Advanced Essay #1: Our Fears and Treasures

“Our Fears and Treasures” was written for the purpose of showing what it felt like to overcome the anxiety and fear each and everyone has. I wrote the memories of my point of view to describe what loyalty felt like in a way that friendship can still bond. I tried to accomplish the idea that memories can still be descriptive after so many years. It is within ourselves that memories aren’t very detailed but the emotions are. Though, writing to an estimated limit was a challenge, detailed emotion are worth more than gold.

Our Fears and Treasures

Everyone acquires something and treasures it for a lifetime. In some cases, people are born with a treasure. That treasure is within ourselves and it is what makes us who we are. Blood. We are made out of water and colored with pigments from the red blood cells. When the time comes, we lose the treasures. We were born to die. In some cases, treasure can mean something totally different to others.

Everything seemed to suit me well. Nothing bothered me. Prioritizing my education over socializing, I was alone until there was a new student that came into middle school. His name was Omar. He approached me first. During recess, I always sat at the benches to keep myself from playing any sports or getting anywhere near a group of people, especially the teachers.

A couple of years later, Omar and I are still loyal friends. We have stood by each other’s sides, but happiness wasn’t the only emotion I felt. My grandfather on my mother’s side lived with me for the past several years. After he recovered from a serious cold, he decided to move with my uncle in August of 2015. A couple of weeks later, my mother whimpered, “Your grandpa passed away.”  I couldn’t say anything. I didn’t know what to say. I spent the rest of the day in silence.

The school year began a few weeks after my grandfather passed. Omar came over to me noticing that I have been ignoring him. He noticed my mood change and my isolation. I explained my situation and he felt sorry for me. As a friend, he changed subjects until he found a way for me to smile again.

“Oh by the way, happy late birthday!”

I didn’t cry, I stared at him and smiled instead.

“Thank you buddy,” I said softly.

October came fast. My class had to write an essay. I wrote my name and the date in the corner, “October 15, 2015” and underlined it in red. I looked out the window. The clouds grew grey and dark, fogging up the windows. Looking at my blank sheet of lined paper, I sighed and started my assignment. After the day had passed, my father drove to pick me up with a surprise.

My father addressed me. “Liang, my dad passed away.” Tears flowed beneath his specs.

The next day, I came to school early as usual and was Omar waiting for me. A tear dropped down my face slowly. Instead of walking to Omar sitting in the cafeteria, I ran to the restroom. Omar watched me and then followed.

“You can cry on me. I’m here for you,” his soft voice helped calm me down as he hugged me tightly. I thought deeply on how to repay him back for all the emotional support he has been giving me.  

A couple of years have passed again. The third year of high school began. On Saturday, I took a morning shower and came back to my room to get dressed. I checked my phone and at the same time, I received a text from Omar. It was a group text. There were four other unknown numbers that I have never seen before.

“Hey, I really need someone to talk to right now.”

“I’m here.” I first replied.

Suddenly in a split second, my phone started vibrating and Omar’s contact picture appeared. I quickly swiped to answer the call.

“Hey! What’s up buddy?” I said playfully.

“Ben! Help me!” Omar cried. I froze in time for a second. Hearing Omar cry for the first time shattered my heart.

“Bro, speak to me.” I demanded, trying to get every information out as possible.

“My aunt passed away.” Omar whimpered. He bursted into tears, hearing him shaking, body curled, creating a tight echo in his voice. “She was my grandmother. My grandma is literally going insane. I don’t know what to do!”

I sighed. The only way I could calm a friend I hadn’t seen in so long was to give a lecture. He was lost for words and his depression took over him.

“Look man, I’m sorry for your loss. I know it’s hard for you to take in the message that you have lost a loved one but my suggestion is for you to cry. There is no other way to resolve your situation at the moment. Forget manhood! Humans are designed to cry when they are stressed. Think of this, imagine how happy your aunt would be if she, in the heavens, knew that you were crying for her. You didn’t forget her, okay? There will be times that she will cross your mind again and you will cry. Go in a bathroom and cry if you feel embarrassed. How do you think I felt when I lost both of my grandfathers? No teacher was there to help me. It was you that helped me, so I’m here to help you back.”

“I understand” Omar said breathing heavily. “Thank you. Thank you, Ben.”

“Yeah, no problem. If you need me call me, I’m here.” I said confidently.

“I can’t thank you enough.” Omar was finally lightened up. He stopped shaking and his voice became light as a feather. I was able to still hear him crying softly as he sniffed while breathing.

“Okay, I have to go for now, but I’m always available to talk.”

Omar thanked me again and hung up over the phone. As for me, it was a treasure for me to help out a sincere friend. I was finally able to repay what he had done for me in the past to conquer my depression. It made me feel like I was able to unlock my safe and take some of my gold for Omar’s treasure chest. We both lost someone we loved. That was our treasure. It felt like a phoenix emerging from the flames as this long battle. We both burned our past for new ones.