Lucky Caller by Emma Mills

    I don’t know about you, but group projects were definitely not my favorite thing in school.  This was especially true when I wasn’t able to choose the group.  There was one group project that was particularly horrific.  It is probably why even today when I hear group project or teams, I cringe.

    Nina is spending her last semester of high school in a radio class.  The class’ major project is to create a weekly radio show.  Without anyone in the class she truly wants to form a group with, Nina ends up working with two students she does not know well, Sasha and Joydeep, and someone she has a past with, Jamie Russell.

Give Us a Ring/Artwork by Kate Dorsey

    Jamie is a childhood friend of Nina’s.  They haven’t hung out together in years because of something Nina did on a school fieldtrip.  This past event makes it awkward for Nina and Jamie to work together now.  Without any other options for partners, Nina has to.  She also has to figure out how to get through this project.

    No one in the group is excited about the radio show.  Three of them want to stay behind the scenes, while Joydeep wants to do as little as possible.  All the time.  Even during recording, Joydeep is more interested in hurting other groups’ shows than concentrating on his own.  It isn’t until a private conversation is aired by accident that any of them start to take the project seriously.

    To get themselves out of trouble for the aired conversation, the group promises a surprise guest for later in the semester.  The plan is for the guest to be Nina’s dad, a radio host in California.  But rumors start that the guest will be someone else.  Someone people are excited about, making the event far bigger than it was meant to be.

    The whole event ends up being a possible failure when Nina’s father suddenly backs out of the appearance.  Nina had been counting on him to come.  Now she knows he isn’t someone to count on.  She also comes to understand there are others in her life of which she can.

    Oh, my goodness.  Joydeep drove me crazy with his determination to do next to nothing for the project.  It is something I have experienced far too many times in my life, as I’m sure plenty of other people have too.  All too often, there is one or more person who wants to leave the work for everyone else but get all the glory.

    As for Nina, I also struggled with her at times.  She could be unnecessarily mean to people.  To Jamie in particular.  The good thing is, Nina would realize and understand she did something out of line.  She just didn’t always know how to fix the hurt she caused.

    Fortunately for Nina, the people in her life were understanding.  Jamie forgave her all the time.  As did her family.  Nina and her sisters could be snappy at each other, but when it came down to it, they were very supportive. 

    Nina’s mother and her fiancé Dan were the same way, although, they did not get snappy.  They were simply there for people when they were needed.

    Sasha’s behavior was very much like Nina’s family, which is probably why she and Nina became such good friends.  Also, Sasha had the best piece of life advice she kept with her at all times.  It came from her mother.  Her mother explained to her, some people are meant to be in your life for only a short amount of time.  But that no matter how short of time you have together, the time still has meaning and impact.  It is something to hold onto and remember.

    This life lesson is something to definitely hold unto, especially as people’s lives change.  Whether it’s graduating from high school, as Nina and her friends are doing, or just lives going in different directions.  Keep in mind the people whose time you enjoyed.  They made a difference, even if they are no longer a part of your life.