#3 Panic Monster, Be Gone... 💪🏾💪🏾💪🏾

Thirteen-year-old Bailey Daniels slowly walked up the carpeted hallway of Swan Lee Christian Middle School and headed towards her fourth-period history class. Her baby blue Jansport backpack felt like it had a million bricks in it; in reality it had three textbooks, a notebook, a calculator, a yellow highlighter, a mechanical pencil and two ink pens in it.

I need to learn my dad's favorite boxer, Mike Tyson's, workout routine because my right shoulder and right arm feel as if they are about to fall off. Bailey thought to herself as she struggle-walked to the back of the room, then nabbed a desk in the far right corner of the classroom near a large poster featuring little-known Black Inventors.

Bailey's History teacher this semester was Mr. Cornellion. She heard through the middle school grapevine that he was a fun & lively teacher who gave out Now and Laters & free medium Domino's pizzas to the top three highest scorers on his midterm and final exams.

Bailey thought that Mr. Cornellion looked a lot like Will & Jada Smith's son, Jaden Smith, except his skin tone was deeper. The resemblance was so strong that she wanted to ask Mr. Cornellion, "How's Willow, Jaden?" But thought better of it.

Bailey absolutely despised the first day of school. She hated the fact that the teacher always went around the room and asked everyone to tell the class what they did over summer break.

Bailey was always a beach ball of nervous tension when it came to public speaking. She felt confident when she wrote things down, but when she met new people or had to speak up in class, she became uber-nervous.

People just didn't understand that public speaking made Bailey feel as if 'Dumbo' the elephant and his entire extended family were stampeding across her chest; it also made her tummy feel nauseous & woozy, like she had just taken a ride on the not-for-the-faint-of-heart Zipper ride at the Washington State Fair. Additionally, public speaking always caused Bailey's heart to flutter like a flag on a flagpole in a windstorm.

Why can't I just be normal? Bailey thought to herself.

Bailey's thoughts were suddenly eclipsed by a baritone voice that said, "Welcome to the History of Colored People, Grade 8. I'm your instructor, Mr. Cornellion, but you can call me Mr. C. And just so you know, I'm allergic to apples, but I will gladly accept Snickers bars any day of the week," Lucky Cornellion said with a chuckle.

"And this young lady over here in the corner is my volunteer teaching assistant, Miss Krista," Lucky said as he pointed toward his baby sister, Krista, with pride.

"Miss Krista will be here every Monday in September and October to help us with our Great Black Women in History series. She will be in charge of the question and answer sessions related to our Monday movies for the next seven weeks."

"This week's movie will be 'The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman.' If you haven't seen it yet, you are in for a treat. We will watch the first half today and the rest tomorrow. Please take notes throughout the movie; there will be a pop quiz on Wednesday afternoon," Mr. Cornellion added with a smile.

"Say hello to everyone, Miss Krista, and please tell us a little bit about yourself," Mr. Cornellion said with a nod in Krista's direction.

"Sure, Mr. C. Hey y'all! I am pleased to meet you! I'm Miss Krista. I am a freshman at Rulane University, and I am studying Child Development. I am here to observe your behavior & social dynamics as well as to assist Mr. C with any classroom tasks that he may require assistance with. I will be here through Halloween. Please make sure to be here that day. You don't want to miss out. I will be bringing cupcakes for everyone. Also, if you see me in the hallway, please don't hesitate to say hi," Eighteen-year-old Krista Cornellion said with a shy smile.

"Thank you, Miss Krista! Now, our first order of business is to introduce ourselves so that we can get to know each other better. Let's start in the back of the room for a change. I know some of my shyer students love to hide in the back of the classroom; therefore, why don't we shake things up a bit by starting there first?" Mr. Cornellion said with a warm smile.

As Arnold from 'Different Strokes' would say, "What you talkin' bout Willis?" Why you gotta do me like that, Mr. C? Lord help me! I feel like I'm going to barf! Bailey thought to herself.

"Young lady in the far right corner of the room with the maroon Swan Lee Christian Middle School hoodie on, please remove your hood and then stand up and introduce yourself and tell us about something you enjoyed doing over the summer break," Mr. Cornellion said with an encouraging smile.

Bailey felt faint. Dang! Why did her crush, Decatur-Montell have to be in class today? She definitely didn't want him to see her laid out on the floor like a defeated female pro boxer who was no longer in her prime.

Why couldn't she be a confident and powerful speaker like Maya Angelou or even her crush, Decatur-Montell?

Bailey's crush, Decatur-Montell, who looked a lot like the Black kid from 'Stranger Things' was named after his mother's favorite talk show host from the 90s, Montell Williams. His name suited him and definitely shaped his destiny because he had grown up to be an exceptional speaker like Mr. Williams. In fact, Decatur-Montell had been chosen by members of the Swan Lee faculty to give an MLK Jr. tribute speech at the annual 'All Races United' school assembly for the last two years in a row.

Bailey stood up from her seat and said, "My name is Bailey Daniels. I visited Alabama for the first time last summer, and I…" Bailey stammered as she nervously tugged on her humongous Afro puff ponytail with her left hand as she spoke.

"And I..." Bailey continued as she began to become unsteady on her feet.

Mr. Cornellion was skilled at reading medical cues and body language; therefore, he sent Krista to tend to Bailey.

"Can you escort Bailey to the nurse's office, please, Miss Krista? I think that she needs to be seen right away," Mr. Cornellion said hurriedly.

"Sure thing, Mr. C," Krista said as she rose from the black leather stool that she had been sitting on, jogged down the aisle, and caught Bailey right before she toppled over.

Krista gingerly escorted Bailey to the nurse's office. The head nurse, Nurse Sampson, met them at the door and took Bailey by the arm and guided her to an empty cot and instructed her to lie down. As soon as Bailey was situated, Nurse Sampson asked for each young lady's name and then promptly asked Bailey what happened.

