Elsa walked up the steps, through the door, and into the meeting room where the graduates were waiting before the procession started.
She had to find Victor. Victor was the only person who could help her. Victor was the only person who she could confide in. She wished she could have told her parents or her uncle how she really felt, but feared that doing so would only upset them.
She rushed through the crowd of graduates, past Nassor, Toshiaki, and Weird Girl. The longer she looked, the more desperate she became.
Finally, she found Victor. Victor appeared to be everything Elsa was not. He was calm, composed, and upbeat. Also, he was wearing the same blue summa cum laude sash Elsa was wearing. "Hi, Elsa!" he enthusiastically proclaimed.
"How are you doing?" asked Elsa.
"I'm eager to get my high school diploma so I can begin the pre-vetrinary program at Penn State," was Victor's answer.
"I wish I shared your enthusiasm, but I'm scared to death right now," Elsa admitted. "What if I really mess up my valedictorian speech? Will they not give me my diploma? And what will my uncle think?"
"They won't withhold your diploma unless you say any bad words in your valedictorian speech," Victor reassured her. "Have you gotten the chance to practice your speech?"
"Yes, dozens of times, but only for three people. This is different. I'll be speaking to thousands of people. This is even worse than when I was the Dutch Day singer."
"When I started playing baseball, I was pretty nervous too. But I got past it by breathing deeply and imagining a movie in my mind of what the baseball would see if it got knocked out of the park. That helped a lot."
"Thanks. I'll try that. I hope that helps.". Elsa left Victor and went to take her place in line. She found taking deep breaths helped a little, but not enough. She needed to visualize something pleasant, but what?
The music began to play. The procession started. Elsa took her seat. She breathed as deeply as she could through her nose so as not to make too much noise. She struggled to visualize something pleasant, but she could not do so. Could she ever do so?
The principal began speaking. Elsa would be making her speech shortly-or would she?
Maybe at some point, the principal would announce that there had been a mistake, that Elsa Van Helsing was not really the valedictorian and someone else was. Maybe that someone would be Victor. Victor would do better at this than she would.
That pleasant thought entertained her until she heard the words, "Ladies and gentlemen, I now present the New Holland High School Valedictorian, Elsa Van Helsing!"
Elsa gulped. This is it. It's too late to escape now.
She stood up, walked on stage, and approached the podium. When she stepped up to the podium, she looked around for something, anything that would give her a pleasant visual image. Then, amazingly, miraculously, she saw Victor's face in the crowd, even though it was so far away.
That was all she needed.
As she began by thanking all her teachers, she imagined herself and Victor walking down a spiral staircase. But it was no ordinary spiral staircase. It was the spiral staircase leading down to the main hall of a royal castle. Victor was wearing a spiffy military-like uniform and Elsa was wearing a long sparkling gown with a necklace and a tiara.
She proceeded to thank her parents, imagining Victor's parents as the King and Queen of the castle. When they got close enough, Victor bowed and Elsa curtsied.
She closed by reading off a famous quote, imagining her and Victor dancing to beautiful music. Now she was calmer than she had been all day.
And then her speech was over. Elsa shook hands with the principal, was handed her diploma, and returned to her seat.
The ceremony ended, and Elsa returned home with her family. She posed for more pictures and opened several gifts. Now she was truly, genuinely happy.
And finally, it was time to go to bed. Elsa slept soundly. When she woke up the next morning, she realized she learned something wonderful at her graduation ceremony. What we visualize in our minds can be more amazing than what we see with our eyes.
The End.
