Judgment Time :: Personal Narrative Essay

Judgment Time "Congratulations, you have a new baby boy!" my child-development teacher said as she handed over the 10-pound bundle. Last year in my high school child-development class, each student had to take the "Think-It-Over" baby home for a night to get a taste of parenthood. Even before I received the baby, I knew I was not ready to be a parent as a senior in high school. I could still remember when my brother and sister were little and I would have to take care of them all the time. At least the doll had no dirty diapers I would have to change. It was a Friday night when my turn came to take the 10-pound plastic doll home. The doll really did look like a live baby from a distance. It even had a pleasant baby powder smell. After I took the baby home in his car seat, I changed him into some really cute clothes because my friends and I were going out that night. I then decided to name him Tyler. Inside the body of this doll was a computer that was programmed to make periodic crying sounds. I was the only person who could stop the crying because I had the key. This key, tied to my wrist, could be inserted in the doll's back to stop the crying. So far, so good. The doll had not cried, yet. My friends came over, and we all piled into the car. It was kind of squished because we had the baby's seat in there, too. I had to treat the doll like a real baby because the computer inside also measured any abuse to the doll, such as shaking or neglect. The hour-long drive to the restaurant was uneventful. It was rather chilly, so I decided to wrap Tyler in a blanket and carry him in that way. I also had a diaper bag with diapers, a bottle, and an extra set of clothes hanging on my arm. Because it was Friday night, there were a lot of people waiting in line to get a table. When I walked into that crowded entryway, I got some very weird looks and quite a few raised eyebrows. My friends also noticed the glares and stares, so we decided to make a game out of the whole situation. I stood in the corner pretending to rock Tyler to sleep.