Emmery

A few years back, Emmery came into my life. I still remember that it was a Tuesday, the first day of 6th grade. I didn't quite understand that each subject would be taught by a different teacher and that I had to go to a different classroom when the bell would ring. As a result, I walked into my English Literature class about 7 minutes late, and everyone stared at me when I opened the door. I could have done without the sarcastic remark from my teacher. Blushing, I sat down in the closest seat that I could find. As I glanced around the room, I noticed a girl sitting across the room from me with big, blue eyes and wavy, ash-blonde hair. Our eyes met for just a moment, and I quickly glanced back at the teacher, who was going off about cell-phones and who-knows-what-else about our class rules.

A few weeks later, we had an assignment in that same English class to write a composition of our choice. We would then have an opportunity to present in front of the class. I had never written much, and I didn't know exactly what I should write about, so I chose to put down on paper the conversation that I had with my father about light. I wrote about life, about our existence on this planet and how we can continue to influence others even after we die through the light that we exude. When it was my turn to present, I stared down at the paper that I wrote with unwavering intensity as I read, avoiding eye contact with one and all. Upon finishing, my teacher praised the composition that I had created and the depth at which I saw the world. She seemed surprised at the topic I had chosen for this first paper. My peers, however, were not so complimentary.

I sat down to lunch by myself that day, which had become my habit since the beginning of middle school. I didn't feel comfortable talking to the other kids my age; I would much rather have spent my time eating in the teachers' lounge. A kid from my English class came up to me with a few others whom I did not recognize, grinning mischievously. "This is him," said the boy from my class. He looked at me and contorted his face, saying, "Hey sunshine, how are you gonna live forever if you don't give anyone your light?" The boy's friends chuckled behind him. "Why don't you give me some of your light?" The boy stepped forward, closed his eyes and reached out his hands as if waiting to receive something from me. He opened an eye open just a crack and impatiently said, "I'm waiting!"

"Give Carter some of your light!" a few of the cronies chimed in. So, Carter was the name of my new tormentor...

What was I supposed to do? I tried to ignore the group of boys, but that just seemed to aggravate them more. Heads started to turn towards us, expecting a fight to break out, hoping to see a good show. At last Carter grabbed my shoulder. I cringed and expected to feel a blow, but nothing happened. Surprised, I looked up and saw the blue-eyed girl walking toward the table. "Leave him alone!" she said fiercely. "Joey's presentation was way better than anything you could pull off!" She knew my name.

Carter let go of my shoulder and turned towards the girl. He looked back at me and said, "You two are perfect together. You can both start a little sunshine club and paint rainbows all day!" Carter and his friends laughed and, to my great relief, walked away. Blood rushed to my face as the girl who came to my rescue sat down next to me.

"Those guys are jerks," she said. I let out a little laugh in agreement. We finished our lunches together. It was great to have someone to eat with, even if it was in silence.

Since that day, I've noticed that Emmery is just as timid as I am, and it still puzzles me that she had the courage to stand up for me like she did. What about me stood out to her? How is it that our futures would inevitably become intertwined as they are now?

The Beginning

In the beginning the heavens and the earth were created.

Have you ever wondered, "Where did I come from?" or "Why am I here?" In all of the great expanse of the universe and everything that was created, how did I end up where I did, with all the accompanying interactions and experiences that I now have to face? While I was growing up in a small town in New Mexico, questions like these occupied the greater part of my free time. I loved to go out at night and see the beautiful, wide New Mexican sky filled with lights and cosmos. I learned later that each of those lights is in reality many times the size of our sun, but they are just farther away from us than the massive ball of fire that heats our planet, that gives light and energy to almost everything here on earth. I learned that the stars have existed for eons, and I felt like nothing in comparison to the wide expanse of eternity and forever.

I once asked my father, Elian, "What does it mean to live?" My father sought to teach my family as much as he could with respect to the world, and it was our habit of having profound discussions following our evening meal. When I asked father about life, he shared with me his beliefs, saying, "I am not sure where we began or why we are here, but it seems to me that life comes through light. Without light, we cannot live. The sun gives light to plants, which grow and feed animals and give us food. In a way, we are made from the light the sun gives."

"So life comes through light?" I asked him to confirm his beliefs.

"Yes," he replied, "but not only the life you have now. After you die, you will continue to live through the light that you gave and that continues to exist in the ones that loved you."

What I learned in that quick lesson set a course for my life to let my light shine before men, to love others and help them find the light that I had found. However, it was not only the idea of light that influenced me, but also the statement of belief: "You will continue to live through the ones that loved you."

Suddenly, life made more sense, but the question remained: who am I in all of this? And what is my purpose in a small, rural city in New Mexico? Is the whole of my life to work on my parents' farm until I die? What is the purpose of my being here, now? When I die, is that the end of my existence, or does the "light" carry who I am? In a way, that conversation brought more questions to my mind and gave me an unquenchable thirst to find the truth.

I'm here to tell you that I now know who I am, and it is that knowledge that will bring peace to the world and unite nations that were once sworn enemies. Of myself, I am nothing. But this is knowledge that is bound to sweep all nations and sound in every ear.

My Story

The story of my life will change the world.

When people hear my story for the first time, they are quick to say that I'm an imaginative young man, nothing else. The truth is, I wouldn't believe my story if I was in your shoes. I don't blame you if you think that I'm a fraud, for sometimes the truth is harder to believe than a lie. But what I tell you I say with sincerity of heart, and I know it to be true. Consider my words.