Entries 2012

2012

GRAND PRIZE |  ELEMENTARY
Sophia CAPOTE
 – Slow-po’s Story – was in 3rd grade at St. Stephen’s Episcopal Day School.
Teacher: Ms. Molly Brown.

Excerpt from the story
…….. I have animaginary pet, it is a panda. His name is Slow-po and he is not your regular panda. He is my best friend.           
         Pandas eat bamboo, but my panda Slow-po eats pancakes with syrup on top, blueberries in the middle and sugar on the bottom. I never eat all those things on my own pancakes. Slow-po dines on his bed, in the gym, in the car under an umbrella eating with his hands.           
         Slow-po likes to sing, though normal pandas bark to communicate. His favorite song is “California Girls”. I like it but the way Slow-po sings the tune is horrible. Whenever I say it’s horrible, he says I am wrong. Slow-po thinks of being a panda pop star. He sings everywhere, in the car, in the living room and also when he is sleeping. I think he is funny………

GRAND PRIZE  |  MIDDLE SCHOOL
Katherine COHEN – Hope Amongst Ashes – was in 8th grade at Carver Middle School.  
Teacher: Mr. Patrick Redmond.

Excerpt from the story
         I drift through the deserted town, my mind tainted with the truth of how wicked life is. The name is Niomi, and I am part of the minority who suffer from reality the others stay blinded, trapped in a place once called paradise. The title is a lie told to make them sleep better at night. We live in a future no one predicted, and no one wanted. The sky is void of flying cars, instead filled with blush smog and forgotten hopes.  
         I am alone on this desolate street. My footsteps, jagged and weak from the limited provisions, are the only audible sounds in the silence. My green eyes look up at the buildings surrounding me, barren gray walls with few windows. It is nearly impossible to believe the existence of a meadow, a true paradise where this prison now stands.  
         I am not alone, after the predicted apocalypse of 2012, life seemed to have taken a brilliant change for the better. The world’s population grew until the whole planet was an empty shell. Earth’s inside was dug up and built on, and, although it was industrialized, the technology and medicine made life beautiful………

GRAND PRIZE  |  HIGH SCHOOL
Tori LUTZ – Restless -was in 11th grade at Carrollton School.
Teacher: Ms. Mary Ann Baker.

Excerpt from the story
……..“Dreams,” Mr. Yusko continued “are like fantasies invented by our sub-conscience. We all have desires, hopes for the future, scenes playing out in our heads when we let our minds wander. But when people used to sleep, they would slip into their sub-conscience, an area of our brains now only used indirectly, and succumb to dreams for hours. These dreams are like movies that play in the mind while the person sleeps. It could have to do with what they’re worried about in the back of their mind. Perhaps they are nervous about a job interview or test. It could be related to love or friendship. It could even seem to make no sense at all, because the sub-conscience can have a funny way of saying things. But most importantly, no matter what the dream was, it was an escape from reality and a vacation into our souls.”
         Hands shot up and were called one by one. What blew me away was how many pointless and shallow questions were asked. Things like “How did they affect productivity?”
“Could people control their dreams?”
“Was it possible to record them?” I sat back in my chair unimpressed with my class until
Mr. Yusko called on me. “Miss Annabeth, do you have anything to ask?” I sat up straight, almost timid as I looked at him with all eyes on me. “If we don’t dream,” I began slowly. I was never one of the big talkers of the class. “If we don’t dream, then we can’t slip out of reality to glimpse at our heart and soul.” Correct,” he said. “Because now everything we do is a conscious decision,” I continued. “Everything is guided by reason and caution. Our thoughts and even our imaginations are somewhat controlled, any pure emotion warped and changed from its original state.” ……..