Graduation

Thanks to Diva being at every school I ever attended…I was able to have a relatively stable life in high school. She deflected the drama, created the drama and did whatever it was to take the limelight off me. People barely even noticed those weeks that I was sick—she was Ms. Popularity for a reason. I honestly do feel that she became Diva just to protect me.

Anyway, finally, I’m 16 years old and about to graduate from high school. It’s my big weekend y’all, I got my hair all pimped, picked out the clothes and planned to attend at least 3 parties that weekend. I remember coming home from the hair salon with my best friend all excited on how much fun I was going to have that weekend.

Guess what? I didn’t have any of it.

The most irritating thing about a crises is that it pops up just whenever…WITHOUT A FUCKIN’ WARNING! It doesn’t take a rain check, it doesn’t make sense, it just shows up like your period, guaranteed to ruin your whole day week. I’ve been sick for every single major function in my life, Christmas holidays, concerts I was performing in, picnics…you name, it, Sickle Cell has showed up somewhere through it.

I fell sick on Friday night. Everyone was at the school, starting off the grad weekend with a bang and I was in the hospital, doping up on some high dose opioids. The next day was Saturday, and there was a huge function at the church that I missed. My friends came to visit, and my family but I was too delirious and drugged up to take note.

Sometime during Saturday night, I realised that it was MY FUCKIN’ GRADUATION WEEKEND! I busted ass for years to graduate with honors and sickle cell can kiss my black ass, I wasn’t having any of it. I told the doctor that I needed to go to graduation the next day like I needed my next breath and had to beg, plead and threaten to sneak out without permission if she didn’t let me go.

Dr. Fab eventually agreed for me to go that morning, and Diva brought my graduation clothes, cap & gown to the hospital. My family came to pick me up, the nurse pumped me with my next dose of narcotics and I was off!

Graduation ROCKED! Till today I’m so glad that I went. I remember that I got to take the short cut and didn’t have to march the long hallway like the others. I slept off 2 hours of my narcs in the office while the speakers were talking to us about being the children of the future. Finally, it was time to get our degrees & awards and I gingerly made my way to the front with my classmates.

I cleaned up house! There are 14 courses that a senior in high school had to take, and my school was awarding the student who received the highest awards for each class. They called me for one, then 2, then 3, and I kept up going up on stage collecting award after award after award. It was me and my darling fav rival Kemi, and together we cleaned up 13 of the 14 awards. She got whatever I decided to leave for her…lol!

My parents were so proud…their little girl was graduating! My dad kept telling everyone “that’s my daughter” every time I got an award. Finally I just stood up on the stage until all the awards were done, cos climbing up and down those friggin’ stairs with painful knees and legs was no joke!

I think it was the 9th award or so handed out that went to the first Other student in our class, a guy. All the male classmates stood up and gave him a standing ovation for finally breaking the girl streak…it was in Further Mathematics. I got 6 awards, Kemi got 7 and then I got certificates for being the Library Prefect (told you I was a nerd), and the editor of the yearbook/school paper.

After taking a few pictures with my friends and family, I got into the doctors car and she drove me back to the hospital, for my next pain dose and readmission.

And that folks, was my high school graduation.