Passion Fruit

What if there was a fruit you could eat that would expose everything you were passionate about. All you had to do was think of a subject or a person or a thing and then eat the fruit and if you felt a spark of excitement and your eyes turned purple then that meant this was something that would create great passion. Knowing what you are passionate about can create great opportunities in your life. It's something you know you'll love no matter the circumstance, so it's something that would be worth your time persuing. Follow your passion and you will find your purpose. Find your purpose and you'll never work another day in your life. People with great passion can make the impossible happen, so do it with great passion or don't do it at all. What would happen though if you ate the fruit but never felt this spark or your eyes never turned purple? -- Today was the day. Everyone gathered in the auditorium to watch the class of 2020 cross the graduation stage. Family, friends, and bystanders alike waited in anticipation to see their loved-ones crossover their first big milestone in life. The place was so packed people were standing in the aisles and along the backside of the 500 seat auditorium. Even with a Global Pandemic, the ceremony was listed as essential, so everyone had their white masks and gloves while trying to stay as far apart as the crowded auditorium would allow. This was a lot of people's first time out of their houses in two months so there was a lot of talking and laughing while finding their place to sit or stand to get a good view of the ceremony. Mr. Liamsworth our principal approached the podium wearing an all-white robe with a white cap that had a 2020 purple tassel hanging down. The other teachers were also on stage sitting to his right with matching robes and caps with their purple tassels. "Thank you all for coming to witness and celebrate this year's graduating class. As you all know, today's graduation will not only celebrate their scholastic success but it will be the determining factor of what's to come in their future. Before we get started our Vice Principal, Madame Blanc, will go over the agenda for today's graduation and remind everyone of the rules to follow. Madame Blanc will you please come forward and walk us through today's activities?" "Thank you, Mr. Liam. First, I would like to congratulate all of the students for their hard work and determination over the past 4 years. Now, on to today's agenda." Madame Blanc continued to list out today's agenda like a robot, but it was so quiet in the packed auditorium that you could hear a pin drop. It was the same agenda every single year, but every single year everyone listened intently as though it was their first time hearing it. Not daring to look at their phones or turn away in case a single word was missed. I don't think it was for a lack of remembrance but more of an abundance of anticipation. "First, we will announce the students one by one to have them cross the stage and collect their Diploma of Completion and then find their seats at the center of the stage. Second, we will announce the names of those who will be receiving this year's special awards due to high academic achievements. Third, the class valedictorian will make the class speech. And lastly, we will go through this year's passion fruit tests. The rules are as follows: 1. Please hold all applauds until the last student has received their Diploma of Completion. 2. Under no circumstance are you allowed to interfere with today's tests. If you interfere in any way you will receive the same results. 3. Parents or guardians who would like to purchase a frame of their child's photo and/or Diploma of Completion, please congregate in the meeting hall at the end of the ceremony. Once the ceremony is over the students will meet their guests outside and continue celebrations off of school property. Let's begin."

One after the other each of the 300 students from my high school class was called to walk the stage and collect their Diploma of Completion. Each of us took our center stage seats waiting for the names to be called who would receive this year's special awards. If you were in the top 5 of your graduating class with a leading GPA and spotless record then you would win the pardon award at graduation. These 5 students were given a choice of participating in the tests or not, but if they decided to participate and didn't receive any positive results then they would be held to the normal accountability rules. It was a given though that if you won the pardon award you would opt out of the test because gambling on an uncertain future is better than no future at all.

I held my breath when they began reading the 5 names to receive the pardon award. I worked so hard to get straight A's and maintain a perfect record. I stayed up late, worked every extra credit assignment, and turned in every assignment on time even when I was absent from school due to family emergencies. The problem though is that the competition was stiff. Everyone wanted this "special award" at graduation and we all worked our asses off to get it.

