The Girl on the Skateboard

September 2014

Today on my way home I drove by this girl riding a skateboard on the trail by the road. I recognized her from school: she's a junior, a grade younger than me. I don't know her name, but I've seen her around now and then. She has dark raven wild curly hair and dimples. She reminds me of Carrie from The Carrie Diaries, except with dark hair.

Last year I would see this girl walking around campus holding hands with some football player. He was handsome, and she was gorgeous and sunny. They complimented each other. I thought they were such a cute couple--and couldn't help being slightly disappointed when I started seeing him hold hands with the tall blonde foreign exchange student. I didn't even think this new girl was even that pretty. Carrie 2.0 is so much more beautiful to me.

Now I see her walking around campus alone. I saw her recently, and she had cut her hair to her shoulders and she was carrying around her skateboard. Her fashion sense is a unique blend of girly and tomboy. She is not boxed into one type of person but rather a million different people: she is herself; nothing more, nothing less. I admired the way she walked: with a purpose, not taking any shit from anyone. She was going to accomplish amazing things in this world.

I saw her quietly weeping in the library once. The librarian didn’t know why, and Mr. T had to drag her down to the office. I never heard anything else about that.

This is probably all in my head, but I assumed she is proud and dignified that she is on her own. I smile when I see her walking or skateboarding by herself. She is the epitome of strength and independence in young women. Ambitious, naive, a small girl in a big world, but brave enough to look the eagle in the eye.


I looked for her in the yearbook when I got home, but couldn't find her. She's so mysterious. The September sun was shining on her face—she was cruising—she was going somewhere. Seeing her made me want to go outside for myself and make something beautiful out of the gorgeous day. I don't personally know her, so maybe it's weird that seeing her on her skateboard today filled me up with this powerful feeling of love towards her.