Previous Challenge Entry (Level 2 – Intermediate)
Topic: Adulthood (07/30/09)
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TITLE: Yet, A Child | Previous Challenge Entry
By Wendy LeBolt
08/02/09 -
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It was hot in the crowded auditorium. Loud and growing louder. Nearly every seat was filled. People clad in business attire rushed in, gratefully accepting the places saved for them. Everyone exchanging excited conversation with the neighbors seated around them.
“Oh, what will she be doing next year?”
“Did he receive an award? From which teacher? Oh, that’s wonderful!”
We were crammed into seats to leave room for the bleachers extending along either side. Soon these bleachers would be overflowing with graduates. Young, excited faces expressing the struggle and the accomplishment behind this day.
Here they come, marching down the center aisle, two by two. Mom’s and Dad’s eagerly searching for their own, to catch a glimpse, snap a quick photo. The young men and women stride purposely to their places, but stand in deference to their classmates who have yet to enter. Every one in place, we receive the cue to be seated. The hall quiets.
We are all ceremoniously welcomed. The graduates are congratulated and commendeded for reaching this day. The student speaker, Hannah, is introduced. She emerges from the sea of classmates, makes her way to the stage and settles herself confidently behind the microphone. With a shuffle of her notes she draws a breath and begins.
Hannah recounts how she has grown over the years. How childish she was when she entered the school. How lacking in knowledge. How naïve to the ways of the world. But, she confides to all of us gathered, these have been well-spent years. Now she has learned and matured and put her childish ways behind her. She has it all figured out. She feels strong now to take on whatever comes her way.
Hannah is 12 years old: she is graduating from 6th grade.
I sit in the midst of this crowd, proud of my own 6th grade graduate, but not at all fooled by Hannah’s words. But who am I to scold her for thinking big thoughts? Kids should. And her remarks were delightfully delivered, both humorous and insightful. Well-practiced and heart-felt for sure. But they are meaningful, really, only if you are a child.
I hated to burst her bubble, but I wanted to tell her, “Hannah, there is a real world waiting for you out there. And while you’ve made a good beginning, you know very little about what it’s like. It holds dangers and temptations you don’t know and are so ill-equipped to tackle. You will need help. You will need real friendships, people who will be honest with you. You will be well-served by seeking mentorship from those who have gone before you and learned from their mistakes.” "Yes," I think, "it’s a dangerous world out there. But perhaps it is hardest on those deceived into thinking they know it all and can handle it on their own."
Just in that moment, as I sat in judgment of Hannah for her 6th grade hubris, I had a thought. I might even have heard a chuckle. "This must be how God thinks of us. We, who are children, who know nothing of what the future holds, yet dare to call ourselves capable and pronounce our schooling complete.”
The Great One must shake His head tolerantly and smile “another one who thinks she is an adult. How soon she will find out just how much she has left to learn. Maybe then she will turn to me.”
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