Bonynge, 1

Rachel Bonynge
Mrs. Rutan
AP Literature and Composition
15 October 2014

Lost
Ive learned many things about myself in my sixteen years, one of the most important
being that I hate getting lost. I found out that I like to know where Im at at all times because I
feel more secure and safe that way. I discovered this revelation when my family decided to take a
small trip to Downtown Detroit to see a Detroit Tigers baseball game.
Up until our departure for the game, the day was fantastic. My parents took my brother
and I to a couple cool restaurants and we spent most of the trip, thus far, at the Henry Ford
Museum; It was the best day for an eleven year old. Tons of food. Tons of new toys. Absolute
perfection. However it didnt last nearly as long as I imagined it to.
My parents decided not to drive our car to the game so that we didnt have to bother with
parking, plus our hotel was only about a mile away from the stadium. It was a great idea at the
time because it would have been rough for us to try and find a parking spot that day. It was
sunny, 75 degrees, and they were handing out free things at the door; everyone who was anyone
was there. The game started off amazing, but sadly took a turn for the worst when our closing
pitcher gave up three home runs and two walk-ons. So disappointedly, the Tigers lost, which
concluded the game. We began our expedition out of the stadium when I suddenly remembered
that we didnt have a car and would have to walk back. At that stage in my life, it wouldnt have
been a big deal to me; however, the game ended a little before 10:30pm so it was pitch black and
eerie outside the park.

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The loss of light had impaired my dads judgment of direction so we were pretty
confused about which way took us back to the hotel: left or right? When we looked to our left,
we saw big, beautiful, shiny, black buildings that all resembled each other. When we looked to
our right, we saw more big, black buildings; however, these buildings were not as beautiful so
we went left with the idea that it was safer andfingers crossedan immediate route to the
hotel.
My dad recognized some street names and a couple of the buildings, but he didnt
remember what street the hotel was on, so that wasnt much help. (This day took place in 2010
so pulling out our smart phones wasnt a scenario choice.) So, we walked. We walked past huge
buildings with caution tape on the windows and loud clubs with the music blaring and the people
standing in an extremely long line waiting to get in. We scavenged through scary intersections
with rude drivers that would come much too close to hitting one of us. The most common
occurrence though, was tall men with saggy pants and over sized t-shirts, leaning up against
abandoned buildings and rusted street light poles. Many of them would take a glance at us, notice
our full-blown tourist outfits, and look away after catching a quick glimpse at my dads back
pocket. We had a lot of attention on ourselves because we were all wearing Tigers jerseys,
decked out in orange and navy blue, with matching baseball caps. My mom also happened to be
wearing a fanny pack; if we didnt already scream mug us!
So we got to the point where we had been walking around for about a half hour and I was
starting to freak out. I decided that we would never reach the hotel and we would have to resort
to a homeless life style.

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Every time I would come across a homeless person, I would think back to a trip that I
took to Chicago. Outside of our incredibly lavish hotel, there was a homeless man livingright
outside of our window. I would come back from our activity of the day and watch him because,
for some reason, I thought he was extremely interesting. One day right after I woke up, I looked
out the window and saw the homeless man getting yelled at and aggressively kicked off of the
street by some random man. It devastated me, but it also helped me to understand the reality of
how cruel our world is. It also helped me become conscious of that fact that I will do everything
humanly possible to stay off of the streets. It is not the life for me.
So after about the tenth homeless person we walked past and right when I had lost all
hope, my brother suggested that we ask someone if they knew the location of the hotel. I thought
that was a great idea, I just couldnt figure out why we hadnt done that a lot sooner. However,
my dad was too proud to ask a complete stranger for help and the rest of us were too scared to
open our mouths, so we continued to walk. For most of the walk, I had no clue where we were
and what was going on around me because I kept my eyes attached to the movement of my feet
and the distance between cracks on the sidewalk. The later we stayed out, the more disturbed the
people got and the more eyes were scrutinizing at my family and I. It happened to be the same
eyes too because we realized that we were walking in circles. We had gone around the same
block with the same three buildings about three times. The last time around the same corner, we
were stopped by a little gray haired woman that was missing a couple of her teeth and was
perched up on a cane that was probably older than her.
When my dad realized that we were going in circles, he started to swear. He said all of
the words in the book and he wasnt being very quiet about it. The diminished old woman came

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up to my dad and bumped his leg slightly with her cane, intending it to be forceful but not being
able to produce the force with her lack of stability, and yelled stop it! Stop talkin like that!
My dad just looked at her. Nodded his head to acknowledge her presence and focused his
eyes on something else.
The disturbed woman wasnt very jubilant with that response so she hit him again and
screamed slightly louder They will never let you on the bus with that mouth! I dont know who
you think you is, but people get real upset when people speak like that! Dont think they wont
kick you right up off that bus, cause they will! I know, I seen it been done before!
Of course, my dad wasnt in a great mood so he just grabbed my hand, motioned for my
mom and brother to follow and we quickly walked away. That didnt stop the woman from
continuing to talkmore like mumble to herself. We could hear her down the street telling
people about what my dad said.
After that little episode, my brother and I both started to cry; we were tired, cold, and
very scared. I guess that pushed my parents over their limits because my mom finally convinced
my dad to go in somewhere and get directions to our hotel. He picked an incredibly packed club
with the strobe lights and the thundering music. He asked the bouncer who was a six foot eight
monster, with a huge afro and dark sunglasses, if he could help us. His reaction was priceless.
You want to find the Holiday Inn? Fo real? he asked us as he slowly lifted off his
sunglasses, probably to get a better look at who the imbecile in front of him was. Man, you
blind?

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My dad mumbled Um. No. and coward back a little to look around, since we must have
missed something very obvious.
Bro. Its on the other side of dis building he returned rudely as he rolled his eyes and
stepped back.
My dad was pretty ticked off by that point so we practically ran around the next two
corners, right into the main lobby of the Holiday Inn. I had never been so happy to see those
multi-colored-pink-and-green-floors, the fancy chairs, and the awkward concierge. I was in such
a state of joy that I got on all fours right there in the lobby and hugged the ground. It felt like the
best moment of my life.
I still try very hard to this day to find good out of those two hours in Downtown Detroit.
All I have gotten out of it so far, is that I am deathly afraid of walking anywhere past eight
oclock, I despise going to big cities, and I no longer allow myself or my parents to go to night
baseball, football, or basketball games. I am however, eternally grateful for the memory, I just
wish that someone elses family could have acquired it for me.