(Illustration by Volunteer Artist Caitlyn Harrington)

Volunteer Writer: Kiyan Weiss

Emails: kweiss@umassd.edu / charrington5@umassd.edu

It’s not easy being a bull in a china shop. You’d think the shelving arrangements are tight, and they are, but its nothing compared to the confines of a busy shopping mall.

I’ve only been two days on the job, but Nellie says I’ve picked up the work very quick! You kinda have to, though, especially when you only get a few seconds of bowl balancing with the ol’ behooved hooves.

So far, haven’t really been minding the day to day grind—you know, the usual clock in, put some new bowls out, some plates decorated with little flora and fauna, and clean up the shards from yesterdays mistakes. It’s not easy at all to stack pottery perfectly, positioned precisely for the purpose of preventing porcelain pandemonium, but with a lil’ time and some elbull grease, you get it figured out.

Nellie’s Emporcenalted Emporium hasn’t always been my home. My life wasn’t always painted on sunshines and rainbows, you see. I lived a hard life as a rodeo bull, getting worked to the bone and never seeing even a morsel of what I earned.

But enough! My life has taken a turn for the better, and I won’t be penned back in my muddy past. I saw that the Emporium was hiring, and I took my chances. I steeled my will and put on my best suit and tie for the occasion and went in. Nellie immediately took a liking to me, thinking I would be a great help for lifting the heavier cupid fountains out back, and hired me on the spot. 

At first, I was a bit worried about the hours, but working a 9-5 isn’t so bad when you’ve got plenty of books to read behind the counter. Been reading some of the classics, like Plates of Wrath and A Doll’s House. It’s a great gig overall, and so long as I sweep up my messes, Nellie doesn’t mind how many clumsy cracks and clatterings I cause.

One day, I’d like to go on a journey to the land they call china: visit the maestros who produce such captivating ceramic and perhaps make my own bowls, that I may one day display in my own little shelf.