Most Peculiar

    Hmm... I guess. It seems to fit all right. Yesterday, it was NOTHING like this, and today? Well today was a completely different story. It's amazing the things that could possibly happen in 24 short hours. Well, scratch that. 24 hours may be short compared to a, on average, 70-year lifespan, but damn, it can also seem like forever and a half. Let me explain what happened in the last 24 hours.

    Well, it started as a normal morning; I woke up, showered, ate breakfast, got ready for school (not necessarily in that order) and found out that I have an 8 year old little sister. Whoa. Where did that come from? I mean, you don't find out you have a little sister when your 16 (almost) and she's 8. Well, I received this voicemail on my phone which at first I didn't believe. Then I thought, what the hell, might as well check it out. So I called the number back. This woman answers and I tell her about the message and who I am. She practically screams with "happiness". Why the quotations you ask? Well, I got the most peculiar (there we go with that word again) feeling by the time that we hung up (2 hours later) that she was kind of upset. Why you ask? Well let me explain. You see, my father.... Well, my father is in a rock and roll band (honest to godly) but they aren't very famous. Needless to say, well, rockers, no matter how famous.... get around. Turns out my father was married to this lady before my mom ("hint hint" the reason she might have been upset). One night she showed up to one of my dad's Jam sessions, and well, he was dunk, and so was she...one thing led to another...and Hocus pocus, I got myself a sister. Hmm, nice story to tell your child about the night you were conceived. HA HA. That was just in the first four hours, twenty more to go! I found out that my sister's name is Andrea before hanging up the phone with the lady, Kim.

    Two hours later while walking to the bus stop, a car pulls up beside me. Guess who? My Father, *cough*speaking of the devil*cough cough*, who offers me a ride to school. I though, okay, something fishy is going on here. It started out as a normal conversation with "How's school? How's life?" but then I was shocked when he said "How's your little sister Andrea?" I kept my cool and asked instead: "When were you going to tell me about this?" He replied "Well, that's why I picked you up. You don't mind not going to school today, do you? I need to talk to you." I decided to hear him out like a good daughter and he repeats the story I heard earlier.

    When the story finished, I looked out of the front window and realized I wasn't in Tucson anymore, I was in Marana. The thought that raced through my mind was Oh s***, I know the truth, and now he's going to kill me so I can't tell anyone! He must have seen the alarmed look on my face, because he said "Don't worry, I'm just taking you to see her. So, It was 1:00 in the afternoon, and I was supposed to be in school, but instead I wasn't even in Tucson anymore. We pulled up to this three-story house that had a white picket fence and everything. My dad walked me up to the front door and rang the doorbell. I was extremely nervous but a kind looking woman answered the door. She looked just like me! She gave me a big hug and I was worried that she was going to start crying. If she had, then I would have too. For fifteen, nearly sixteen years I had thought that Teanna was my mother, talk about a reality check.

        I had a million thoughts running through my head all at once. Have you ever been in a near death accident, or witnessed a car accident right in front of you? You know how they say that you see your life flash before your eyes? Well, I wasn't going to die, but I was flashing through a life that felt like it wasn't mine. I've never understood the feeling of living a lie until that moment. That day we spent almost 5 hours just sitting around talking about how things came to be. I was mad at some moments because I felt as though my life had been a fake one. But at other moments I was almost in tears.

    You see, my grandmother never approved of my real mother. She hated that my dad wanted to be with her. She didn't come to the wedding, and she laughed when they got divorced. My dad knew that if they ever had a child together, her grandmother, and probably half of her family would forever disown the child. So, they put Teanna's name on the birth certificate. My father and Teanna were already dating when I was born, so she was willing to help my dad. They made a promise the day I was born to tell me before I was 16, but not until I was ready. My 16th birthday was getting close and time was running out. That was why they did what they did. So, the stories were told, and I got my explanations, and then it was time for me to say farewell.

    Being caught up in all that was happening, I didn't realize that I hadn't seen my sister since I got here. As we stood up and were getting started to leave, a little girl with soft, curly, brown hair, and gorgeous blue eyes was walking down the stairs. It was like looking at a picture of me when I was younger. When she got down the stairs, she came up to me and asked if I was her sister. When I said yes she threw her little arms around my waist and held on like she never wanted to let go. I picked her up and hugged her, holding back the tears that were threatening to overflow my head. When I set her down, she motioned for me to bend down so she could tell me a secret. I got the sweetest secret I ever heard from her, a kiss on the cheek. When I got my emotions back in order and stood up, my mom was standing beside me. "We want you to live with us, we have plenty of room, and it will give me a chance to make up for lost time. You don't have to decide now. We're moving this summer, out of the state, and we want you to come. Don't decide now. I'll keep in touch, but please think about it." Oh my god.

    So, it was time for me to go, and it was a sorrowful, but also cheerful goodbye. I hugged my mom, and it was like I got a missing piece of me back. I hugged my little sister, and then I was whole again. Then we all hugged one last time, my mom, my dad, my sister and I, then everything in the world was right. We said our parting goodbyes and I left with more than a plateful to consider. How had my simple little world that I had woken up in this morning turned into the greatest adventure of my life? Well, I don't know how, all I know is it did. Now I've got a decision of a lifetime to make. Do I let go of my past, and embrace my future? Or, do I hold on to what has been my life and my reality since my birth and continue on, not knowing what could have been?