I wonder why Zoya gave me a second chance. It wasn't the reasonable thing to do and I definitely didn't deserve it. But that doesn't mean I'm not grateful for it. In fact, I'm indebted to her.
Zoya and I were like Rachel and Monica of "Friends" in 8th grade (We were both obsessed with that show). We wrote each other notes everyday and talked at our lockers every passing period. We studied for tests together and shared all the hard questions with only each other. We talked about the boys we liked, the teachers we hated, and whatever was on our minds.
May was already a generally stressful month. The school year was ending which meant projects, studying for finals, and homework galore. It was the worst time for something to come up, but something did. I remember when Zoya called me crying because her favorite cousin had just died in a car crash. She told me tearfully that she was supposed to visit her that summer and now she couldn't. I felt her pain, but I was so dumbstruck that I was clueless on what to do. I comforted her with the usual "I'm so sorry, I know it'll get better soon".
The next morning I spotted her in the cafeteria with red, sunken eyes and I guiltily remembered what had happened to her. I wished I knew the right thing to do, but I didn’t. I could only manage to say, “Did you get number five on the math homework last night?” She acted natural, but I saw the horrified look in her eyes. After that mishap, all I could do was pretend nothing had happened and hope she would move on.
How wrong I was. It came out of nowhere on a fairly normal day. I was reassuring her that she’d do well on her geometry final. Then she lashed out at me pointing out that was exactly what I’d said about her dead cousin. “How could you ignore what I’m going through? How could you pretend everything’s okay and do nothing to help?” she asked. I felt ridden with shame immediately. I apologized profusely and asked for forgiveness. She said she forgave me, but I knew it’d never be the same again.
For awhile, we were just acquaintances that merely greeted each other in the halls. A summer passed with no contact but in 9th grade, through mutual friends, we sat at the same lunch table. We talked to each other once more and I was grateful she didn’t give me the cold shoulder. I wanted to prove I could be a better friend and person than I was before. I helped her on little things like homework, talked to her when she looked lonely, comforted her through all the hardships, and anything else a selfless friend would do. I am forever appreciative that she gave me a second chance because both of us would have missed out on a truly great friendship.
I believe in second chances because sometimes you just don’t realize how important some things are until they’re gone. The second chance makes you value the person or thing so much more.
Many people would say giving someone a second chance is just giving them the opportunity to take advantage of you again, but others believe in the better side of people and give them the benefit of the doubt. Second chances don’t always turn out the way you expect, but you’ll never know how it’ll turn out unless you give it a try.
There are limits on second chances however. You cannot allow people to walk all over you, but simply show them that you have faith that they can redeem themselves.
Everyone is different and depending on the person, he or she may or may not be willing to give that chance. But I give second chances, because Zoya gave me a reason to.
By Jennifer Sun
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