Sandi Van - Everything It Takes

Please visit our website, www.west44books.com.For a free color catalog of all our high-quality books, call toll free 1-800-398-2504.Cataloging-in-Publication Data Names: Van, Sandi. Title: Everything it takes / Sandi Van. Description: New York : West 44, 2022. Identifiers: ISBN 9781978595545 (pbk.) | ISBN 9781978595668 (library bound) | ISBN 9781978595569 (ebook) Subjects: LCSH: Poetry, American--21st century. | English poetry. | Poetry, Modern--21st century. | Poetry, Modern--21st century.

Classification: LCC PS586.3 E947 2022 | DDC 811.60809282--dc23 First Edition Published in 2022 by Enslow Publishing LLC 29 East 21st Street New York, NY 10010 Copyright 2022 Enslow Publishing LLC Editor: Caitie McAneney Designer: Tanya Dellaccio Interior Layout: Rachel Rising Photo Credits: pp.. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form without permission in writing from the publisher, except by a reviewer. Printed in the United States of America CPSIA compliance information: Batch #CS22W44: For further information contact Enslow Publishing LLC, New York, New York at 1-800-398-2504. This book is dedicated to my son John, whoappreciates trees nearly as much as I do, andto all the eco-warriors out there.Don't give up. The planet needs you. MY CALLING The loudspeaker calls us down: All juniors and seniors report to the cafeteriafor the college fair. We follow like cattle.

Mooing in groups large and small. Chewing gum and checking phones. Not me. Im ready for this. Questions neatly written on the last page of my English notebook. Im ready to leave this town in my dust.

MY TOWN feels like a leash pulled tight. Whenever I try to wander. TOO SMART FOR MY PANTS Mom tells me my brain is too big for my britches. Which is an odd way of saying Im too smart for my pants. Mom rolled her eyes at my response, when I told her: its breeches, not britches. In the original saying anyway.

I looked it up. See? Im too smart for this town. WORDS MAER Im going to study history and English. And then: Law School. Someday, I will get paid to argue. Lily. Lily.

It means: pure innocent beauty My parents must have thought I looked like a flower. My older sister says I looked like a monkey. They should have named me Vervet. After the Vervet Monkey. But they chose Lily. And I hate it.

NAMES I wrote about names for my college essay. How they shape us. How they shape what people expect from us. I wrote the essay in poem form. Because if you want to get into college you need to STAND OUT. THE FIRST STEP The first step to taking my dumb flower name and going to Law School is getting into College.

SO HERE I AM with the other cattle. A slow-moving herd on our way to the cafeteria. A group of seniors in front of me make bets on how many pens theyll collect. I fear for their futures. BUT NOT MINE Im prepared with my questions. Im prepared with the list of schools where I can double major in history and English.

Schools far far away from here. WHAT IM NOT PREPARED FOR Every recruiter I talk to answers my questions. Fills in the blanks. Asks a few of their own. Major? Check. Far away? Check.

Required GPA? Got it. SAT scores? You know I rocked them. Great, thats great, they all say. And how aboutextracurricular activities? JUNIOR YEAR IS SUPPOSED TO BE ABOUT GRADES, NOT CLUBS Ive taken all the right classes. My grades are good. Because I spend my time studying.

Not trying to save the world or make new friends. Sure, I tried a few clubs debate Spanish newspaper. And Im sure I could write them down on the application. But then, the recruiters said there will be an interview. Where you talk about your GOALS. And how your time in HIGH SCHOOL helped you figure out who you want to BE.

ME? I figured out who I wanted to BE by watching episodes of Law and Order with my mom. FAMILY Its just the three of us: me Mom Faith. When my older sister was born, Mom had a lot of faith. She believed everything would work out perfectly husband dream job beautiful house kid and then another (me). The perfect holiday card. UNTIL Dad struck it rich with one of his many business ventures.

Mom lost her job. Dad met someone new. Mom lost in court. And we had to move out of the beautiful house and into this tiny apartment. Hows that for law and order? WORDS HAVE DOUBLE MEANINGS We need to have faith, Mom would say. And Id look at my sister and wonder.

Was she planning to leave us, the way Dad did? Thats the thing about words. We need to have FAITH. As in: Dont give up. Follow your dreams. Believe they will come true. And if life pulls out the rug from under your feet, dig your toes firmly into the ground.

LOSS OF FAITH Eventually Faith did leave. But not because she found a family she liked better than ours. (The way Dad did.) She left to become a dancer in Las Vegas. (She had to change her name.) We saw a video of her show. (She looked happy.) Mom said, Well, thats life for ya. Which is the same thing she said when Dad left when she lost her job when we had to leave our house. (Well, thats life.) NOT ME I refuse to allow life to walk all over me like an animal pacing their cage in the zoo.

Life is not something you let happen. It is something you grab with both hands and steer in the direction you want to go. THE NEXT DAY I watch the morning announcements closely for the first time ever. Some girl with a high ponytail and a guy trying too hard to grow facial hair report on meaningless school news. But then Anyone interestedin saving the planet, the girl says, should come to room B219 after school. A logo flashes on the screen.

Green for Good it reads. I have no interest in saving the planet. But I do need a club to join, and the logo is drawn pretty well. Okay, I think. Ill give it a try. Famous last words.

YOU CAN LEAD A HORSE TO WATER, BUT YOU CANT MAKE IT DRINK I text Mom. Tell her Im staying late. Wander down the B wing like a lost dog. No. A rejected dog. The one left behind at the pound.

Because clubs and I dont exactly stick. Spanish club: Politely asked not to return. I kind of set the Homecoming float on fire. They probably shouldn't have put me in charge of the sparklers. Newspaper Staff: Question: How hard could it be to report on the school news? Answer: When you refuse to do a piece ranking soda flavors in the vending machine hard. Debate Club: A club about arguing! A club full of kids destined for law school! It should have been my jam.

But I had trouble following the rules. And when I kept getting disqualified, they kicked me out. I picture my college interview: And tell us, Lily,about your nonacademicexperiences. Followed by a blank stare. I need a win. I need the environmental club to work no matter what. Smile. Smile.

Walk through the door of room 219. GREEN FOR GOOD There are five people in the room. I wonder how they plan to save the planet with such limited resources. Shush it, Lily. No one wants a grumpy club reject. Five faces look up at me when I enter.

Ten eyes stare at me like Im an alien. I want to say, Im not an alien. Just a girl who needs to pad her college application. Instead I say, Hello,my name is Lily.Im here to, um, save the Earth. It comes off like a question. I hear someone laugh-snort. Dark hair. Dark hair.

Small braids on one side around her ear. Well youre in the right place, she says. Im Fiona. She raises her eyebrows at the group and they say their names in turn: FernMaxCooperJewelYou new here? asks Fern, a girl with glasses and red hair in two long braids.