The Big Wish

People often talk about having butterflies in
their stomachs. Butterflies? With me it was … bees! Bats! Birds! Lobsters, snapping
their claws!
It was a bright morning in early September and I
was all kitted out in my brand-new school uniform:
dark-grey trousers and blazer, white shirt, tie with
diagonal red, black and white stripes. New black
shoes without a scuff on them. Two-day-old haircut.
My Adidas shoulder bag had a new calculator in it,
along with a collection of pens, a geometry set and
my packed lunch, which consisted of a cheese-and-
coleslaw sandwich, an orange and a fruit-and-nut
cereal bar.