Spring

It's spring and the town is in full bloom. Our own daffodils are faded but the pansies are in full riot. Our crabapple tree is blooming and our cherry tree as well. When the wind blows, it looks like it's snowing as the petals swirl. The birds are singing their fool heads off and our little white dog wants to go outside and just roll around in the moist grass.

Our home is littered with gifts for the Charity Auction we are having on 01. April (No Foolin!) and paperwork for various neighborhood ventures: grant proposals to complete, gift certificates to fill out for the auction, invitations to be sent, the all-important ABC one-time license to complete and drive to Charlotte, and notes, minutes, and newspaper articles regarding the Doc-in-a-box down the street.

Thankfully I completed yet another task that has been looming over my head for a couple of weeks. I have the honor of being a judge for the Home Schoolers' Creative Writing contest every year. I believe this is my 7th year of judging. We had 49 entries this year, down a little from last year when I believe we had 70-something. The ages range from K to 10th grade this year and in complexity they range from a couplet about My Pet to a 7-page (typed) story about Other Worlds. I read over each one, check the age of the child who wrote it (no names are indicated but ages / grades are) and try to determine the value on a scale of 1 to 10 for each piece. I do not know any other information, for example, of any handicaps a child might have, or anything about else that might help me make a better evaluation. I pretty much judge them from my gut and experience as to how well a 6 yr old ought to be able to write, as opposed to how well this particular one did. I make it a personal practice not to judge anyone less than a 5, and if a piece really needs help, I try to make some comment as to how it could be better, with an extremely delicate touch. For example, a poem about the colorful crocodile went 'way off the subject and ended with 'my neighbor's fat dad.' I offered a comment that I really wanted to read more about the crocodile. It's not a science and my main goal is to encourage the children who really try and to avoid scarring anyone for life. One story was so good I made a note to the child that s/he should submit it to a certain type of magazine. It really was that good.

So, with all the insanity in the neighborhood, I am really glad I took 3.5 hours and got this finished up. It's one less thing over my head.