The Mistaken Identity

By Tiffany

"I'll see you tomorrow, Stacey!" I called across the playground to my best friend. It was a hot, sticky, summer day at the Hopkinson Elementary School. As I ran toward the parking lot, I could feel the excitement building up inside me because school was out.

"Hi, Mommy!" I said enthusiastically when I reached the parking area and saw what I thought to be my mom's shiny red Honda. I jumped in the car and started talking 100 wpm about my day. I realized though, that the person looking at me, from the driver's seat, was not my mommy. Instead, it was a wrinkly-faced old man. Half of his grey hair was gone and he had beady, little blue eyes. His glasses were in the shape of full moons and were resting on this nose comfortably. Wrinkles covered his face and neck. The shirt he had on was the ugliest thing I had ever seen. It had a collar and the design of it was green and white stripes. I could see his round belly and how the shirt looked like it couldn't take anymore because it was already stretched far enough. His pants were a greyish color that looked like he hadn't washed them in a week or two. I could tell that he's been working in a yard because he smelled of freshly cut grass and had several grass stains on his clothes.

"Aaaaaa! You're not my mommy!" I screamed at the old man. I could probably be heard for at least 3 miles. My mouth was tasteless as I leaped out of the shiny car and ran toward my waiting mother. She was outside of my 1^st grade classroom underneath a large eucalyptus tree. The leaves had already grown back in the spring so the tree looked twice its size. My mom was shaded by its long and wide shadow as she waited.

She then turned around and asked in a warm soothing voice, "Hello, sweetie. How was your day today?"

"Mommy, Mommy! I accidentally got in the car with an old man that I thought was you. I know you told me never to talk to strangers, but I didn't knowš" I told her. I was so out of breath that I could hardly breathe.

I could feel my shirt blowing slightly in the wind and the smell of glue coming out from the classroom because we had just finished arts and crafts. I couldn't hear anything else that was going on in the parking lot that was only 10 feet away. I was too busy focusing on what my mom was going to do next. I wasn't sure if she was going to spank me or hug me or be upset or sad. I would never forget this moment for the rest of my life as we stood there staring at each other, contemplating what was going to happen next.

After standing there, under the eucalyptus tree, for what seemed like hours, she finally said, "It's okay dear. I understand. It was just a case of mistaken identity."