Previous Challenge Entry
Topic: Graduation (08/30/04)
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TITLE: Pure and Popular By addie mattern 09/01/04 |
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I straightened up and opened my mouth. "Good evening ladies and gentlemen. Thank you for being here tonight. I’m-" I paused. I looked back down at Kelly. Still smiling, she looked back at me as if to say, "Go on. I know you can do this!"
I continued, "Tonight I'm speaking on behalf of my good friend Kelly Lovett, whom we all know to be a very special person." Kelly looked confused. I smiled. "She has not only made an impact on my own life, but she has touched the lives of everyone around her. You can just see God's light shining through her. Ever since the first day she walked into Oakland High, people could sense something very unique about her."
I remembered that day quite vividly.....
.....I was turned around in my chair, snickering with my friends about how geeky Gary’s hair looked that day. Gary could see us pointing at him and looked down at his comic book uncomfortably. I was still laughing when the teacher called for everyone’s attention. I spun around, prepared to face another boring science lecture.
"Class, today we have a new student, Kelley Lovett. Please welcome her." As the new girl stood at the front of the classroom, I took a moment to inspect her.
She was very pretty, her dark brown hair styled in soft curls. She was wearing a red knitted turtleneck and dark blue jeans with little slits at the bottom. Dressy black sandals showed her freshly painted toenails. She wasn’t like most other new students. She didn’t stare at her feet or fumble her fingers. She had a mysterious confidence about her.
Mrs. Baker turned to Kelly, "I’m going to seat you in the back row, next to Gary. Go ahead and take your seat now."
Everyone laughed. When she was seated, I could hear her say, "Hi Gary!"
I whispered to Allison, "What a freak! Why is she talking to him?" Allison laughed. I looked over at Kelly, who was still talking to Gary. I scrunched my eyebrows and stopped laughing.
"What is with her?" Allison asked the next day. "She says a prayer before she eats, always dresses appropriately, and believes in courting!"
"I'm not sure, but everyone likes her."
Later, I found Kelly at her locker. I went up to her and asked, "Are you a Christian?" She looked up at me and smiled, "Mmm-hmm, are you?"
"Ahhh..." her answer had caught me off guard. I was trying to intimidate her. "No." There was a little pause. "Is that why your not embarrassed to talk to Gary?"
"Why should I ever be afraid to be nice to someone?" she chuckled. "Jesus tells us to love our neighbors, even our enemies. I feel compassion for Gary. He’s really sweet if you just take the time to know him."
"You don’t care when people laugh at you?"
"I think it hurts Gary more than me."
I couldn’t sleep that night. My conversation with Kelly kept running through my mind. I began thinking, "What is the point of it all. I’m popular, I’m pretty, I got the cutest guy in school to fall all over me, and I’m still not happy." I sighed. "Everybody hates me, I don’t have any real friends, and I’ve hurt a lot of innocent people." A cold realization began to hit me. "There’s got to be more important things than what I see."
That night I accepted Jesus Christ.
....."In my earlier days of High School, I thought that I was pretty darn important. But Kelly helped show me otherwise. She showed me who really was important. And that’s Jesus Christ." I looked down at Kelly, who had tears in her eyes. "I just thank God that he put someone as beautiful as Kelly into my life, who not only helped me graduate from High School, but helped me to graduate into a new chapter of my life."