tried to fit in. Even in this moment of doubt, she was open to friendship. She offered Jennifer a drink, and asked if she wanted to go the Mall. After all, wasn't that what normal girls did? Of course Jennifer declined. She certainly didn't want to be seen in public with the nerd. Hers was a mission. She was there to find something else they could poke fun at. Sarah asked if she would like to hear her records. It was almost too good an invitation and Jennifer was curious to know what nerds listened to. Passing her Chopin's Nocturnes record to Jennifer was a mistake, as and soon as Jennifer looked at the front cover, Sarah knew she had misjudged the situation and had blundered.

It wasn't easy being gifted. Often in the quiet of her room, Sarah prayed to God to take that gift back. I just want to be normal she would pray, and wondered what it felt like to be the girl who kissed boys or smoked the odd cigarette. What made it worse was that everyone expected her to be perfect. Her mother expected nothing less than excellence. Her father didn't give her hugs. He gave her literature. Even her grandmother gave her book tokens instead of computer games. They all assumed she wouldn't respond to normal love, and were wrong.

The sad fact was that no matter what Sarah did, she was not likable. Something pointed a huge finger at her, and she often looked behind her to see if some label had been placed on her back in fun. It always felt like it, though in actual fact, no-one ever got close enough to do that. Childhood wasn't a voyage of discovery, other than discovering the discomfort associated with trying to make friends.

Now, in retrospect, life is better for Sarah. She has a great job, a boyfriend who understands nerds, and a home to be proud of, left to her by her parents. The certificates are gone, and have been replaced with family pictures. As puberty turned into adulthood and independence, so her character developed, and she learned to love who she was, instead of being reminded that she was somehow different. The early twenties is a time when a girl does a lot of self seeking, and in the middle of the Mexican desert, Sarah found that she actually liked the person she was, and life changed.

Jennifer, on the other hand, went through that same life changing experience of seeking self worth, and didn't much like the face which looked back at her from the bedroom mirror. Shallow and meaningless were words which sprang to mind. She had been popular at school. She had friends, though none of them wanted to know her now. It had been fun in school, though now she had a dead end job, friendships which were fleeting and an envy for me, the genius next door. Suddenly it wasn't so bad being Sarah.

Learn more about this author, Rachelle de Bretagne.
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