Celebration of Youth 2009 

Contest winners and honorable mentions are listed to the right!!!

In the spring of 2009, Global Harmony Through Personal Excellence, Inc. held it's 21th annual Celebration of Youth essay contest. Click here for the contest guidelines. This was the essay question:

What is a quality you value in yourself and others? Write about an experience in your own life where you displayed this quality - or one in which you didn't and later wish you had. What are you learning that can serve you in the years ahead?


The names of all winners and honorable mentions are listed to the right. We congratulate them and are very proud of each one. The first place essays follow:

 

Raul Torres, Grades 4 to 6 Division

A quality I value in myself and others is honesty. My friends and I are always honest with each other, but it wasn't always that way. Let me tell you about a time when I wasn't honest with my best friend Christian.

It all started one morning in 2nd grade. My friend Christian and I were in the cafeteria eating breakfast. Suddenly, Christian showed me a twenty dollar bill. "Where did you get that?" I asked him. "I saved up my allowance," Christian answered.

It wasn't until we were outside getting ready to leave, that I saw a twenty dollar bill on the ground. It was exactly the opportunity I needed, so I planned to grab it. The next thing I knew, I bent down and put the crisp, green bill in my pocket.

When I got on the school bus, I sat down next to Christian like I always did. "What's up?" I asked Christian. "Well," he began "I lost my twenty dollars when I was playing outside". Just then, I knew it was Christian's money I had in my pocket, but I didn't tell him that I had it. "Wow, that's too bad" I said quietly. "Yeah, because I was going to buy an ice cream for each of us with it," he replied. "Oh," I said, feeling really guilty.

The next day, I went to the mall to buy a video game. When it was almost my turn to pay, I began thinking about Christian. I started to feel really bad inside. Christian had been my best friend for a long time and I stole from him. Here I was about to buy something for myself with HIS money and all he wanted to do with the money was buy something for US. Just then, I told the cashier that I had changed my mind and I didn't want the game after all.

I went to the ice cream store and bought two ice creams. I brought them to Christian and explained what I had done. He was happy to get his money back and I was so relieved that he wasn't angry with me, and that he still wanted to be my friend. So, from that day on, I have always been honest with my friends. I never want to feel like I did while I was standing in that line ever again!

 


Nathaniel Ramez, Grades 7 to 9 Division

Under His Sleeve

Imagine you are at the top of a rollercoaster, looking down at the amusement park below. Your friends surround you and then everything is a blur. Your stomach feels as if it's in your throat and you're screaming as loud as you can. Maybe your friends convinced you to go on that rollercoaster or maybe you just love the thrill. But either way, it takes a bit of courage to ride it.

When I was six years old and in first grade, a new family arrived from Switzerland to our Washington, D.C. neighborhood. They moved in just down the block. Our family, being the welcome wagon, visited them soon afterward. I remember meeting Paul, who was my age and would start at my school in a few days. lIe took me to his room where we started to play with Playmobils, small intricate toys a lot like Legos. That is when I noticed Paul's hand.

Paul's hand is not fully formed. He does not have any fingers on his left hand, and just a knob for a thumb. While we Were playing, Paul brought his hand out from under his sleeve, where he usually kept it. Paul did not say anYthing. Neither did I. When he knew that his hand was visible, he also knew that I saw it. Because I did not say anything,I think that Paul felt like this was the beginning of our friendship.

Back in Switzerland, Paul would hide his arm in his sleeve because if people saw it, they would ask him what happened to his hand. This always made him feel less than human. Here, people accepted him and he made many friends quickly. When he first came here, he barely spoke any English. As he hung out with me more, it helped him learn the language and he gained comfort by speaking with me. Still, I think Paul was a courageous person. Even if he hid his hand, he still had to put up with it while also being in a new country.

One day when we were having lunch at school, a kid came over and said, "Your hand looks weird." I looked at the kid and looked at Paul, who was confused. He did not understand what the kid was saying. The kid continued to make fun of Paul's hand. I could feel my own hands getting sweaty and my ears getting hot. I was mad at the kid for making fun of Paul's hand but I was furious when he started taking advantage of Paul's poor language skills. Suddenly, I yelled, "Stop!" The kid looked at me. Before he could say anything, I cut him off, "If you had any deformity at all, you wouldn't make fun of someone else! And the worst part is he doesn't even know what you're saying." The kid backed off and left.

This argument surprised me because I am not usually the person who would fight or stand up for someone. But I knew that it was very hard for Paul and somehow I understood what it was like. Being a close friend, you get a feeling for what your friend feels.

From this I learned that courage is not only the bravery that it takes to ride that rollercoaster but it is also the actions you take, the things you say, and the thoughts you think. Paul taught me whatever your condition, whatever you have to hide under your sleeve, a courageous friend is always someone good to have around - and that I can be that kind of friend.



Globe



 ©2009 by Global Harmony Through Personal Excellence, Inc.