Winners and Finalists in the
Girls Are Champions
1st Annual Writing & Drawing Contest 2007

Congratulations to each finalist and winner. Your writing has emotion, vivid images, and authenticity. At Girls Are Champions, we admire you and believe you are the voices and the leaders for girls today. Keep writing and let your voices be heard. Your thoughts and values are important and we invite you and all girls who share your enthusiasm and integrity to write for GAC.

Grade 3 – 5
Winner: Kavya Tewari

The Real Me

I am in Mrs. G's class. She's going on and on about a different way to multiply, called "partial product," whatever that is! Only if the recess bell would ring now, I would be able to smell the slightly wet grass from the drizzling earlier. Grass smells so fresh when it's wet, don't you think?

Finally, Mrs. G is telling us to put away our math book. I almost slam the desk on my fingers. Two minutes until recess and she tells us to read while waiting. It seemed like two long hours before the bell rang. I rushed to the door at the speed of light. Mrs. G told me to go back for my snack before lining up at the door. I ran, faster than I did before.

When I got to the field, everyone was picking teams. "Oh man!" I thought. I wanted to be 'first captain' to pick my friends for my team. Fortunately, they picked me despite knowing that I was new to football. I didn't know all the rules or how to throw the ball.

The game starts. The Quarterback passes to one of our best players. I am glad he didn't pass to me because I felt awkward being the only girl on the field. But I am also disappointed for not getting a chance. This is only the first play. I'll keep trying.

I told the Quarterback to pass to me this time. He did. It was an easy catch. Unfortunately, I missed. My team comforted me — "nice try," "you did great!" The other team cracked up like the hyenas in Lion King. This made me feel like a burning house about to breakdown.

While I was feeling embarrassed, I realized that there were just a couple of minutes of recess left. I decided to try really hard to score a touchdown and show those laughing bullies that I could play as well as them or maybe even better.

Once again, I asked the Quarterback to pass to me. He looked nervous, but he gave me another chance. "Hike!" He yelled. He slipped and fell, but the ball had already been thrown. I knew I wouldn't be able to catch the ball if I was going to stand right there. I quickly prayed to my mom to not get mad for getting my clothes dirty. Then I slid to catch the ball. This time, I caught it. I jumped up to run towards the end zone, but slipped and fell, just like the Quarterback.

This was the only time in my life when I hated wet grass. I almost cried, but stopped myself when I saw that the other team was cheering for me. Looks like my slide impressed them. They don't get to see a girl slide on the field everyday!

On the way back to my classroom, I thought about how scared I was before the game–of making mistakes, of not being passed to and, most importantly, of being the only girl on the field. Silly me.

I now know that trying new things is the best part of being a kid and if you make a mistake, you'll remember and correct it the next time. Girls should not be afraid of joining in where there are more boys than girls, because it doesn't matter who plays. What matters is that you tried and had fun doing it.

Grades 3 – 5
FINALIST: Isabella Olsen

The Real Me

The real me is not far away! I sometimes act different around other people because sometimes they don't like what I like and I still want to be their friend. I love playing soccer. Boys think they are better at sports, but my friend Melissa and I play soccer with the boys at lunchtime and I've even scored a few goals. So has Melissa!

Melissa and I are on the same soccer team. We're called The Green Poisonous Frogs. I've been playing soccer since I was six.

There is a secret about me. It's that I like homework. Sometimes I don't like spelling, but I love math! I like doing homework because it's fun and you actually learn stuff. Algebra is one of those things.

I have brown hair with lighter streaks in it and green eyes. I have an older sister who is eleven and she plays with me. My sister is really nice.

When I'm bored, I usually ask my mom to go to my Nana's house. There is always something to do there, like bake cookies and play games with her. The best part of my Nana's house is that she lets me watch a show on her TV, because we don't have TV at our house.

When I grow up I want to be a singer and a veterinarian. I don't like broccoli, and I don't like cleaning my room. But the longer I wait to clean it, the messier it gets. Oh, well! But I love going to the dog park with my dad and my dog Roxy, who is a German shepherd. I care about my dog very much.

