A Dramatic Fall

 We all remember our first phone. For many of us, it wasn’t just a gadget; it was a symbol of freedom, connection, and excitement. I, too, had that excitement when I got my very first phone a cherished device that felt like a piece of my world. But little did I know, that piece of my world would take a dramatic fall... literally.

The story of my first phone is one filled with unexpected twists and unforgettable moments. I was in 9th grade, and like any other teenager, I was beyond thrilled with my new phone. I had barely started enjoying the thrill of owning it when the unthinkable happened. My cousin brother, who was just three years old at the time, called me to come play with him. But I was too busy playing games on my phone, completely absorbed in my own little world. Then, in a moment that still baffles me to this day, my mom called me from another room, and while I stepped away, my cousin took matters into his tiny hands. 

Before I could realize what was happening, he grabbed my phone and, with all the strength a three-year-old could muster, threw it from the 13th floor of our building. 

I remember rushing to the spot where it had fallen, my stomach in knots, hoping for a miracle. But as I laid my eyes on the smashed pieces of what used to be my beloved phone, the reality sank in. I stood there, tears welling up in my eyes, staring helplessly at the broken screen and twisted metal. And, in the midst of my devastation, my uncle decided to capture the moment a photo of me crying, holding the shattered remains of my first phone. It was, in retrospect, both tragic and hilarious.

That photo became iconic within my family. Over time, it stopped being a symbol of sadness and became a memory we could all laugh about. Every time I look at that picture now, it reminds me of the funny way life sometimes plays out. What seemed like a devastating event at the time eventually became one of those stories I’ll tell for years, always with a smile.

Today, I look at that broken phone and the photograph with fondness. It’s a reminder that material things come and go, but the memories we create around them stay forever. That first phone may be long gone, but the story lives on, and I wouldn't trade that for anything.

Life is unpredictable, and sometimes it throws your phone off the 13th floor but it’s how you laugh about it later that makes all the difference.