Kids will be kids.

Because of my father's job, my family moved around a lot when I was a kid. I was seven years old when we finally settled down in Idaho, and about to start in the second grade. I was nervous, for even back then I was a bit of a nerdy outcast. I had long blonde hair almost to my waist and was awkwardly thin and taller than the other kids, always outgrowing my clothes. To top it all off, I was one of the only kids my age who had glasses. When my mother escorted me to meet my teacher, Mrs. Anderson, she directed me to another small blonde girl in the front of the classroom, "That's Cassie," she said, "and she's the only other girl in the second grade with glasses! You should try to be friends."

Long story short, Cassie and I didn't work out for very long, but I soon made a new friend named Kim. She quickly became, and to this day remains, my best friend- I'd been doodling on my desk and all it took was one simple "Why don't you try putting her hands behind her back?" However, it was sometime in the first year of our friendship that I realized she was a little... ditzy. Kim was one of the shortest girls in our class, and had curly blonde hair and freckles, with green eyes to top it off. Her mother made her wear girly dresses, but that never stopped her from playing Pokemon in the grass with me during lunch.



I remember one particular instance when Kim was spending the night, we were probably in fourth grade by then. We lived on the same block and visited all the time. My family had been doing some painting in he kids' bathroom and were letting everything dry before putting the room together when Kim burst in the front door and dropped her overnight bag, simply saying, "Sorry Hanna, I have to pee!" She bolted into the hallway with my mother laughing and yelling after her "Don't touch the walls- they're wet!"

Now, to be fair, I have an older sister and a very caring mother. Kim was the oldest child and very sheltered from the real world. Nonetheless, when a few minutes had passed... then a few more... and a few more, my mother and sister joined me in awkwardly standing outside the bathroom door. Just as my mother was about to knock to see if she was 'Doin' alright in there' when a loud "WOAH!" exploded from the other side of the door. Followed quickly by a simple: "IT'S SO PINK!"And the bathroom door flying open. Eyes wide, a grin spread over Kim's face as she looked up and me, then my sister, then my mother, and an awkward pause ensued.

"Kim sweetie... what ah... what took you so long?" She glanced behind Kim and the three of us simultaneously realized the three bathroom mirrors sitting directly in front of the toilet, taken off the wall during the painting.

Later that evening, Kim went on to explain Men's periods and why secondhand smoke is good for you. Almost a decade later... she hasn't changed much.