and floors. I was dancing to the music. The next day, I applied painter's tape where I needed it and began painting. It took three days to paint the entire room including: the door, the window and its trim.

I didn't want anyone to see my new room yet, so I kept the door locked for the next few days. I cleaned everything that belonged to me out of my sister's room and began decorating my room once the paint had dried.

After I finished organizing and decorating my new room, I decided to reorganize my sister's room. I was proud of myself for completing the project all by myself. The night before my sisters come home, I was completely moved into my room. I was so tired, but I wanted to admire my accomplishment or achievement.

However, I was worried about what my sisters might say. I was nervous about what my sisters will think when they see what I did. After saying my prayers and writing in my journal, I tried to get comfortable so I could fall asleep. The next day, I woke up to a slamming door and the morning sun was blinding me through the white curtains.

"Oh no, I slept to long!" I declared.

I heard my sisters rush up the stairs to put their things away. Then, they both came rushing down the stairs and Lacy immediately asked, "Where did all of Marley's stuff go?"

"Marley, I missed you all week!" Gillian cried as she embraced me. "Thanks for redecorating our room."

"I missed you too!" I admitted to Gillian.

"I have something for you Marley!" Gillian stated as she handed me a small beautiful heart-shaped pink and white colored crystal.

"You may put it in my room on the desk by the window. You will see the basket of rocks you have given me over the years."

"That isn't fair, Mom! She gets her own room?" Lacy protested, "I am older than her!"

"I did it all by myself!" I bragged.

Dad confessed," I am proud of you, Marley! You kept you word and I never once had to help you paint or move stuff."

"Thanks Dad, I'm not feeling squished anymore!" I revealed with a grin

"But, now I'm squished!" Lacy replied.


Previously Published
©2007, Crystal S. Kauffman