When I was about seven years old, my brother was obsessed with soccer. All he ever did was either play soccer or talk about soccer. So obviously he was on a soccer team.  They were either called the Sharks or the Orcas. He always bragged about how his team was better than everyone else's and I got pretty sick of it, so I decided I was going to go to one of his games so that I could see how bad he actually was… also because my mom didn't want me to stay at home alone. 

We got to the park and started watching the game. The game was against a bunch of Russain kids who were insane at soccer, like to the point where my brother’s team was really far behind. I was sitting in the corner laughing hysterically because I was just the kind of kid that likes to watch the whole world burn. Anyways, it got to the point where I was laughing so hard my mom had to help me find a bathroom so I wouldn't pee my pants. I also think she wanted to get me out of there because I was starting to distract my brother. 

So we left and found a bathroom, and as we were walking away from the bathroom I spotted probably the coolest park you could probably get in the city of new york and asked my mom if we could go play there for a little bit, she said no at first. It took a lot of begging but finally she said we could  go play. We were running around the park and having the best time ever. I remember my mom coming and scaring me as I came down the slide and all this other stuff, it was one of the many fond memories I have of my mom, but it got ruined. 

After about an hour my mom said we should go back to see how my brother was doing because she thought it was rude to just leave like that. I begged her for just 10 more minutes. After lots of compromising we agreed on 5 more minutes, I was about to explain to her the game I wanted to play when I heard a loud bang. Me, my mom, everyone else in the park turned to where it was coming from. 

“Fireworks?” 

My mom offered, but it was only but July 4th wasn't for another month. 

People began to hide their kids behind their backs as if protecting them, my mom did the same. Another loud bang. I jumped at the sound, I looked around to see mothers and fathers with a look on their face that said something was wrong. Minutes passed and nothing happened, it was like everything was normal after that. Everyone began laughing and playing again, my mom smiled and said it was time to get going. We left the park and turned the corner to a sidewalk where a woman was laying on a bench with her husband pressing down hard on a spot on her stomach.

“Ma’am, please help my wife has been shot!”

I looked at the wife closely and noticed things like the pale shock on her face and her blood soaked shirt.

“Oh my god”

My mom rushed over and immediately began helping with compressions. I looked over to where a little boy was standing, tears silently running down his cheeks. It took me a second to realize that was the little boy I had seen playing in the park, he and his mom had left just before the gunshot went off. My mom had noticed and checked the time deciding that we should leave too, until I convinced her to stay five more minutes. I went over to the boy and took his hand, he gripped my hand tightly to the point where it was hurting me, but I didn't say anything. 

I stared for about twenty minutes and watched my mom, she ran back and forth grabbing anything she could to help. When she couldn't do anything to help she sat there and sobbed. I was crying too. The ambulance came and picked the woman up, my mom couldn't do anything to help but she still walked with them over to the ambulance to make sure everything went smoothly. 

When the ambulance had finally left my mom came over to me and sat there for a second, finally she wrapped her arms around me tight and hugged me for a long time.