Crying Giant by Tom Otterness

I am called the 'Crying Giant,' and it's true, I used to cry all the time - but, not anymore. Now, I'm happy. In fact, when you see me, although it might look like I'm crying, actually I'm covering my eyes, counting to ten, and playing hide-n-seek with my friends.  I admit it, it's hard sometimes being a giant. When I was a baby, my parents needed a forklift to pick me up. My diapers were made from the sails of a boat. I drank so much milk that we had to have a cow for a pet, which wasn't easy, because we lived in an apartment.  As I got older, I kept getting bigger.I was excited on my first day of school, so I took a shower in the neighborhood carwash. When the bus came to pick me up, the driver had to leave the backdoor open so my legs and feet could stick out.  Pretty soon, I got so big that I couldn't even ride the bus, so I walked to school. On the way, I had to duck my head so I wouldn't hit the telephone wires. If I stood still too long, birds would land on me and try to build nests in my hair. That's why I wear a hat.  I was sad because I was different than everybody else. They were made of skin and I am a sculpture made of bronze, created by the artist named Tom Otterness.  Go ahead, it's okay, to feel and touch me. You can even sit on my big feet if you want to. Some people think I look like a cartoon character with my round head and body and skinny arms and legs.  I think I am very good-looking.  The reason I used to be sad, was because I thought people didn't like me, because I was too tall. They thought, I didn't like them, because they were too small. We have each learned that friends like each other no matter what size you are.

Author's Statement

My name is Steve Renzi. I would like to thank Mrs. Brown, my 6th grade teacher, who asked me one day to get up in front of the class and read a story that I had written. This was hard for me - I was very shy - but as I was reading the story, I remember glancing up for a fraction of a second, looking up, and noticing to my surprise that everyone was paying attention to what I was reading. I guess my teacher recognized something that took me 30 years to figure out. Thanks Mrs Brown.

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