Wheaton Warrenville PTA Council

1. Wheaton Warrenville PTA Council Recognizes those students advancing to the state level in the PTA National Reflections program in Literature

2. Claire Weseman The Art of Feeling Happy Literature 7th Grade Edison Middle School Advance to State

3. The Art of Feeling Happy by Claire Weseman I wonder what it’s like to feel happy. Is it slippery and wet, east to get, but hard to hold on to? Or maybe it’s solid and smooth, like a rock, lasting for a long time? They say that happiness is an illusion. That there’s no such thing. People had it once, they say, but not anymore. Why not anymore? Is there no reason to be happy anymore? Or have people’s faces been frowning for so long that they stay frowning? Smile. Grin. Laugh. They still teach us the words, even though there’s no reason to apply them anymore. I’ve never seen a smile. An unnatural curve of the lips, they say it is. I’ve tried to curve my lips but it doesn’t’ work. I’ve never been happy enough. Happiness is an emotion that eludes us. Even the smartest of scholars and philosophical of philosophers can’t figure it out. They don’t know the events that lead to it, and all numbers of test they’ve run conclude no data. So the teachers just tell us there’s no such thing. If the hardest we try, isn’t hard enough, then there is no possible way to reach happiness. It is an emotion lost forever. Last year, in class we had tests to discover how well we would work in the world. If you get a low score, you’re not ready for the hardship of the world and you are not allowed to work. I scored in the highest percentile. There is a movement at the front of the room that startles me. We are watching a movie, about the scientific accomplishments we have achieved, but it’s not that. In the front row, a girl moves. Her name is Lissa. I remember her because she scored very low on the test. That means that she’ll never do anything great, but she doesn’t seem to mind. In fact, she seems to enjoy being different that everyone else, even if it means being lowly and unrecognized. She glances back at me. There are about thirty other faces in this room that she could be looking at, but they’re all starting blankly at the video screen, so I know she’s looking at me. I study her face for a little. She is free from the blankness that traps the face of everyone, but she’s not smiling. There’s no abnormal curve to her lips, but she still looks different. I finally glace up at her eyes. They’re strange too: they are filled with the smugness that comes with knowing something that no one else does. Lissa looks at me, with her open face and smug eyes, and I know she holds a secret. Then suddenly, she glances me over and nods slightly, as if deeming me worthy of knowing the secret.I wait. She glances around, at the students, and the teacher, who is staring at the screen with the same look as the students. Turning back to me, Lissa does something with her face. I see first her eyes, which are shining. Then I see the mouth. I feel a jolt of shock as I realize the work for it. Grin. Lissa is grinning at me, in front of the class, in front of the teacher, showing her teeth. Her grin deepens as she sees my look of shock. And the strangest sensation goes through me. I feel indescribable, like someone is gently taking me apart and putting me back together in a better formation. I feel like I can run out of the room, out of the school, and never stop. I almost make a sound, a declaration of happiness, but I don’t. Instead, I grin back at Lissa, an almost involuntary action that I feel deep inside me. The whole exchange last less than three seconds, and then the smile is over, but I still feel that amazing feeling, like I’m soaring and will never come down. I wonder how a girl as indistinctive as her could unlock a secret like this. Scientists for years have been trying to figure this out, but she found it suddenly, like it just came to her. And then I found it too. I look back a Lissa. By now, her smile has faded, but remnants of joy still sparkle in her eyes. This has lasted for a short time, a second, really, but I will never be the same.

4. Hannah Haworth All in That Moment Literature 5th Grade Hawthorne Elementary School Advance to State

6. Bridget Maston Spring Children Literature 6th Grade Hubble Middle School Advance to State

7. Spring Children Floating seeds, A puff of white, Dancing through the air, Into the morning light. Gently plucked, A murmured wish, And then blown. The children scatter, And I see them dance Towards the gentle fields, They frolic and prance. The children discover, A home to grow, Raising and wishing, Giving hope. Dandelions, dandelions, Children of the spring, No natter how many wishes are made, They’ll be forever dancing.

