Putting down the hammer

"You're making it much harder than it needs to be. It's like pounding your hand with a hammer because it feels good when you stop," Mr. Wilkes used to tell me.

Mr. Wilkes was my high school physics teacher. I was terrible at physics. It is the only class I've ever taken that I deserved to fail. I used to write apologies to him on the bottom of my tests.

Dear Mr. Wilkes,
Please don't take my performance on this exam as a reflection of your ability as a teacher. You may not even want to grade it. I totally guessed on questions 3 and 5, and I didn't even attempt number 7. I did, however, draw a picture of a cat wearing a bowtie and top hat.
Cheers,
Harper

I learned a lot from Mr. Wilkes, just not about physics.

"You're making it much harder than it needs to be. It's like pounding your hand with a hammer because it feels good when you stop."

Mark was surprised when he saw me last night. I was supposed to be at work.

I was surprised when I saw his arms around that girl. He was supposed to be in love with me.

He was wearing the shirt I bought him for Christmas.

-Harper