And lastly, I love writing stories. I write mostly fiction, and often include talking animals. That's all for today folks. I'm going to go write another story!

Grade 3 – 5
FINALIST: Niki Flamen

The Real Me

This past summer I went on a biking trip with my family. We went with a company named Backroads. It was our third trip with them. Two summers ago we went to the Czech Republic and then in the spring we went to Costa Rica. This time the destination was Croatia.

After a long, long flight we finally arrived. We got to the hotel room and napped. When we woke up we headed out to the streets. They were crowded with people, stores, and more people. We walked and walked through the old town of Dubrovnik. We decided it was time to eat so we found a restaurant. We sat down for dinner and as soon as we began to eat the sun was setting. The colors were beautiful to see, there was pink, green, orange and red.

It was like watching a blossom bloom. The next day we met up with our biking group and were asked what we were looking forward to. When it was my turn I stood up and said, "Hello, my name is Niki and I am looking forward to the biking."

The next day I got my wish. The day started when we got on a big boat with our bikes. We sailed to an island and started our ride. It was through a beautiful national park and lasted about ten miles. After a few more days of riding, we hiked and then there was one day left, which meant that this was the day of the "big bike ride". It would be over 35 miles and much steeper than the 25 miles I did in the Czech Republic the summer before.

My dad, mom, sister and I started going up the road slowly and it wasn't too hard, but then we kept climbing.

It was a never ending hill. My sister and dad sped past me. They were as fast as pumas about to pounce. As it got steeper I couldn't breathe. Finally, I got my normal breathing back. We stopped when we had to, but mostly we climbed and climbed. Finally, there were only three more miles to go, I shouted with delight! Just around the corner my dad was waiting for my mom and me. He told us my sister had gone ahead. I was glad he waited for us. It's fun when we ride together as a family.

Suddenly, the uphill stopped and the downhill began. I glided smoothly down the hill. The road had many twists and turns. We finally arrived at the restaurant where the other bikers had been gathering as they finished. When we arrived everyone shouted and congratulated me. The counselors from Backroads said they had never seen a nine year old do this ride before and they didn't expect anyone my age would ever be able to do this ride again. I was so excited and proud.

The End

Grade 6 – 8
WINNER: Tess Dignum

The Real Me

"Kimberly," said my coach, "could you come over here for a moment, please?" I rolled across the gym floor, staring at it as if it were the most interesting thing in the world. I could almost feel the intensity of the other children's stares. Finally, I rolled to a stop at Mrs. Thompson's feet.

"Kimberly dear," she said. "Since you've never played basketball in a wheelchair before, I've asked Emily here to show you how."

I looked at the girl standing next to Mrs. Thompson. She had rich brown skin, and beautiful, translucent green eyes.

"Okay," I mumbled.

"Great!" said Mrs. Thompson enthusiastically "I'll just leave you two to get started."

I stared at Emily. She stared at me. It was as if we were the only ones in the room. "Well," she said, swiveling her wheelchair. "I guess we better get started."

"Ummmm.." she paused. "Would you like to learn how to shoot a basket?" I looked at her. Before the car accident last year, l had always been the one teaching basketball. It was strange having it the other way around. "I guess," I said hesitantly. She looked uncomfortable.

"Okay," she said. "Well, first you've got to hold the ball in your hands like this." She showed me her hands. "Then, you boost it up like this. But you have to use more power then normal, because you don't have your legs to help you. You try," she said. I copied Emily's positions exactly, concentrated and... shot! MISS! Emily must've seen my face, because she immediately said, "Oh, don't worry, it takes a lot of practice, believe me."

I spent the next few days practicing my shooting, passing, and dribbling. I could tell that I was getting better every day. I could feel myself growing from a shy, small girl in a wheelchair, to a funny, outgoing girl with no limitations! Still, I wasn't prepared when Mrs. Thompson announced that we were having our first game of the season, the day after tomorrow.

When I woke up on the morning of the game, I had an awful feeling in the pit of my stomach. Could I really do it, or would I just embarrass myself in front of my whole team. I pictured Caitlin, Alexa, Maxine, Nicole, Lauren, Emily, and the whole rest of my team, all smiling up at me from their wheelchairs. Suddenly, my nervousness faded away.

