Too late, I felt the now-familiar tingle, and realized what I'd just set in motion.
I felt my despair and uneasiness fade as I realized that I was now completely familiar with every single routine the cheer squad had in its repertoire. Not only familiar, in fact, but I was sure I could do them all expertly.
Even more astounding to me was the fact that not only could I do them, but I was eager to! I could think of nothing that would make me any happier than to get back out on the court and do my best for the team.
"Jonnie?" Karyn asked me, uncertain as to why I'd suddenly stopped crying. "Are you okay?"
Unable to contain my enthusiasm, I gave my friend a sisterly hug and bounded to my feet. "Okay, girls," I yelled, beaming with happiness, "I was away for a while, but now I'm back! Let's do it!"
Sure enough, the second half of the practice a rousing success! The squad ran through their entire routine, and I didn't miss a single beat. I shook my pom-poms, swung my hips, did flips and cartwheels, and helped form a pyramid, all as expertly as if I'd been doing it my whole life. And strangely, I found the whole thing left me full of energy and spirit
That exeprt part wasn't hard to understand - I mean, I had wished to be as talented as anyone else on the team. It took me longer to figure out why.
It hit me in the middle of the final routine. I remembered exactly what I had wished for - to be as talented and dedicated as the rest of the team! That's why being a cheerleader was suddenly such a big deal to me! I was not only as talented as the whole rest of the team put together, I was as dedicated as them put together, too! I knew without a doubt that cheerleading the most important thing in the world to me now. Maybe even - more important than going back to being a guy?!?
