“You will begin writing an essay on what you can do to change the world”. The words seem to drop on my head like 3000 pound weights. I have to write an essay.

I’ve had bad experiences with public speaking and now they expect me to write another one and read it in front of everyone. It seems just like yesterday when I had to write an essay on Madam C. J. Walker. I began. Words smoothly flowing and rolling off my tongue like Spanish double r’s. I become nervous; I lose my place on the paper and start in a paragraph I had already read. I was a disaster, there was an uncomfortable silence in the crowd, and I began to tear up. I quickly wipe the tears from my eyes and begin to read again. I knew in my mind I was not going to win.
The crowd claps with pity.

“I can’t believe we have to write another essay,” my best friend Alex announced out loud.
“Me either I say as I pick at the scab on my knee.

“You’d better start”
“Ma not right not right now, will you stop nagging me”, this went on for about three weeks, until I got tired of being nagged. I started a weed before the public speaking due date.

“I’ll be your editor if you promise to work hard this week I bet that you’ll get at least third place, “my sister said she always made deals like this with me.

Wednesday, I managed to tell why I think I could change the world.
Thursday almost all the way done, Friday was the hardest of all my days of working on this essay, the critiquing was horrific the comments from close family members were true but cruel I knew I had to step up my game.

The correction, the correction that made all the work I had done that made it all worth it. I was finished, finished for good.

The intensity grew as a thick humid fog falling from the heavens; you could feel the competiveness in the air like perspiration after a good work out. The day had finally come.
I was dressed for the occasion; my hair flowed in lovely black spiral curls. This is it, I’m next.

I began nervous, reading off my paper and after a few minutes I warmed up to the crowd. I spoke clearly making eye contact with the audience. And just like that I had finished, I was done.


“And now to name the winners of the essay,” one of the judges spoke over the microphone.
“In third place Ms. Johnise Brimmer, and in Second place Ms. Michele Nickeson,”
“Drum roll please,” dudududud “In first place the essay that was delivered with content Ms Shelena Sutton!”

I can’t believe it I won I actually won, my eyes swell with tears. It was an incredible victory. At first I didn’t think I could do it. I persevered, over came my fear of public speaking, and proved myself wrong, and I won.