The curtain rises and the audience slowly comes into view. The smile I had been holding all night springs to my face, I had made top ten. My lips shake as I keep my smile as one girl after another gets called for a runner up and finally a winner. I did not make the cut.

As I walked down the hallway off stage in my formal gown tears rolled down my cheeks. I didn’t understand. My answer was perfect. Why did it matter if I put my boyfriend in my answer? I failed… for the first time in my life. The new emotion swelled in my eyes. The question and my answer rang in my head all the way down the hall. The five other girls who didn’t get a trophy all hung their heads just as low as mine.

“If you could volunteer anywhere where would it be and why?” the question blurred in my head as the MC spoke. My answer: “If I could volunteer anywhere it would be in New Orleans where Hurricane Katrina hit. My boyfriend went and told me it was a great experience. I want to help build homes for people who still don’t have one many years later.” We weren’t given the question ahead of time. As the curtains closed I knew I had failed.

I had always gone through life in hard classes A’s coming easily to me. Why did I fail this time? My answer was not what the ten judges were looking for. It was their opinion not the crowds. My mom comforted me as I walked to my family. I had made top ten my first try. I had made top ten. Why couldn’t I accept that? The first time you fail never sits well. But I accepted it. I beat out 50 girls to the top ten. I made it. I accomplished my goal.