"Well... When I was in history class, I started having palpitations, then a tidal wave of nausea hit, and my chest felt funny. Then, I almost fainted," Bailey replied nervously.

"What were you doing when you began to feel like this?" Nurse Sampson asked with a look of concern in her hazel eyes.

"Giving a speech in class," Bailey replied with a look of embarrassment on her face.

After asking Bailey a few more questions and checking her vital signs, Nurse Sampson determined that Bailey had had a panic attack. Nurse Sampson explained that panic attacks are the body's stress response to a perceived threat and that it was something that would eventually pass. She said that people often get them in stress-inducing situations like driving on the freeway or being in crowded places like a live music concert. She assured Bailey that they are common for some people with anxiety disorders and that it generally takes between roughly seven and twenty-seven minutes for the icky feelings associated with the panic attack to subside.

"Bailey, I want you to lie here and relax for about twenty-five minutes, okay, baby? This will give your mind and body some time to release the tension and to rebound," Nurse Sampson said reassuringly.

"Do you know Psalm 23, baby?" Nurse Sampson asked Bailey sweetly.

"Yes, ma'am, I learned it in Sunday school when I was ten," Bailey replied with interest.

"Great! I want you to recite it over and over until I return. God's word will give you strength. I'm going to the supply closet on the second floor to get you another pillow, a blanket, and a bottle of water. I'll be back in about ten minutes," Nurse Sampson said with a compassionate smile.

"Can you please stay with her until I get back, Miss Krista?" Nurse Sampson asked politely as she looked in Krista's direction.

"Sure," Krista replied with a warm smile.

"Thank you much," Nurse Sampson responded as she headed out the door, her brunette ponytail swinging happily with every step that she took.

As soon as Nurse Sampson was out of earshot, Krista confided to Bailey that she used to have the same panic problem as Bailey until she was fifteen because of a tough early home life but that she overcame it with prayer and her secret weapons.

"Really, Miss Krista? My fourth-grade teacher once told me these feelings were all in my head. I thought that I was the only one with this "made up" problem. It's nice to know that I am not alone," Bailey replied.

"Nurse Sampson pointed you in the right direction. God is the person that we can go to when we are in trouble. He will be there when no one else can. He is omniscient, meaning he is all-knowing, and omnipotent, meaning all-powerful; he can help us with anything," Krista replied with vigor.

Suddenly, Krista told Bailey to sit tight for five minutes and that she would be right back. In exactly five minutes, Krista returned with the chocolate brown Birkin bag that she had received for her eighteenth birthday the previous month.

After fishing in her purse for a little while, Krista pulled a hot pink stress ball out of the bottom of it and handed it to Bailey.

Bailey giggled when she saw the stress ball because Miss Krista had decorated it in such a uniquely extravagant, gaudy, and ostentatious way. Miss Krista had definitely been dedicated to her stress ball art project. She had taken the time to draw a set of eyes, the perfect button nose, and a set of pouty lips on it. She even went as far as to expertly glue a real pair of false eyelashes above the eyes for fun.

"That is my homegirl Juanita that you are holding. She will keep you safe. She knows Judo," Krista said with a hearty chuckle as she pointed toward the stress ball in Bailey's right hand.

Bailey had to laugh out loud at that remark. Juanita even had a pixie cut and a pair of earrings and a necklace drawn on. She was definitely red carpet ready!

"Along with reciting Psalm 23, like Nurse Sampson said, don't hesitate to use the stress ball that I just gifted you when you feel anxious or unsteady. It always helped me to feel better. Whenever I had to make a speech in high school, I would squeeze it as I spoke, and it proved to be just what the doctor ordered because it always managed to take my mind off of my fear."

"Also, let me give you one more reinforcement before we go back to class, Bailey," Krista said suddenly as she unhooked a gold necklace from around her neck and handed it to Bailey.

The necklace was exquisite; it had a small gold-plated charm in the shape of a life jacket attached to it.

"It's beautiful! Are you sure?" Bailey asked as she admired the necklace.

"Yes, I'm sure. God told me to pass it on to someone in need one day. Besides, I have a matching necklace at home that once belonged to my favorite cousin Pepe, before he passed away from a heart defect when he was six," Krista replied solemnly.

"Before my great grandpa George passed away, he sent me the life jacket necklace that I am gifting you and told me to wear it around my neck whenever I feel afraid and that his love would keep me afloat. He also told me to pray for strength and to lean on God whenever I felt overwhelmed. I hope that the necklace keeps your fears at bay. Just imagine God keeping you afloat anytime that you feel as if you are sinking."

"The life jacket charm also has another meaning. It's symbolic of my great grandpa George's lifeguarding profession, which was a highly uncommon profession for a Black man in the late sixties," Krista added with pride.

"Once the life jacket necklace showed up in my life, I began to take on choir solos at school, and I even landed the lead in the school play one year. I no longer had any fear of public speaking because I knew that I was being protected from afar by my great grandpa & our Heavenly Father," Krista continued.

"Simply pray for strength, Bailey and lean on God, your new homegirl Juanita, and the agape love and good vibes attached to your new life jacket necklace when you feel afraid, and that panic monster will be gone before you know it!" Krista concluded confidently.

"Thanks so much for caring, Miss Krista. I'm beginning to feel better already," Bailey responded with a cheerful smile.

"Anytime, Bailey, anytime. Now you had better get to reciting Psalm 23 before Nurse Sampson gets back so we don't get struck by lightning for not following through with the man above," Krista said with a roaring laugh that caused her to snort loudly while simultaneously causing Bailey to cheese like a lotto winner on their fourth Ferrari purchase.