Boom, boom, boom, boom, was the sound of my heart as I rolled out onto the court. We were behind eight to nine, and there were just three minutes left in the game. Luckily, my team had the ball. Maddie passed the ball to Caitlin, who passed it to Alexa, who dribbled it around the court and passed to....ME! I couldn't believe it! My team had given me the opportunity to make the final shot. This was my chance to prove myself.

As I prepared to take my shot, I remembered all of the work I had put into mastering my shot. "You can do it," I said to myself, and I launched the ball up into the air. In the next few seconds, I heard two sounds: the bleeping of a buzzer, and the swish of a basketball going into the net. We had won! As my team leapt for joy, and my mother hugged me, all I could think about was this: I am Kimberly Roberts. I am in a wheelchair, and I can do anything.

Grade 6 – 8
FINALIST: Stephanie Hahn

The "Real" Me: The Power of Women.

"Many persons have a wrong idea of what constitutes true happiness. It is not attained through self-gratification but through fidelity to a worthy purpose."

I asked my sister if she thought a man or a woman had said this. She undoubtedly replied that a man had obviously said it.

The thing is Helen Keller had been the one to say the quote. From the beginning, women have been ignored and trampled by men. Why was Jesus a man? Why were the rulers of land almost all kings, not queens? Why had presidents from 1789 all the way to 2007 all been men? Why do men always have to be better than women?

As a first grader, I thought jobs like being the President, a policeman, fireman, businessman, and many more all belonged to boys. How was I supposed to know women could've done those jobs too when there was "man" stuck to the end? The jobs that I thought women were able to do were being the mommy, a teacher, and an author. Pretty crazy, huh? But that was the way I thought.

Years come and go, and soon I realized, not only me being a girl was a problem, but being an Asian nerd with ugly glasses was going to be a big problem.

"HA HA. Look at that nerd."

"Ew, Stephanie? She is such a dork."

"See that girl over there? I hate her."

My life has been a mess. I've tried to be a considerate friend that everyone likes. Unfortunately to people my age, looks come first. If you're ugly, and if one popular person has a grudge against you, you're in tough luck. Now the whole school will be after you. Believe me, I've experienced it, and let's just say it isn't exactly the happiest feeling.

However, I decided one day to ignore those frightening remarks about me. I chose to dream big. I remembered the quote, "The sky is the limit." Instead of being the startled mouse hiding in the hole, I gave my ideas and became the most outgoing person I could be. After being the most hated person, I became generally liked by most people.

"HA HA! Stephanie is so funny!"

"Dude, she's so nice and cool."

I was still that Asian girl with the ugly glasses, but everyone looked at me a different way. Just like that, if girls could take a small challenge and build on it, we could be as important as boys. Helen Keller, Susan B. Anthony, Rosa Parks, Marie Curie, Amelia Earhart… They've all made such big steps and they showed our Earth what girls could do. Maybe, just maybe, we can change the world to a more equal one, with girls being as important as boys. I can make a difference. Wait! Scratch that sentence. Girls can make a difference. Taking a little step at a time, I know we can change the world.

Grade 6 – 8
FINALIST: Kiley Homan

The Real Me

I love to write. At night, I curl up on the sofa with a pen and paper and let my feelings flood out of me in words. Writing is a large portion of my soul. When I was little, I wrote picture books. They were about things a little girl would write about: magic, princesses, and mysteries.

As I grew older, I became interested in other plots; crises always snagged my attention in books, so I started writing about crises. The crisis I probably wrote most about was moving. I had never moved before, and didn't want to, but the idea was alluring.

Then I moved.

Although I knew my parents had been browsing for houses for a couple of months, I was iced over with depression when they announced we were actually moving. I had lived in my house my entire life and I loved everything about it.

I remember the day I moved so vividly, it feels like it was yesterday...

I stepped out of the car. My eyes pooled with tears and my shoulders drooped. For the first time, I had come home to my new house.