As I sat in my seat waiting for Madame Blanc to take the podium once our valedictorian had finished her speech, a thought hit me. It hit me so hard it snatched the air right out of my lungs. I was so busy trying to maintain a perfect GPA and record that I never explored to see what I might actually be passionate about. I studied math until my eyes felt like they were bleeding, but was I actually passionate about numbers, or did I just need a good grade to get to this point? Did I actually enjoy Biology or did I need my projects and papers to be perfect in comparison? Did I even enjoy my after school activities or were they to advance my social status and record? All of these years, I feel like I just went through school to pass the tests and get good grades. What if because of that I fail the passion fruit test?

This test determines if I make it all the way across this graduation stage and into society or not. It determines if I will ever see my family again. But somehow only now am I realizing that I may not have had enough experiences to have found what I am even passionate about.

I was so preoccupied with the panic attack that was creeping into my mind and lungs that I didn't even hear Madam Blanc call my name. One moment I couldn't breathe or hear anything around me and the next I see people clapping and all turned looking at me. This snapped me back into reality and out of my head to realize I was one of the 5 that would receive this year's special award. I exhaled in relief and I felt the tears starting to sting the back of my eyes. Myself and the other four students were motioned to sit in the five empty chairs next to the principal and teachers if we decided to opt-out of the passion test. All five of us got up and looked at our fellow classmates in what felt like a final goodbye and went to sit by the teaching staff.

Over the years the passion fruit test had evolved to the point where all a student needed was a pulse oximeter and a VR mask that flashed images before them as they ate their passion fruit. The images, the student's pulse rate, and their eye color were all displayed on the big screens in the auditorium for the audience to witness. If the student's pulse rate raised above 100 BMP and/or their eyes turned purple then the results are that person is passionate about that certain image. If their eyes turn purple with or without a raised heart rate then the results are positive. However, if the heart rate rises but their eyes do not turn purple then this is still a negative result. So, if a student's eye color doesn't change during the test than this means they are not and will not be passionate about anything and they fail the test. These tests determine what you will continue to study in college and eventually how you will contribute to society. Data has shown that people who find their passion are the most innovative, reliable, and hard-working toward their craft. Ever since the passion fruit test has begun society has plunged into the future making breakthroughs in medicine and advancing technology at the fastest rates in history. My parents attest to these results because they tell me often how happy and fulfilled they feel every day. Depression, homelessness, suicides, over-population, hunger, is all almost non-existent in our world.

However, the test can only be run once for each person because there are just too many students to get through and schools don't have the time, money, or resources to run the test multiple times for anyone. They already break graduation out into two sometimes three graduation ceremonies depending on how many students are graduating that year. Three hundred students are usually the most they will test in one day.

I watched from my pardon seat as one by one my classmates entered the testing area. Each time I wondered if this would be the last time I ever saw them again. No one knows what happens to the person that fails. They are restrained and then led out of the auditorium never to be seen or heard of again.

Many parents screamed out and ran forward to accept the same fate as their child but others felt they had no choice but to watch in horror as their child was taken away for the last time because they couldn't leave their other children behind and alone. Many people diverted their eyes but no one except those willing to submit themselves to the same mysterious fate spoke up.

"This isn't fair!" screamed a mother after her child was given a failed test result. "Her eyes turned purple! Play if back! Replay the results!"

Madame Blanc obliged as replays require no extra resources and usually don't take up too much time.

"I'm sorry ma'am but there is no detection in the system, even after the replay, of her eyes, ever turning purple," said Madame Blanc.

They started to take the hysterical student and her mother away for asking for a replay. The rules clearly state if you speak up or disrupt the test at any time you submit yourself to the same fate as the test result.

Screams were all I could hear. Even after it was all over and the people who failed and those who spoke up were removed. I could still hear their screams, their pleading. I could hear the quiet tears of those who stayed behind as their child was taken away. I could hear their silent prayers for a better future. One that would prepare and protect the youth for what's to come instead of leaving it up to chance. One where "it's not in the budget" wouldn't be the determining factor of a child's life.

Three hundred of us walked the stage that day. Two hundred and ten left with their families.

Madame Blanc's closing words, "Thank you, everyone, for joining the ceremonial class of 2020 and remember in order to succeed you have to believe in something with a passion."

Written by Kristina Darrah

#shortstory #passionfruit #passion #success #ouryouthisourfuture #nightmaresaredreamstoo