Every year at my old school, the eighth graders reenacted the crowning of Mary, Jesus’ mother. The class would vote on the girl in the class that reminded them most of Mary by the way she acted. During math class at the end of the day, everyone voted. I had always been told that I was a kind-hearted person and my friends said I would be chosen but I was not so sure. I was in the middle of doing my math assignment when my math teacher announced who was chosen to be the May Queen. The class looked at me because they all knew it had to be me. When my teacher announced that I was voted to be the May Queen I did not know how to feel. Part of me wanted to jump for joy but then I remembered that I was in the middle of math class. Everyone was congratulating me during class but I did not want to be obnoxious so I just thanked them quietly.

Prepping for the day seemed like a dream. The girls had to wear a dress, and I felt that since I had a main role in the event, I had to have a stunning dress. After trying on what seemed like hundreds of dresses I found the perfect one.

When the day arrived that I would be acting as Mary in the May Crowning, I was incredibly nervous. I was never one to crave attention and the thought of all eyes being on me made my stomach feel uneasy. All the eighth graders arrived to school that gloomy morning all dressed up from head to toe. All the girls were in their summer dresses while the guys were each wearing a spiffy suit and tie.

Before the mass had started, everyone was lined up in the back of the Church in height order. I was wearing a long train over my dress that two first graders had the responsibility of holding the end of. They were not all-stars at holding it because every few feet they would accidentally step on the train. Along both sides of the aisle were my classmates, all 71 of them. The girls were holding lily flowers that they would put up to make an arch just before I walked past them. While making my way to the front of the Church, I was walking slower than a snail. The walk from the back of the Church to the front seemed like it was never ending. Part of me wanted the walk to never end because this was a very important moment in my life but another part of me wanted it to be over because I felt like I was going to trip and fall on my face. When I got to the front, I sat down in my assigned seat, thankful that that nerve wracking experience was over.

While the Mass was going on, I was busy fixing my train because it kept slipping off my shoulders and I knew if that happened in front of everyone I would never hear the end of it. My next assignment for the Mass was to take a crown of flowers and place them beside the statue of Mary in front of the Church. All eyes were on me again, great, just what I needed. As I was walking across the altar to get to the statue in my 2 inch heels, I started wobbling a little bit. I was very nervous because the whole student body and many parents were watching me. As I put the crown of flowers at the foot of the statue, I felt as if I could finally breathe again. There were still two more things I had to do before I could change into sweats and a hoodie. The first one was immediately after I had just placed the crown of flowers. I had to say a prayer that the congregation would repeat back to me. I was not as worried about this part because it was only five or six words at a time then I would have time to regroup while the congregation was repeating the line back to me. After I had finished saying the prayer, I could go back to my seat and stay there until the end of the Mass.

When Mass had ended, my classmates exited first and I followed them. There were many parents taking photos of me as I was walking out and a few teachers with watery eyes. Once everyone was outside, it became complete photo chaos. Everywhere, I looked, there was someone with a camera or someone posing with their friends for a picture. I do not think I have ever had so many photos taken of me in one day. Many people asked to take picture with me and after awhile, the flash was burning my eyes. This chaos went on for about 20 minutes. When it was over I knew that this experience was something I was going to remember for a long time.