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BY JAYMA OLLIS

HAPPY VALLEY HIGH SCHOOL

I wish I could go to school and not have an eating parasite of worry at the back of my mind saying, “You could die here.”

I mean, it’s okay, right? I could die anywhere at any time.

No, I don’t want my life to be taken by a man with a gun. I do not want to see my friends and people I’ve known since I was five to be taken from me by a man with a gun.

I do not want to beg for my life, on my knees, yelling and screaming heard behind me, and all I can do is hope that the man with a gun will not shoot me first.

I do not want to lay my head on the ground with blood splattered around me as I play dead so the man with a gun will move on.

I do not want to breathe my last breath; people around me who I’ve known for years can’t save me. I can only blink a couple of times as I hope they survive.

I do not want to die.

A man with a gun can change my life forever. He can take my last breath and kick it to the curb. He can grab my classmates and suck out their soul and personality until they are no more. A man with a gun would aim his shot, breathing in and out erratically as he took my life. As he pushes more metal chunks into my skin, I think to myself, “I didn’t tell my dad I love him this morning; I hope he knows I do.” The man has no remorse, he had already pulled his gun toward someone else. Maybe the police are here by now; they will stand outside the door in fear as their bulletproof vests coil tightly with every breath.

We’re all scared; guns are not toys. They are not to be played with. Why do these persons with guns play silly games?

Tomorrow, I’ll go through my routine. I will get out of my bed and change my clothes. I will let my mom do my hair and tell her I love her as she goes. After I feed my cats, I’ll warm up and maybe eat a snack, then walk to the bus stop. I’ll get on the bus, and I will sleep until we’ve made it to the high school. That day I’ll eat breakfast and read many books. That day I’ll learn about other countries and engineering. That day I’ll learn weird algebraic expressions and scientific facts. That day if I make it, I will enjoy my life. I will be grateful for every cold breath I take. I will mean every step I take, and I will say the word I always wanted to say.

That day, if I just make it to that day, I will live. Don’t let a man with a gun take that away from me.

(This essay, written by Jayma Ollis, a student at Happy Valley High School while in class this week on this week’s school threats, was submitted by her mother, Ashley Ollis).