8. AnneliseMazzarella Magic of a Moment Literature 1st Grade Longfellow Elementary School Advance to State

9. Magic of a Moment by AnneliseMazzarella Chapter One: Born One day a mother had a beautiful child named Alice, and Alice loved her mom. Alice loved a stuffed animal. She was a beautiful child. One day when she was old enough to walk in the woods, she sang a pretty song that her mother sang to her when she was a baby. When she hummed the song, she realized she had super powers to sing and save people. She didn’t know when she would use her super powers, but one day she heard someone yell, “Help!” Chapter Two: Super Powers The moment she heard it, she ran in with strength and fury. She saw a lost girl. She asked her what her name was. She said, “Scarlet.” Scarlet offered if she could help with the journey. Soon the two friends were skipping along the way, then Scarlet said if Alice could take her home. Alice jumped and said that this would be the best adventure ever! Chapter Three: Sleepover Alice finally found her way home. She asked her dad if she could adopt Scarlet. Her dad said only for one day. She said, “This is like a sleep over!” She gave Scarlet her p.j.s and bed to share. They had salad for dinner. Alice took Scarlet to the washroom to brush her teeth and wash her face. The girls told tales of their lives. Alice told the story of how she had moved from India to here, and Scarlet told the story that she had to move, because during the war, the air raids were too high. Then the girls fell fast asleep. Chapter Four: Always Here It was morning time. Alice and Scarlet woke up to the sun shining in their faces. Alice decided that this was the most, best day of her life. Then they started their adventure home. They started to the woods then they saw the gate to fantasy land. Fantasy land was a land with butterflies and hills of green grass, and she was sure that this was the Magic of the Moment. Chapter Five: The Hero! Now they were halfway through the forest when they heard a low, angry sound. Alice jumped to her feet, but it was only a cockatoo in the branches. Then they saw the house where Scarlet’s family lived. They hugged and hugged for two minutes. Then Scarlet’s Mom and Dad said, “Thank you.” Chapter Six: The True Hero “You are a true hero, and you are the best we’ve got.” Then full of excitement, Alice ran home to tell her family about the adventure. It was truly the Magic of a Moment!

10. Anna Catherine McGraw The Song of Nature Literature 5th Grade Longfellow Elementary School Advance to State

11. The Song of Nature I lay down in the shade of the trees, Listening to the leaves, Rustling and bumping, Never content with where they lay, Until they burst into song. As I listen, I hear the murmur of the trees, As they lean to each other. The swishing of the leaves as small background. While the branches take the stage, And pass the song along. Next, the constant urging of the grass begins Each separate blade singing a different tune, Till each song joins the others, To crate a melody sweeter than words can tell, Urging the song to blossom. And then, the final tune bursts out As the creatures of the earth join in. The squirrels at their arguments, The birds with their calls and answers. And so is the song. So is the song of nature.

12. Cole Stetina High Dive Literature Kindergarten Longfellow Elementary School Advance to State

13. The High Dive By Cole Stetina I wanted to be brave on that summer day, So I climbed up the ladder even though I was scared. I don’t know why my sister gave me a thumbs up, But it made my day. At the top my tummy felt funny And I thought it that it looked too high. I jumped anyways, And it felt like a long time before I hit the water. It wasn’t that bad, even though I sank. I swam to my Dad smiling at me. I smiled back, feeling good inside.

14. Sydney Bortscheller Freedom Literature 8th Grade Monroe Middle School Advance to State

15. Freedom Perched on a branch of an evergreen tree, Sits a teenager, about to break free, His bright blue head with solid black shadows cocks, Calculating. His yellow shirt shows off his spring green coat and teal tail. And there he sits, Thinking, Debating, His blue head straightens. Then, he jumps. Down, down, down he goes, Falling, falling, falling. His wings spread and he starts to slow. They flap. Once, twice, three times. And then he’s soaring up, Looping and swirling, Weaving through branches and leaves. And then, he’s gone, Off into the horizon, On a journey of his own. Away from the constant few of the same old tree. Away from the same old nest. Freedom.

16. Congratulations to all of the students advancing to the State Reflections Next years theme for 2013-14: “Believe, Dream, Inspire”