Like the other arts classes, photography was in the basement. No other location could have been a better fit for the way photography class made Sarrah feel.
She'd chosen it because there were no group projects, no forced conversations, and few restrictions. Yet it seemed like Ms. Longfellow had no tolerance for her. Last week, she'd melted down and run out of school, in no small part because Ms. Longfellow had told her that pieces of her portfolio were macabre and dinged her grade.
"So Sarrah, what are you bringing for us today?" Ms. Longfellow asked Sarrah. "I hope it's not another photo shoot in a cemetery," she added in an exasperated tone.
Sarrah knew Ms Longfellow would never leave her alone if she kept bringing more macabre pictures.
"It isn't a cemetery photoshoot or another decrepit building", she explained as she walked up to the center and loaded her memory card into the computer hooked up into the projector. "I went to St. Agnew Children's Hospital and did a photo report about the visit of Lightbringer puppies."
"Ooh! That sounds nice."
"That is the gothiest dog I ever met!" Sarrah added with glee as a picture of a white American pit bull filled the screen. "His name is Barkley and he's just six months old, but...I'm pretty sure he'll take your heart!" The dog had two black spots over his eyes, giving the impression of a mask. The next photo showed the dog next to a gaunt boy hooked up to some medical equipment. "That's Barkley with his best pal, Mel!" The boy was hugging the dog, yet Barkley seemed to be looking elsewhere. "Unfortunately, he doesn't have much longer to live because of a rare heart condition."
"Aww," a boy added from in the audience.
"So this is Tyrone," Sarah continued, the projector now displaying a charming, shaggy canine face. "She's a full American mutt, docile and absolutely full of love. She loves to share love, and she'll slobber on you if you're not careful." Sarrah advanced again to see . "This is Khadiji," she explained as the image changed to a brown-skinned girl. "She's a fighter who survived a spinal tumor and finally went home yesterday after months of surgery and recovery."
"All your pictures are cute puppies and sick kids?" Ms. Longfellow sighed.
"Yes. All of them. You asked me to search for hopeful subjects, and I did," Sarrah added snarkily.
"I can see right through you, Ms. McMillan," the teacher replied. No need to continue. I get the feeling you had opted to save the scariest images for later. When you create stuff, you can't just hit the same note all the time. Nobody will want to listen," she explained earnestly, hoping that her message about creative projects was getting through but knowing it almost certainly wasn't.
"So, what's the next assignment?" Sarrah asked again, annoyed.
"None of your business now. Take your memory card out and head back to your seat." She scanned the room. "Anyone wanna volunteer next?" The entire class raised their hands, realizing that Sarrah was an easy act to follow. "Aarona, I see you were first, so..." Aarona Knox stepped up to the task, connected his camera to the computer.
"So my photos are a little different... We took some of them this weekend out on the lake," he explained. "There should be something for everyone." The first photo was of the lake. It was a bit dreary, sure, but that was kind of par for the course for Seattle in February. The lake was placid, and the buildings on the other side reflected well, creating a striking composition. The next photo showed a jogger on a rather empty bike path. "It's February, so nature isn't that diverse. Luckily, I did some other things with my friends." In the next photo, Nicole Forsyth was seen running and carrying her boyfriend Rose Flowers. "Cool way to train for state playoffs, huh?" Some of the boys sighed—with jealousy and resentment—at seeing a broken boy in the center of the photo.
"That's a good set. You have an eye for placing people within the frame," Ms. Longfellow complimented. "Nice job." The class applauded as Aarona unplugged and went back to his station. "Who wants to go next?" Before she even concluded her sentence, Yazmín Torreblanca was preparing to present, taking advantage of the opportunity.
"So I went to one of those little pop-up places, you know, the ones with all the fancy backgrounds?"
"Ooh," another boy interjected.
"Yeah, kinda nice." Yazmin flipped through the different photos, but the variety in the background failed to mask the monotony in the foreground. Every single photo had him in it.
"I mean, you look good, but..." Ms. Longfellow shrugged. "What did I just say to Sarrah?"
"Uh... I dunno. I wasn't paying attention," Yazmin admitted, nervously running his fingers through his hair.
"'You can't just hit the same note all the time. Nobody will want to listen.' And you know what's worse?"
"What's that?"
"When your entire album is all me me me, me me, me me me, ME!" The frustrated teacher threw her hands up in the air. "This isn't Instagram, class. I get it, you're into fashion and you could very well be a model someday, but this kind of misses the mark as far as photography class-gram goes." Ms. Longfellow took a long look at Sarrah and Yazmín. "Maybe for the next group project I should put you together. Sure, Sarrah, you might be one-note, but at least you can play some different instruments and you could show him how to branch out of his comfort zone. And you, young woman, could stand to learn something from Yaz's positivity." There was a long, awkward silence. "Next?"
