My Bench

    Gemma Smith                                          My Bench

        I remember going to the park in 2008 and sitting on this one bench, my bench. This bench was in the most beautiful spot, the sun would shine right on it, the birds would sit on the bench, and most importantly it was my Grandmas favourite spot to eat. The bench is in the most perfect place every time I go and sit on the bench I think about my grandma. The bench symbolizes to me how fast time is moving. I remember sitting on the bench when I was younger, dreaming about what life would be like when I was older. Now that I am older sitting on the bench is so bittersweet. The bench makes me feel at home when I sit down, all the memories of my childhood come flooding back to me. This bench is my safe place.

    I know my grandma who has passed is with me when I sit on the bench. The summer after my grandma passed away I went to the bench my grandma loved and just sat there for hours. While sitting on the bench I started to feel her presents. I remember the window blowing in my air and just thinking that it was her reaching out. I remember the sun shined right on my cheeks and it was like my grandma was sending me a kiss. I just felt her with me as I sit on my bench. The bench makes me happy and sad at the time, it is a bittersweet feeling knowing she's with me, but not physically. When I'm alone and I sit on the bench I think about how many people also might have a connection with this bench? Is it someone else's safe place? I wonder how many people also might love this bench. Whenever I go to sit on my bench and I see someone else there I try not to let it bug me, but it is pretty annoying. I know its not actually my bench but I feel so connected to the bench its hard when I have had a long day and all I wanna do it sit on this bench. The bench is my place I can think clearly.

    Sometimes I wonder if other people have a favourite bench? I think everyone has a favourite view spot, but what about a bench? I also have another bench I love with all my heart. I chose my bench because me and my two best friends would go meet up everyday at the bench and just talk about life and help each other's mental state through nature. We go everyday around 7pm because that's when the sky looks the prettiest and the fresh air and breeze is just so mesmerizing. We have been doing this since the 9th grade and it has become a daily ritual. I chose this exact bench because it has the most beautiful view when the sun goes down and you're just looking down at all of Vancouver. It is located right behind the power lines hidden by trees and hills. When you sit down and just take nature in, you really get a glimpse of how much we really don't appreciate the beauty of nature and our earth. 

    I feel numb to all my pain when at my bench with my best friends. I feel serenity as soon as I am at my bench. I can finally clearly think and understand how I feel. I think about how fast life is moving and how in the moment I am, sitting there with my best friends, knowing that we might never sit here again after we graduate, we will be all on our own journeys. I look out at the most beautiful skyline, admiring where I am in that exact moment and I just think about how life has moved so fast. I remember the first day we ever discovered this bench like it was yesterday, even though it was 3 years ago. So many conversations, hours, tears, laughs and happiness we shared in this exact spot. I sit back and take in the fresh air and think about the times when I wish I was where I was, back when I used to wish I was here. In life all I really want is happiness, to live life for nobody else but myself. I feel like no one realizes how precious life is, you got one life to live, so live it up, for yourself. I think that the location for a bench is very important. When you think of your childhood do you think about parks and play grounds? I remember going to the park was a big part of my childhood. When my grandma was alive she would take me and my brother everyday after school to the park.

    These memories are the best memories I have with my grandma. The park was our spot, and the spot had our bench. The purpose of a park is to emphasize the importance of nature and to be free. Parks are for all age activities, from running around careless with your friends to sitting on a park bench with a nice hot cup of coffee. Parks are for the enjoyment of all. They make you feel one with nature, it’s almost as if you feel healthier when outside in nature. I love parks because they are so versatile, for instance in the winter all the trees have beautiful lights and bright colours and when the snow falls it looks like a winter wonderland. All the breathtaking colours make you feel so comfortable.  In Summer you see all the flowers and gorgeous sunsets and sunrises peering down at you. In the summer everyone is around with their families and friends all happy having picnics. The Sprig might just be the best because all you smell is flowers and fresh nature. Everything in the park is full of colour and life. I think we all sometimes forget our inner child, but that’s the one thing we should always take care of. Our inner child is what keeps us from reality and keeps us young. Someday our wild hearts will live for younger days I know that one day when I hopefully have children I will bring them down to the bench I would go with my grandma. My grandma growing up was my best friend and I just wanna share the impact she had on the world with everyone. I think my Grandma is resting at the bench, I think that's where her sole lies, in the bench. I can describe the feeling I get when I sit down In the best its just so special. The bench is my happy place. I remember once sitting on the bench and it felt like my Grandma was rubbing my back just like she used to. I just remember feeling someones touch on my back but no one was there, I think that was my grandma's way of telling me she's going to be with me forever. 

