As a child I was always afraid of pinatas. For one, they look absolutely terrifying. The majority of them are shaped in the form of a donkey, with obnoxiously bright colors plastered all over them. It’s like a tiny not-human version of a clown.

Secondly, as a very self-conscious person, being blindfolded and handed a bat did not exactly appeal to me. Especially when I was told to start beating the thing. What person wouldn’t be nervous when surrounded by a group of kids their age, and told to beat something until it broke without help from their sight?

It’s just not right.

Because of my fear of fake colorful animals, I quickly became the party pooper. Which I was absolutely fine with. Instead of joining the circle around the large tree in the park at my best friends birthday party, I sat at the picnic table and ate cake.

It was worth not giving into peer pressure. I avoided the terrifying pinata, and got to eat a delicious chocolate cake instead. And I wasn’t accidentally hit in the head with a baseball bat, which really hurts. This one kid in my grade accidentally did that to me one time (while aiming for the pinata), and it hurts just as much as you think it would. And it’s all because of the blindfold.

I really don’t understand the fascination with these objects. To me, if I wanted candy that bad I would just go buy some, or go crazy trick-or-treating over halloween. But if people want entertain themselves by playing around with them, I’m not gonna be the one to stop them. But that pinata sitting in the corner of my english classroom? It’s not helping me to pay attention at all.