I entered the house. We still had the furniture from our old house, but it didn't belong here. It didn't go in this house; it belonged in my old house. It seemed foreign in its new location. I strolled into my room. The furniture there seemed to mismatch the room, although the colors contrasted perfectly. The content didn't match, though. The furniture had a different story than the walls and floor. I sat on my bed and cried openly. Two doors had closed: the door to my old house and the door to happiness.

*     *     *

After the move, I fell into a melancholy sleep, folded into a state of pure sadness. All joy in life had been obliterated. I no longer fell asleep to the whistling of the wind; I couldn't hear it in my new room. I found myself crying in the middle of the night, only to wake up looking at an unfamiliar ceiling.

I also realized another fact after living in my new house for about a week: I had stopped writing. I had forgotten about it in all of my depression. So I decided that I needed to start writing again.

That's when things started looking up for me.

I wrote a few stories and poems in the next couple of days. I suddenly felt better about the move. I woke up from my melancholy sleep, and the folds of my state of sadness unfolded.

For the next few days, I couldn't figure out why I suddenly felt better about moving. What happened that caused me to feel better? I had written a few stories and poems, but how did that help me feel better?

Then a thought flashed through my mind: Had keeping my feelings about moving bottled up affected my mood towards the concept? I thought this over for a few moments, and then I finally solved my puzzle.

Home; that word had confused me over these past weeks. Home isn't a house or a room. Home is where the heart is, and it doesn't matter where I live. Nothing changed when I moved, only my location in the world. Home is soul. Writing brought me back to my soul; it brought my back home.

My house and my room aren't my soul; they aren't me. The real me is in my soul. Writing is the real me. The rest of my personality, ambitions, and hopes: that's the real me.

Grade 9 – 12
WINNER: Mae Bethel

The Real Me

I have never had to overcome any major obstacles. I only had to deal with friends and homework. This is harder than you think but when I read in the newspaper about what's happening in Darfur and world hunger, I remember how lucky I really am. I'm so happy now. I know a lot of people say that but do they mean it, or do they only feel happy for an hour or so? For me, even though I cry and get frustrated, deep down I know that I'll be okay and even if I flunk that one test or totally mess up in front of my crush.

It wasn't always like this. It used to be where I had trouble with my friends; they would always get into fights and had a very specific pecking order. I had an ongoing war with my sister; anything we said to each other was hurtful. I remember thinking that if she died, I wouldn't be sad. When I found the courage to get new friends, they were controlling and I could do anything without them. I was unhappy because all I ever wore were blue jeans, a t-shirt, sometimes a sweater, and my hair up in a messy ponytail. I didn't like this but I could never do something about it.

Even when I entered high school, I didn't change, even though my friend moved away I was now with a group that didn't have a hierarchy or tried to control me or anything. Life got a little easier when I was able to go to a teacher without having to get anybody's permission. I put a truce on the war with my sister and now we love each other openly.

But I was still having trouble accepting my friends and family because they were weird. Let's face it, my sister had a girlfriend and wears these crazy, black outfits. She is scared very easily and has no balance whatsoever. I would try to refine her when we went out in public with no effect. My friends were what you would think of as the nerds, because they are. I mean, you should hear them talk, we all take AS or AP something or other and they are very helpful on homework. I finally learned to accept these people for who they are and don't try to change them anymore.

This is the point where I became happy. You may think this weird but I got my inspiration from a chain letter. It said, "Happiness isn't having everything you want but wanting everything that you have." I also think Buddha hit the nail on the head. The cause of suffering is desire. It's true, I stopped wanting, or desiring, and I'm completely good for life. But my favorite quote, by me, is "Always forgive but never forget."

I now am not afraid to wear my hair down, get a haircut a few inches off or anything. I can wear a skirt or pants to school, but I have to ride my bike so I need to take that into consideration. So, even though I haven't come to any great obstacles in my life, I feel that I can call myself what few people can say without lying: truly happy.

Click here to see ALL participants names in the contest! And Girls, keep writing and drawing! Keep visiting GirlsAreChampions.org! We'll look for your fabulous submissions in our 2^nd Annual Writing & Drawing Contest in 2008!

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