Sitting on a Story

Sitting on a Story Blog 

2000 to 3000 words 

 

1. Visit a park, explain your choice, and describe your bench  

1. 
   

Choosing my bench was hard. Initially I wanted to go with a bench right outside an ice cream shop, as it carries many happy times; but that's not really a memorial bench in any sense. I had then decided to search for a park; I went on google maps after school and looked for parks nearby. I hadn't realized that Loutit Park was right beside me, as well as Brooksbank elementary school. I drove down, and as I was driving, I saw this bench that stood out among everything. The stone under the bench made the bench seem like this radiant sun, Aswell as the flowers that surrounded it. It was in Loutit Park right outside Brooksbank elementary school where you usually pick up your child, or children wait for their parents. It reminds me of when I used to sit and wait for the bus after school. It was usually painful, if I didn't catch the bus 5 minutes after school ended, I waited for 30 minutes with all my siblings. Though my younger brother, Shepherd, would usually run away after school ended, making all of us wait for him to come back. “Where were my parents in this?” You might ask, well honestly this was entirely my dad's fault. My mom would be the one driving us to school when it was her week, but my dad? He was too lazy to buy a car and too lazy to accompany us to school; even though he lived downtown, we ended up busing from downtown to north Vancouver. This bench reminds me of tough times like these and makes me wish I was one of the kids who waited for their parents to pick them up, instead of the bus.  

  

2. 2. Describe what you see, what you feel, what you think, what you want  

    

I see the sun, often associated with happiness and warmth. I see flowers associated with love. I see the concrete pattern on the floor, which makes me feel special. I see the roundabout, where parents pick up their kids. All of these things are things that I so rarely experienced as a child. The feeling of warmth, security, love; feelings that are hard to give to almost 5 children at the same time. I feel secure here, warmth that I can experience internally and externally. The happiness of these kids is radiant. But it makes me jealous. I wonder if these kids experienced the loneliness of having no one to support you. The loneliness of having to act like an adult amongst their siblings. The loneliness of having no one that understands you. Only one word comes to mind: sonder. The feeling one has on realizing that every other individual one sees has a life as full and real as one’s own, in which they are the central character and others, including oneself, have secondary or insignificant roles. Everyone I see is experiencing their life in their own ways. They could be struggling with a parent's divorce, an F on their test or how to fit in; and I am just a passerby in their life where they are the main character. I want to be able to fully realize this. The world does not revolve around you. People must deal with their own problems; your mistakes are not remembered. I want to be able to live without the fear of mistakes and others' opinions.  

 

3. 3. If a bench was dedicated to you, where would you like the bench, and what would the inscription say?  

The ocean, such a vast and wondrous place. I often dreamed of the ocean when I was younger; how beautiful it is, how freeing it feels to be there. I grew up in Mexico, the waters were beautiful there.  Whenever I felt confined in my life, or trapped, I went to the ocean or thought of the ocean. I grew up paddle boarding, swimming and canoeing. My dream house is a house by the water, with a dock. The water is always somewhere I want to go. I grew up eventually, and was too insecure to swim, and avoided it. It's only recently that I remembered my love for the ocean. My bench would be right beside an ocean, a place that connects every continent, country, and person; exactly as my inscription would say “to someone who touched and connected souls of everyone they met.” I often tend to forget how much people appreciate me, or my presence. It slips my mind in hard times, and I forget I am needed and wanted. To have that inscription is to have reassurance that I meant something to someone.  

 

 

4. 4. If you dedicated a bench to someone, where would you like the bench, and what would the inscription say?  

 

My mom and I often joke about how we are the same person, externally and internally.  We want, see, and feel all the same. She often tells me of how she wants to retire with a house by the beach, and live right on the water. The bench dedicated to my mom would be right by the water, just like mine. Somewhere where the light shines, and the flowers blossom. It reminds me of her soul, and how she shines brightly and loves everyone. Her bench would say “To Lara, the women who persevered and shined.” Shes been through so much and came out on the other side better than before.  Shes my role model. I always know that anything bad that comes her way will pass and she will move on. That's where I inherited my philosophy on life, that time will always move on and it never waits. This could be bad, but it could be good in many ways. I used to be so worried about what would happen on a test or a presentation and i would avoid the thought of it. Then I remembered that time moves on, and there will be life beyond that moment. That is all thanks to my mom, who persevered, and became the best version of herself.  

