I was a precocious youth. I knew things others did not, a fact which was frequently remarked upon by my parents and other elders. When I was young, my knowledge was greeted with curiosity and amusement. I guessed at little things. Lost your glasses? Ask little Marco, he is sure to know. Lost your keys? Marco will know where to find them. The adults even began to play a little game; each time they visited my parents, they would secret away and hide something, then marvel in how quickly I found it. The game, and I, were referred to as Marco Polo. The adults adored me. As you might expect, I basked in their attention.

How, you might ask, did I know these things? I always had special friends. Even early on, I realized not everyone could see them. Lost your glasses? Marissa, a girl of about seven, would help me find them. Lost your keys? I would turn to Paulo, a boy of eleven, who would point them out for me. Indeed, t

hey helped me with more than finding things. Everyone thought I was reading before I turned two, but really I relied upon Marissa and Paulo to tell me the words. Even as you read this, know, I cannot read. I have dictated my tale. For, you must understand, though I have been given the gift of seeing everything, I understand only a fraction of what I see. In fact, as you read, I see the man just beyond you, hovering at your right shoulder, arm poised to tap on you, but reluctant to disturb you. I see him, but I know him not. Is he your uncle, your father, your grandfather? Does he love you, or does he come from somewhere to harm you? I know not. I only know that he stands there poised, fingers ready to descend upon you, whether in an assault or an embrace is lost to me.

The older I grew, the more my parents' friends tired of my parlor tricks. When they gathered, I would be ushered off to an upstairs room, to play with the other children. But the other children knew I was other and shunned me. Desperate to re-gain my status among the adults, I asked Marissa and Paulo for their assistance. What could I find that would make me shine for the adults? Instead of keys or glasses, my friends cast their nets wide. They began to tell me things that would happen. I would tell someone to avoid a certain street in their drive home, and the next morning it would be revealed that there had been an accident on that street. I would suggest someone by a lottery ticket or enter a contest, and they would win. No one ever won anything big, but before long the new trick was to ask me for advice. Once again, I was adored. There was something new there, too. Respect. And something else. A little bit of fear. Still they came to me to hear their fortunes told. And, because I adored them too, I told them everything I saw. Warnings of tires or arteries that were close

Some common words found in the essay are:
Marissa Paulo, Paulo Amanda, Marco Polo, , Marco Lost, marissa paulo, See/sight Knowing, lost glasses, lost keys, markum visited, drive home,
Approximate Word count = 1270
Approximate Pages = 5 (250 words per page double spaced)