Hi, and thanks for stopping by! Today’s update is another installment of what I’d call “friendship drama.” (For my loyal readers, you know this isn’t the first time I’ve written about this subject. I’m sure it won’t be the last, either!) In this case, the friendship drama was courtesy of my good pal, Elizabeth. Elizabeth and I have never had any friendship drama before. But this time, it wasn’t just Elizabeth and me. We were hanging out with some of Elizabeth’s softball team friends. The softball girls seemed nice enough. However, I noticed Elizabeth was acting a little different around them. Nothing major. It’s just that Elizabeth seemed slightly off from how she normally acted with me and our regular school friends.
Instead of being her normal considerate and dependable self, Elizabeth was kind of…well…flaky and unreliable. And it caused some friend drama with me. But, from this experience, I learned an important lesson in the process: when something goes wrong, it’s important to keep your perspective so that you can focus on finding a solution. Especially when the problem relates to friendship drama.
Here’s what happened…
Bag in a minute
This past Monday, our school had a big ice skating event at the local rink. Everyone from the school was invited. Because the ice skating event was a big school tradition, none of my teachers gave us homework. Awesome, right?
Given our “free night,” Elizabeth and I had the afternoon all planned out. It just so happened that Elizabeth lived within walking distance of the rink. So, her house became home base. First, we’d hang out at Elizabeth’s place until the skating event. Then, I’d bring my school stuff with me, and we’d walk over to the skating event together. I’d meet up with my older sister, Jill and the two of us would then go home together once the event ended.
But then Elizabeth’s softball friends called her after school. They asked us to join them for a snack somewhere close by.
“Do you want to meet up with my friends for a little bit? I think you’d like them.” I trusted Elizabeth, so I agreed.
I checked the time. It was almost four. The skating event started at six. Plenty of time for a snack before swinging back to Elizabeth’s place for my bag.
I promised my mom that once I got home, I’d try to get in some studying for my history test later that week. And that I’d practice piano.
But between you and me, I wasn’t going to try very hard to squeeze in piano practice!
Ticked off
Things started off great. Elizabeth’s friends were fun. We were all having a good time. But then, Elizabeth and a couple of her friends—I think they were both outfielders—decided to get drinks from a nearby coffee shop. I didn’t mind. Elizabeth said she’d be back soon.
Except that she wasn’t.
After more than a reasonable amount of time had passed, I started wondering where Elizabeth had gone. A fruity drink shouldn’t take that long to make. The ice skating event would be starting soon. My backpack was locked away inside Elizabeth’s house. And Elizabeth was nowhere to be found.
My first thought was to worry. What if something bad had happened to Elizabeth and the outfielders?
I asked around with Elizabeth’s softball friends. Nobody had heard from her except for one girl. I think she was the shortstop.
“I heard Elizabeth went to the makeup store.” Going shopping wasn’t part of our plan! Especially since I knew they were probably just spraying perfume on each other.
Plus, I wanted to get going to the skating event. I knew from last year that it took forever to put the rental skates on. I didn’t need skate drama on top of friendship drama!
On thin ice
I was annoyed at Elizabeth. She knew I wanted to get my backpack before the event. She also must’ve known I couldn’t get the bag without her. Elizabeth said no one would be at her house until after the skating event.
How could Elizabeth ditch me? I tried hard not to be angry with her, but it wasn’t easy.
I had no choice but to go to the skating event without Elizabeth. My irritation was growing.
And I’m pretty sure that if I went home with backpack-less, my mom would be irritated with me. Suddenly, ice skating didn’t seem so fun anymore.
When I got to the rink, I checked with our friends to see if Elizabeth had arrived yet.
“No sign of her, and I’ve been here for at least twenty minutes.” Jeffrey said, tapping his watch to show off the time. He was always on time for everything.
“Argh! Elizabeth left me with her friends and then disappeared. I mean her friends were nice and all…but now I can’t get my backpack.” I didn’t mean to bad-mouth Elizabeth. I just couldn’t get over my frustration with her.
In addition to losing track of the time, Elizabeth lost track of me.
After skating around for a while, I spotted my big sister, Jill. I complained to her about what happened with Elizabeth.
“Do you remember that Sesame Street episode Mom made us watch? The one where you’re supposed to ask, ‘I wonder, what if, let’s try’ when you have a problem? You should probably do one of those things.”
But all I wanted to do was whine about how Elizabeth had messed up all the plans.
“You know what mom would say, Noodle. Complaining about a situation doesn’t solve it. So, what’s your plan to get your backpack?”
Argh! Darn Jill and her special gift for knowing what our mother would probably say!
Instead of answering Jill, I just shrugged. I told Jill I’d look for her in a little while. In the meantime, I’d try and find Elizabeth. Maybe a solution would come to me along the way.
At this point, the skating event was already half over. Time was running out.
Sorry I’m latte
After a few minutes, I’d finally spotted Elizabeth getting a hot chocolate. Hadn’t she had enough sugary drinks for one day? I thought to myself.
I hurried over to Elizabeth and was all set to let her have it. Before I could say a word, Elizabeth started apologizing.
“I’m so sorry, Noodle. I know I bailed on you earlier. I got a little carried away with the softball girls. Please forgive me.” Elizabeth’s apology seemed genuine, but still. I was short one backpack.
“I’m sorry things got mixed up earlier, too. But how am I going to get my backpack from your house? It’s getting late. Jill and I have to be home by eight-thirty.” Elizabeth scrunched her nose and scratched her head.
“Do you need anything from your bag tonight? If you do, what if we went back to my place right now?” I could tell Elizabeth didn’t want to leave the skating event. I kind of wanted to wait until the end of the event, too. That’s when they put out the good desserts.
At that point, I wondered what we could do. “Nothing” was the only thing I could think of.
Earning her “bag”ging rights
“What can I do to make things right with you, Noodle?” Elizabeth seemed really upset.
I’d have to let her off the hook. No sense in prolonging the friendship drama. “I mean, it’s not like I have to do any homework tonight,” I said. “And Jill can bring me home, so I don’t need my emergency money…” OK. Now, I was starting to think more clearly. “Elizabeth, let’s try something else: can you promise to bring my backpack to school with you tomorrow morning?
Elizabeth nodded eagerly. “Absolutely. I’ll find you during homeroom. Or I’ll wait outside the school if it isn’t too cold out. I’ll get your bag back to you first thing. I swear.”
Although it wasn’t ideal, at least there was a solution. Plus, it would be kind of nice not to have to carry anything to school.
I just hoped the “old” Elizabeth, my not-flaky friend, would remember my backpack.
“I’ll leave your bag right by the front door, so I won’t forget,” Elizabeth assured me. It was as if she read my mind.
I felt a little calmer.
By the time Jill and I got home, I was too tired to study history. I definitely didn’t have any energy to practice piano. Though, I could always find an excuse to skip practicing. (Apologies to my piano teacher!)
In the bag
The second I got to school on Tuesday, I heard Elizabeth shouting my name. I saw her running towards me with my backpack! Our English teacher, Mrs. S, warned Elizabeth to slow down, so it took an extra few seconds to get my bag back. Thank goodness Elizabeth came through with her promise.
While I could’ve done without all the friendship drama, at least the story had a happy ending. But it was a good reminder for me: Life doesn’t always go according to plan. And when things get messed up, you have to focus on what’s important. What can you change? How can you fix the situation? As it turns out, complaining rarely solves any problem (even if it does help let off some steam).
Alright, enough focusing on the lessons from the past week. It’s time for me to go further back in time… and study for my history test.
Until next time, be your best you.
Do you have any stories about learning an important lesson from an experience? Please share them with me in the comments section!
