SUMMERVILLE ELEMENTARY

PARENT/TEACHER INTERVIEWS

"Thank you for coming Mr. and Mrs. Eubanks." "We're starting to become very concerned about Wilton's grades" my Mom replied. "As you should. Wilton has a lot of untapped potential as a student but for whatever reason, he doesn't seem interested." "We've tried everything Mr. Epps and nothing seems to work. Either he's not trying because the work is too hard or maybe he's afraid to ask for help" my Dad chimed in. "Have you considered getting him a tutor? If you talk to our Guidance Counselor Mrs. Crosby, she can put you in touch with a number of excellent young tutors." "Sounds good. Thanks for your time Mr. Epps" my Mom responded.

Needless to say, my parents weren't in the best mood when they got home. "Wilton! Get down here now!" my Dad shouted. I knew I was in trouble based on the tone of his voice. "We just got back from talking to Mr. Epps." "Nice guy isn't he?" I asked desperately trying to prevent the upcoming lecture. "Son, your marks and attitude are very poor. You're better than that. Are you having any problems with the other kids or the subjects? If so, you can always talk to us." "Everything's cool." "What's not cool are your poor grades and so we are going to get you a tutor." "I don't need a tutor!" "It's either that or no PlayStation for a whole month." "When does he start?" I nervously laughed.

My parents called around to all the best tutors in town looking to find the right one for me. But most of them had already been booked and there was a long waiting list to see them. My Mom asked some of her friends at work and was told about a man by the name of Houston Foxboro. She heard that he was a little 'unusual' but he got results. And so starting Monday night, I'd be meeting with this Foxboro dude three times a week. To say he was unique would be the understatement of the year. He talked strange and had really freaky looking eyes. It took me a while to stop staring at him before we actually got down to doing some schoolwork.

F -

After about a month of tutoring I had my first math test. I pretended to understand what Houston was telling me when actually I wasn't really listening. I walked into that test totally unprepared. And boy did I ever bomb the quiz. Not only did I fail but I got an F minus. Who gets an F minus? My parents were frustrated and a little angry that my marks continued to be atrocious despite having a tutor. They thought about replacing Houston but decided to give him one more opportunity. I had a big history test coming up the next week and it was a little late to be changing tutors. The pressure was on. If I didn't pass the rest of my tests, i would end up having to go to summer school.

"What's going on Houston? How come you haven't been able to help me with my school work?" "I'm not sure Wilton. For some reason the lesson plans I've developed aren't working. But I do know something that may work." "I don't care what it is. I'm in!" "Alright, this is kinda unconventional but it works. Don't be scared. You may feel light-headed for a while but it'll wear off." I didn't like the sound of that. Houston's eyes lit up and a bright light temporarily blinded me. I felt my body leaving the ground as I hovered above the floor. And then suddenly it was all over. I struggled to regain my vision. "What was that?" "Let's just say I gave you a bit of an edge when it comes to studying."

"Here, read this!" Houston said as he tossed a thick book at me. "But this is like 800 pages. I'll never be able to.......done." Whoa! I read an entire book in mere seconds and could remember every word on every page. I even knew how the book was going to end after the first chapter. This was incredible. "What's going on with me Houston? Was I hypnotized?" "We tried traditional tutoring methods and they failed. So I decided to introduce you to a technique that we use on my planet.......I mean at the learning center. You've been given a gift Wilton. Use it wisely." Wow! This was so surreal. Surreal? That's a big word and I knew how to pronounce it and what it meant. I'm a genius!

1) Omnium Rerum Principia Parva Sunt – ‘The beginnings of all things are small.’2) Vixere – ‘They lived.’ (after the execution of the participants in the Catilinarian conspiracy; meaning: “they are dead”).

3) Semper Idem – ‘Always the same.’

4) Pecunia Nervus Belli – ‘Money is the soul

(or sinew) of war.’5) Male Parta Male Dilabuntur –

‘What has been wrongly gained is wrongly lost.’

After I developed these incredible academic abilities I started to feel better physically and emotionally. My personality started to change as well. Rather than shooting hoops with the guys during recess, I stayed inside one day and started to randomly write Latin expressions on the blackboard. I never studied Latin in my life. I became what's referred to as a 'wunderkind' (person who achieves great success when relatively young). I was able to anticipate things before they happened. There were no surprises so trick questions on tests wouldn't trip me up. My next test was in a couple of days: Grade 7 Science. 50 questions. Multiple choice. Spoiler alert: I aced it!

SUMMERVILLE

ELEMENTARY STUDENT AWARDS

In a matter of days, I had gone from a one-way trip to summer school to becoming an academic sensation. I found myself at the top of The Honor Roll as I started winning awards left and right for my scholastic achievements. And it was all thanks to Houston Foxboro and that mysterious technique he used on me. I've never been a good student. It's always been harder for me to comprehend things than my fellow students. And I dare not tell anyone that I was having problems learning or they would all laugh at me. At least that's what I thought. Maybe they wouldn't but I didn't want to take that chance.

They say that when things are too good to be true they usually are. While it was amazing having all of this knowledge dancing around my brain. Sometimes it felt like I knew too much. Everything was easy for me. Too easy. I loved watching sports with my Dad but now I would know who was going to win before the games even started. When I went to the movies with my friends I already knew how it was going to end. I had to sit there for the entire 2 hours while they enjoyed the rest of the film. Sure this academic superpower helped me in school but it kinda ruined the things I enjoyed about life. There was no mystery, no surprises, and no emotion. Life had gotten too predictable. And that was boring.