'My Sensory Experience' - Autobiography

Marisha Perry
2/1/07 6th hr
My Sensory Experience

“Yeah, just drop us off at the park. That’s fine,” I announced to Katy’s mom.

“But it’s raining! Are you sure?”

“Yeah, we’ll just walk back to our house if we get cold,” Katy suggested.

I thrusted open the heavy sliding door with the momentum of my body. As soon as I jumped out of the silver minivan the smell of dampened concrete filled my nostrils. Mmm, I love the smell of rain, I thought to myself. “Come on! Let’s play on the toys!” I yelled above the clap of the precipitation.

I ran toward the bright colored playground and had the sudden urge to slip down the twirly, orange slide. As I desperately climped up to it, my platform sandals voiced a thousand squeaks against the dark blue plastic. “Aha! I made it!” I exclaimed to the world. I sat above the slide, under a little plastic dome shelter. I leaned against the wall and squinted at the writing in front of my face. “L <3’s trevor =" <3”"Who would want to bother scraping that up here? I thought, confused.

All of a sudden, I got the cold chills, shivered and gave myself a push start. Not much of a start, I realized. I was stuck. My dry clothing stuck to the surface of the wet slide. I gripped the thick, slimy edges of the toy and scooted myself about a centimeter. My rubber soles stopped me. A deep laugh escaped my throat. “I give up!” I shouted with a smile. I thrust my hands up and laid back; I felt my spine and goosebumped arms against the chilled, hollow plastic. Water droplets fell into my mouth. “Okay last try,” I promised. After three minutes with much effort, I twisted myself over onto my stomach where I was temporarily stuck again. My face was uncomfortably smashed directly into the slide. I saw a world of orange. I tasted the moist plastic in my mouth. “Okay it’s time!” I lifted up my feet and didn’t exactly “zoom” down the slide the wrong way. “Woo!” I screamed with delight.

I sprinted out onto Desert Hills Field and threw my body onto the lush ground. The wet blades of grassed, soaked through my shirt. Katy appeared by me. “This is so amazing. I love the rain.” I spoke aloud. The grass itched my sticky neck. I ignored it. I rubbed my hand over the grass, held it up to my face and then wiped my dripping hand on a seemingly dry patch of denim on my thigh.

“I know what you mean…” She said with a sigh. I gazed up into the crying grey-blue sky with nothing more said between us. It was hard to keep my eyelids open at first. Rain found its way into my eyes. I closed them and took a deep breath. I listened to the comforting tap-tap-tap of each droplet falling on and around me. Every uncovered part of my body was slippery from the precipitation. I felt cold no more. I exhaled and looked to the wonder above our heads. And for one brief moment, time stopped. All there was in the world at that moment was me laying in a wet, grassy field, with the rain falling. I wasn’t cold. I wasn’t warm. Nothing mattered. Time was of no importance. My mind was blank and my heart was full. My soul was 100% content – I had completely lived in the moment.