The Awful Assassins Game

I'm going to start this post by just saying -- I HATE this Senior Assassins game. I think it is completely ridiculous and out of control, and a weird thing to do. End Rant...sort of.

These pictures actually make me want to bawl...sometimes life is just unfair. Let me preface this story by saying--I admit this is a "small" thing in the grand scheme of things--but it was a big deal to Mackenzie, and how this played out genuinely just stinks. The Seniors play this Senior Assassins game towards the end of the school year. They basically are assigned a target, and they have to sneak up on them and spray them with a water gun. If they are wearing floaties, they are exempt from getting out. So, everywhere they go, the Seniors are wearing floaties. Well, when we headed to take JSB pics, and Mackenzie realized she left her floaties at home, we stopped at Dollar Tree to buy some more. I even went in to get them, since Mackenzie wasn't wearing floaties and didn't want someone to shoot her in the store. (There is an actual app that goes with this game, where they can see where everyone is at...crazy if you ask me!) They didn't have actual floaties so I bought this huge tube because it's all I could find. Beforehand, Mackenzie and Kenzie had declared that the photo studio was a "safe zone" and if for some reason they had each others names, they could not shoot each other there. But, walking in and out, Mackenzie wanted to make sure she had her floatie on. Let me set the stage--this was at a building downtown, where the doors going in and out of the building were locked--we had to be let inside. Mackenzie changed into her JSB dress and Vicki had just started taking pictures of her. Not even 1 minute into her photo session, we hear a commotion and someone comes running in and sprays Mackenzie with a water gun. It was like watching in slow motion as this unfolded before me. (Kenzie's dad didn't really know what was going on, and he let this person into the building.) Again, I know this is just a game, but it was a big deal to Mackenzie. The look on her face is something I will never forget. She was so sad...and mad...and so disappointed...It was all she could do to not start crying right there in front of everyone. First of all, she got water all over her dress. Second, part of the game is that the attack has to be video'd and sent to the entire Senior class...so everyone saw her JSB dress, which is not cool at all. Third, there is a past history with the person who sprayed her...if it would have literally been any other person in her grade, it would have been less upsetting to Mackenzie...that's all I will say about that.  And fourth, it happened at the beginning of her pictures, and then she was supposed to just recover and act as if nothing had happened. She tried so hard to hold it together, but after a few minutes of holding back tears, I told Vicki she needed a minute to recover. There were clearly big feelings over this...but what can you do? This was not the way Mackenzie wanted her Assassins game to end, but the reality is...sometimes life just isn't fair.

I love you, Mackenzie!