2013
GRAND PRIZE | ELEMENTARY
Emma BEHARRY – When The Animals Could Talk – was in 3rd grade at Carrollton School of the Sacred Heart.
Teacher: Ms. Julia Connett.
Excerpt from the story
…….. Long, long ago in very, very ancient times, animals could talk. Instead of purring or roaring, howling and growling they talked like you and me.
Over the years most lost their magic. Very few still have it. It’s hard to find them but they do exist. This is the story of how it all happened. Let’s travel back in time before the first humans were alive. Animals lived in happiness. They chatted and played well together. It was their magic that let them. It only worked when the animal was happy. This was life for hundreds, thousands, even millions of years. Until….a new creature came…a human! The animals saw her as a harmless creature and welcomed her. She thanked them, but then cut down trees and built a house. This hurt the feelings of animals. She made them happy by helping the hurt and healing the sick. This, the animals appreciated much! Soon, the human population grew. Over the years, more trees were cut and more land was claimed. The humans taught animals hate, anger, jealousy, lies, quarrels and more!!! The animals argued and fought. In the process most lost their magic……..
GRAND PRIZE | MIDDLE SCHOOL
Katherine COHEN – Silence’s Sound – was in 8th grade at Carver Middle School.
Teacher: Mr. Patrick Redmond.
Excerpt from the story
…….. There are words, everywhere. The words are floating, flying, whisking, dancing through the air around my head. I am happy at first, watching the words. They seem beautiful, although there are thousands. When I focus on each particular word, I open my mouth to try to speak it aloud. Nothing ever comes out. The harder I try, the faster the words fly. They begin to sting with every sharp letter. Infinite words to speak, but have no voice.
Fear crawls up my spine. I reach backwards to lean against a wall, to close my eyes and
hide. The words are no longer beautiful, they are painful. There is no wall to lean against as the words plummet through my head. I fall, sinking into a raging sea of unspoken words. I am drowning, descending further and further into the words I can never speak.
The letters begin to fade, and through them I see a boy. He is the boy from the park.
He’s wearing that black jacket, zipped all the way to his chin. Disheveled black hair floats in the fog of disintegrating words. He slowly speaks, his question becomes painfully distinct. “What is your name?” ……..
GRAND PRIZE | HIGH SCHOOL
Hannah JUNCO – I Remember – was in 12th grade.
Homeschooled.
Excerpt from the story
…….. I squint in the sunlight and wince with the creaking of my bones. Walking now at eighty years old is not like walking when I was eighteen, when I was young and in love. I sigh and continue my walk through Berlin’s park. My destination is just ahead. Nearly there…
The tree is tall and welcoming, aflame with falling leaves. I sit beneath its golden canopy and gaze up at its branches, all intertwining and cascading like the many memories that wash over me at this moment.
A yellow leaf floats into my lap. As I stare upon it, an old anger fills me.
1941
Berlin
Yes, I remember…
***
Ava glared at the yellow badge. The Star of David gaped mockingly at her.
It was all so disgusting.
When Papa died, Ava and her mother were forced to leave their home in the countryside of Leipzig for this cold city of Berlin. Since Ava could not be accepted into public areas as the other German girls, she rarely ever saw her only Berliner friend, Elena. To make matters worse, Elena’s parents found out Ava was Jewish, and the two girls could only meet secretly. Now, being ordered to wear a bright yellow badge would undoubtedly end what was left of her life as an ordinary German girl.
Ava sat up abruptly and gazed at the face which stared back at her in the mirror. It was a small, pale face with tearfully swollen eyes. The face was familiar but too frightened to be her own. There was no smile on her lips, no sparkle in her eye………