 

5. 5. Write a journal response about your trip to the park  

 

I started off by looking up parks nearby. I don't usually visit parks so it's hard for me to think of a park right at the top of my head. It was after school, and I wanted to go home and sleep. To be honest I was exhausted, that morning was senior kidnap, and I had woken up at 3 am, and had gone to bed at 12 am. I also had work that night, and I needed some sleep, so I wasn't willing to go to super far lengths to find a park. I then remembered the park right beside the school, Loutit. This park was known as the go-to park for parties at Sutherland. We went there for sleepout, a tradition seniors run at the beginning of the year, and many other parties, though i never really attended those. I was driving past Loutit and came across the end of the park, right outside Brooksbank elementary. I saw a beautiful bench that stood out like no other. The sun was shining on it, and the flowers behind it looked beautiful. I took a picture of it, then sat down and started writing what I heard, saw and felt. It made me reflect on my past, and what I truly wanted in life. The were still some kids waiting for their parents to come pick them up, so I decided to move and give them the bench, and i went home and started writing.  

 

6. 6. Choose a poem that suits your bench, explain your choice.  

 

    The feeling of belonging is an overarching theme I have bestowed upon this bench, the longing to feel seen, wanted, connected. The kids waiting for their parents, the warmth you didn’t always feel growing up, the yearning to be “the one picked up,” to be cherished, loved. This poem covers it all. This poem is about quite wishes, not for glory or money but for belonging. It acknowledges pain but focuses on connections. You wrote: “I forget I am needed and wanted.” Carver answers: “To feel myself beloved on the earth.” We both preach and yearn for the same thing. When I wrote about what I wanted to say on my bench, I wanted to be reassured that I belonged and was wanted. The bench I chose represents the need for want and belonging. Carver speaks on how they want to feel they belong to this earth, and that they are beloved. When people sit on the bench I choose, I hope they feel that sense of belonging, wherever they are in life.  

7. Explain how your poem connects to your personal philosophy of life  

Connection is everything, I value deep, emotional bonds with family, strangers, and the world at large. I do not want to be remembered for my success, but to be known, to connect and to feel beloved, even if only for a moment. To feel like I belong in the world, and I impacted it or the people in it. I do not want to have a big epiphany before I die that brings me success, I want to be able to say i lived life to the fullest and embraced every moment.   I want to live a life where, despite the loneliness, the pain, or the mistakes, I can still say: “I was here. I mattered. I was loved.” Often, when I make mistakes in school, work or my personal life, i tend to follow the theory that people forget. People have their own lives, their own families, and their own problems. When I make mistakes, it sucks in the moment, but I like to remember that time moves on, and people forget. I have my own loved ones who care for me and the time will move on and I will forget as well. The poem reflects my thoughts of fully experiencing life by feeling beloved and belonging to the earth.  

 

8. What is the purpose of a park? What are your thoughts about parks?  

The purpose of a park is to serve as a break from the busy world surrounding us. The greenery is a reminder that our world is still beautiful. I often think of how people get so caught up in their busy lives that they forget the true beauty of the world around them. I often quote "We return to nature not because it changes, but because it reminds us of who we are." Nature is the true home to humans. Not concrete houses, or roads, but nature. The world is so beautiful that when I go to parks, or beaches, I forget my worries and remember there are so many other beautiful things to appreciate. Its hard to stay mad at something when such beauty lies in nature. Parks should be a priority in cities. Cities without parks are bare and boring. If we humans do not have parks, we forget about the beauty that the world offers us, and we become preoccupied with a life of no beauty that serves us zero purpose.  

 

9. Write a poem  

“Before We Go” 

The bell rings softer now, 
as if even the walls know 
we're almost gone. 

I used to wait for buses, 
not people. 
counting time by who didn’t show up, 
wondering if anyone ever would. 

Back then, 
I watched kids get picked up 
while I stayed behind, 
learning what it meant 
to feel unseen. 

But now I see: 
everyone carries something 
a silence, a scar, a hope. 
And maybe all we want 
is to be known 
before we go. 

Graduation is close. 
They’ll read our names, 
but not our stories. 
Still, I hope I leave something behind. 

A moment. 
A kindness. 
A reminder that I tried 
to connect. 
To care. 
To mean something. 

-Indiana Gerard