Pennies and Boarding School

Pennies and Boarding School


Yelling. I remember the yelling. It was my mother yelling. Screaming, her face red like a cherry. It was so scary and I wanted to run. But I didn’t. Out the door she went, running after her oldest daughter.
You are a disgrace.
I can’t trust you.
You must think I’m pretty dumb don’t you?
She continued to yell all the way up the street. But Mallory’s as fast as a bullet.
Street,
Sweep,
Sweep,
 No keep it together. Don’t cry.
Her backpack is on the floor from where it was thrown,  emptied and sagging with sorrow and shame, and I’m sweeping up the floor. Concentrating only on the sound of the broom. There are pennies in her bag, pennies on the floor of the room.
Why are those there?
She had social media and ran away.
She had social media and got sent away.
Away,
Away,
All the way to Kansas City for 15 months. Stupid boarding school. Stupid social media. Haley and I would cry.
 She’s our sister.
We’ll miss her.
Look at what you’ve done. Dad would say.
You are tearing apart this family. Dad would say.
Then Haley and me would stop. It could only hurt her. That’s what we thought. And he said he would apologize.
But he didn’t.
He realized it was completely her fault.
That’s what he said anyway. Social media, it’s dangerous and can get you sent away. Don’t try and argue, it’s always been this way. No Snapchat, or Instagram or Tiktok or Twitter.  That’s what my mom would always say.
But it was good for Mallory,
She’s found God.
It was hard to send her away,
Hardest decision of our lives.
But it saved her,
That’s what my mom would say.