The anticipation was killing me. We had been standing in line for two hours, and a single drop of rain hit my forehead. That just blew me over the edge. That means they have to shut down raging bull for at least a half hour after it stopped raining. Well, that was two hours of my life I would NEVER get back. Our small group decided that the day was over for us at six flags, and it was only 4:00. Eventually we head back to the car, and change into some dry clothes, and then finally we're off. Both my aunt and my mom know that us kids are disappointed, so they decide to try to salvage what was left of this day trip. I ask where we're going, but all they say is "You'll see". We pull into a crowded parking lot and I look up at the sign and it says "Gurnee Mills Shopping Center". I had been begging my mom to take me shopping all summer, and now we have hours and hours to do it with my favorite cousins.
The smell of rain was still lingering in the air and the light mist was was sending a chill down my back.We walk through the sliding doors and i come alive with excitement. Our first stop, Starbucks. We all get hot coffees to warm us up from the cold outside air. We continue to doddle around the outlet mall, window shopping and sipping our coffees.We continue to laugh and have a good time. We continue to make memories without even knowing it.
It gets to be about eight o' clock and we decide that we've been to every store that we wanted to go to. My quiet little cousin Anna chimes in and says "Why don't we go back to six flags?" A surprised look came across my face as fast a a flame would take to charcoal drenched in kerosene. Anna hadn't wanted to ride any rides all day. She wasn't really a daredevil.
"Are you sure?" my aunt asked with a worrisome expression on her face.
"Yeah," said Anna, "I'd like to try and ride raging bull at least once". At that moment, I was so proud of her. She had learned a valuable lesson and was one step closer to conquering her fears. I could see in her mom's as that she was even more proud than I was.
* * * *
We all climb into our separate cars and get fastened in, and alll of a sudden Anna says, "I don't want to do this. Mom get me out."
"It's too late now, honey. Just close your eyes and enjoy the ride. It will be over soon," my aunt says in a reassuring voice.We slowly start to snake up to the top of the roller coaster.
Anna proceeded to tightly shut her eyes, and keep them that way until the bar over her shoulders is lifted at the end of the ride. Once she got off, she was ecstatic."That was awesome!" she said. I was so glad to see her happy.
Anna had conquered her fear, and I finally got to go shopping. On our way home, we talked about our favorite parts of the day and laughed and smiled some more. Looking back, I thought it was the end of the world when we decided to leave six flags, but it wasn't. My aunt and my mom decided to make the best of the day and in the end, we all had a great day that I will never forget.
I really like how you made a secret lesson behind the story. I also liked that you used interesting words and phrases, not boring words like happy instead of ecstatic or "A surprised look came across my face as fast a a flame would take to charcoal drenched in kerosene."
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