Cha…silaka…cha…What?!

You won't find "One day..." at the start of THIS story by DOMINIQUE!  

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“Cha...silaka…cha…silaka,” everyone was repeating in the downtown dance studio on 34^th street New York, New York. The dance room was bright with rays of sunlight illuminating the room.

“Cha..silaka…cha…silaka…cha,” was repeated again and again. My friends and I were going over out dance steps for the Multi-Cultural Festival only two weeks away. Singing in our native tongues and moving in our ritual dance routines, we volunteered to do our native dances for our school and the upcoming festival.

“Cha...silaka…cha...silaka….cha!”

When our dance lessons were over my mother told everyone to practice the newly required steps learned that day. Everyone scattered to their dance bags and I to mine. The rays of light that had illuminated the dance studio were now gone. Instead we could see the pink and orange setting-sun filtered through the old dusty looking window as if hiding behind clouds. When I was putting things away into my duffle bag, Marina came up to me.

“Are you going to hang out with me and Sara today?”

I looked down knowing she knew what I meant when I couldn’t go anywhere tonight.

“Aww, come on Maylee! You haven’t been out in a long time. Stop working yourself too hard and start having some fun once in a while,” said Marina beggingly.

“I know I haven’t been going out lately, but I have an important exam coming up and the Junior Committee meeting tomorrow. We’re looking for more options to see whether or not we should pass a new budget for the Junior Prom.” Maylee took a deep breath and continued. “I can’t Marina. I have all this work to do. Maybe sometime next week we can hang out. I’m really sorry I’ve been busy lately.”

“Yeah, girl. Start getting some free time for yourself.”

“I will, after I’ve finished everything this week.”

My mother was the last to get out of the dance studio, locking up and getting things together. Both of us walked down the street. She was putting her hand over my shoulder and telling me how great I had danced that day.

“Cha…silaka..ooh..ooh…cha,” I repeated at home with text books scattered all over my bed and papers on the floor. The stereo sounded throughout my room while I was studying and singing at the same time. Then a knock came to my door.

Knock…Knock. I looked up to see who was there. My father strode in holding a bowl of soup for me.

“Working hard,” my father said placing the bowl of soup on my already messed up table and sitting beside me on the bed.

“Yeah, I have all this work to do and I have the festival coming up, and…and the junior meeting.”

My father raised his hand to settle my already rambling voice.

“I’m not worried about you working hard, but what worries me is working too hard. You have to settle down every once in a while Maylee.”

“I know…I know.”

“You know what? Once this festival is over, you and I should go someplace together where you can have fun. Marina and Sara can come too. So, try not to have any plans after the festival.”

A smile came to my face and that of my father.

The day came for the Multicultural Festival. The sounds were all over the place. I couldn’t differentiate a car motor from the school bands that were taking place in the festival. The director was frantic and whizzing back and forth getting things together. There were a lot of people all over the place. I finally found Marina and Sara near the floats. They were all dressed and ready for our part in the festival parade.

“Man, it’s crowded out here,” Sara said amazed by all the people, by the look on her face.

The festival and the parade were getting ready to start. My mother gathered everyone into a group and positioned everyone in order. My costume was a bit itchy, but I ignored it’s persistence to distract me. The parade line slowly moved, first going to the different bands than special entertainment.

“Cha..silaka…cha…oh..oh..silaka…cha.” Our chance to dance and sing was coming up. One group of us was chanting their lines before our turn to chant our native tongues to the crowd. Sara, Marina, and I weren’t going to hold back our months of practice, but we had to admit we were desperate to show off our dances and get it over with. Sara tugged on my costume and pointed to a person franticly flailing his arms in the air.

“I think that person wants you. He said your name, Maylee,” Sara announced, still tugging on my costume, but it was too late. Our turn came and we started dancing and chanting through the long line of entertainment down the road. The man followed the whole way.

“Silaka…cha…silaka…ooh…oho.” We danced all the way down to Broadway where we did the last of our dance routines and then “Ooh, my feet hurt so bad! I think my feet couldn’t take anymore back down on 33^rd and that’s not even half way,” Marina winced.

“I think I’ve got blisters on my blisters from dancing that whole way,” says Sara rubbing her feet.

I had to admit myself. My feet and my itchy costume were taking their toll on me.

“Hey, watch it!” someone said behind me. I turned around and saw the young man.

“Excuse me…pardon me….watch out!” he was saying trying to get to me. I finally saw his face and it was John panting heavily when he reached me. He took a moment to catch his breath.

“huff…Maylee…Kate….wants you….huff…at school…huff…for you to finish…something..for her…huff..huff.” he was saying panting at the same time.

“What! What kind of project does she want me to do?!”

“Huff….she wants you to finish a paper for her about the student body speech for next week and it needs to be handed in tomorrow.”

“But it’s supposed to be due next week! Why tomorrow?!”

John shrugged. “How am I suppose to know what goes through that demented mind of hers?”

Sara and Marina listened to the whole conversation, both saying, “You can’t go!!”

“Whoa, talk about surround sound,” John said jokingly. “Hey, can you two be the speakers. We wouldn’t need speakers or a mic for sound stage equipment. We’d just put you guys up and saves us the work…ha-ha!”

“Watch it boy, or you’ll see what I can do to that hole in your face with my fist,” Marina said in a threatening way.

“Okay, settle down you two,” I interrupted. “I told her I needed today free.”

I was getting angry with Kate. She would dump any work she was supposed to do. I finally got fed up with this girl’s laziness to the council.

“John, tell Kate to do the paper herself. I’m sick of her making me do her work.”

With that I felt a little better for turning down an assignment. I’ve never done it before. I felt I could do what I wanted when I wanted for that one day. The burden over my hard work finally started to lift off my shoulders.

My family, my two best friends and I had a great time after the Multi-Cultural Festival. My fun after so long.