    The bench in the park will forever be my safe place. The bench sits in the most perfect spot looking over all the beautiful nature. The bench brings me many emotions when I sit. The funny thing about this bench is that I don't know the real story behind the bench. Who does the bench actually belong too, and why did someone pick this location? These are the questions I cant solve. It feels like every bench has a story behind it. 

    On my way to my special bench I was thinking about this exact route I walk everyday. I stopped every little bit to take in my wonderful city and the memories I've made here with all my peers. Every single one of them holds a place in my heart, good or bad, they gave me memories I will cherish for the rest of my life. Each step I took I realized more and more about nature, how the leaves fell, how the clouds move and all the different smells. As I kept walking, leaves kept falling, rain kept pouring but my feet kept moving. As I was approaching my bench I realized how quiet and private it was. It came to my mind that I have never seen anyone at my bench or even walk by in all the years I’ve spent time here. In my mind I came to the conclusion that there is a high chance no one knows where this place is. This gave me a very peaceful and sentimental feeling. It made me realize that my bench is not just my bench, it holds a piece of my life, with a meaning that goes deeper than the surface. 

“Life is like a camera. Focus on what's important. Capture the good times. And if things don't work out, just take another shot.” ― Ziad K. Abdelnour

<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/quotes/1012037-life-is-like-a-camera-focus-on-what-s-important-capture" target="_blank"></a>

I chose this poem because when I was at my bench I acquired a different sense of reality due to the amount of beauty surrounding me. Everytime a blinked I took another “shot” of the view in front of me. The wide range of trees, flowers, and scents influenced me to have a greater appreciation of life. Each memory I hold from every encounter with the bench accounts for a picture saved in my head the memories.

GRAD POEM - By. Gemma Smith

Graduation time is here, everyone come and cheer.

As I sit on my bench and think of all the good times

tears start to fall from my eyes.

Time to leave this place behind.

    This poem is very simple because it shares a story. Although I cannot wait to leave high school I know there is a part of me who isn’t ready for the real world. I never thought that high school was such a big part of me. To me it wasn’t getting good grade it was to teach me lessons I thought I already knew. High School taught me more about life than any academic course could ever teach me. It seems like it was just yesterday that we were all running around the school halls as little grade 8s. Some of my favourite memories and people seem so far out of reach. As we go on we remember, all the times we spend together and as our lives all change a part of us will be friends forever. I spent my whole life waiting for my graduation.  I hope that when you look back at high school memories and the times we all had I hope you smile. My life has been moving so fast and as bad as I wanna leave, I don’t wanna grow up. I wish I'd never grown up. I cant believe its over. Im so happy to end high school off on a good note! Im excited for the new adventures I have to face. I know one thing for sure, that was one crazy rollercoaster. Im so happy highschool is over, but its crazy that it went by so fast. The last time I was with my grandma she told me life goes by so fast, and she's not wrong. I will still continue to go visit my grandma at the bench because I know she's with me when I'm there. Its time to start the new chapter of my life and I think I'm ready. 

My grandma's beautiful sole is in the bench. The bench is her bench and my space place I will continue going to the bench to talk to her as long as I can. A bench is a place to bring people together. When we sit and talk to people on a bench we hear stories and make new memories with people and I think that's beautiful. So the next time you're on a walk stop for a second, and go sit on a bench, you might feel a new type of energy. Life is to short to waste.