The Test

I walked into the lecture hall, grateful that, at the very least, it was well-lit and had huge floor-to-ceiling windows that overlooked the street below and let plenty of the sunlight in from the cloudless, blue sky outside. Finding a seat toward the back of the auditorium, I took out my notebook and began ripping out pages to write on. Dictionary on the table, pen, paper, ready to go.

The tests were handed out. My heart dropped into my stomach when I saw that I had no idea what a few of the first questions where. I turned it over and looked at the essay prompts. It figured. All the stuff I HADN'T studied in detail was on here.

Scheiße.

For a few moments I honestly considered getting up and walking out of the auditorium. Why go through all the trouble of writing a test it was obvious I was going to fail again? But somehow reason won out and I stayed put. I started writing.

It was a shaky start but after a while I was writing furiously, calling up everything I could remember and writing a novel even though the prompt said to answer the questions "briefly." I didn't care. If he's going to ask me about Structural & Cohesion Funds, he's going to GET Structural & Cohesion Funds.

Midway through my right hand was begging for mercy and taking it by force by cramping up. I kept writing anyway. Almost done. I felt more confident. I was giving concrete, detailed examples for everything I wrote. The European Parliament's powers have been extended considerably through the Draft Constitutional Treaty, in that, should the Treaty be ratified by all member states, the EP will receive a codecision right extending far beyond its usual boundaries, for example, concerning the Transeuropean Networks . . .

Take that, prof. Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee. Allllriiiiiight.

Down to the last sentence. The hand was screaming now. Aaaaaaaannnnnd.....period! Done! I slammed my pen down on the table with a crack that startled the people around me. I stood up, dizzy from the concentration and totally drained. Having worn my Arizona State t-shirt today, I was proclaiming my foreigner status to everyone in the room now staring at me. I didn't care. That's right, I'm from the United States, not the European Union. I betcha my Union could beat up your Union. ;-)

I threw the stack of papers at the proctor and ran out the door and into the bright, warm light. Spring is here and it's t-shirt time, baby.

It is finished.