Finding Clemmet provides narrative for essay contest.
By KARISSA YZERMAN-GLEASON
Herberg Middle
DALTON - On May 30th I attended a very special and exciting event. I took part in the annual 7th grade Berkshire County Writing Contest. This was the contest’s 32nd year. It was held at Nessacus Regional Middle School. Selected students from 10 different Berkshire County schools met to compete. Ten students, including myself, were selected from Herberg Middle School, in Pittsfield, and we spent the entire day at the contest.
We were given a prompt and 90 minutes to complete a narrative. The prompt was, “Life is Filled with Wonderful Moments that Stay in our Memories Forever.” These memories may be linked to heartfelt moments, first times, last encounters, exciting incidents, accomplishments, or holidays. Describe a time when you felt something wonderful inside you that left you with that ‘unforgettable feeling.’
Below is the narrative I wrote at the contest titled “From the Plants.”
It all started on a bright, sunny, summer afternoon. The sky was pure blue and thick fluffy clouds dotted the sky like little sheep. There was a slight breeze in the air that rustled the green leaves of the trees.
My friend Grace and I thought it would be the perfect day to ride our bikes. The outside world just seemed to be calling us. So, we clambered outside into the glorious sunlight.
I sprinted onto my gray front porch, where the bikes lay nestled in the corner. Grace followed me with a big smile lighting up her face. I smiled back then grabbed my bike. Grace grabbed hers too. I wheeled my bike over to the steps. At the time I wasn’t strong enough to carry it down, so my Mom, who was working in the garden, rushed over to help.
After a little bit of struggle and team work, Grace and I were on our bikes ready to go. My Mom had returned to her pruning of the front garden where the thick cluster of peonies grew. “Ready,” I asked Grace.
“Ready,” She replied, and with that I took off. We pedaled up the hill that leads to the top of my street, the only noises being from our bike chains and laughter. When we finally reached the top, we immediately just turned around and headed back down.
As we pulled up in front of my house, my Mom jumped up from her work, “Honey C’mere,” she exclaimed. “Quick!”
I exchanged a quick glance with Grace, then sprinted across the lawn throwing my bike on the ground. “What,” I said excitedly as I reached her. She put her finger over her lips to ‘shush’ me, and then pointed towards the thick cluster of peonies.
“Look,” she whispered. I took a look and saw a pitiful yet amazing sight. A tiny, scrawny face had appeared in the maze of stems and leaves. The face was mostly all eyes, because they glowed compared to the rest of the pitiful black head. Then the head shot out of the plants, and it suddenly wasn’t just a head anymore. It was a small, skinny kitten.
The kitten had gray-black fur that looked matted and dirty. It was tiny overall, and extremely thin. Its huge green eyes seemed to swallow the rest of the body. It was clearly a stray. “Mom,” I whispered, “We should feed it!”
She looked over at me and nodded, “I agree.” She then rushed inside to get some canned fish to feed the kitten. While she was gone, I talked to the kitten. I let it sniff my hand, and it weakly meowed. I called Grace over, and she let it sniff her hand too. The kitten seemed to grow more comfortable as time went on, although it still slinked around like a frightened criminal. I decided I liked this kitty, and the warm glow of pride filled me as I realized that we could be saving its life.
When my Mom returned, she put the bowl in front of the cat. We figured out that it couldn’t eat from the bowl, so we put the food on the ground. We had success because kitty ate it all.
We hung out with the kitten until it scampered away. It ran to our neighbor’s lawn and climbed the small tree that stands there. We all laughed, but sadness filled me. I didn’t want it to go.
Over the next week or two, I saw the same cat over and over. We hung out with it a lot, and eventually we adopted him. I gave him his name Clemmet. Nowadays he lives with my family and is an indoor cat. I don’t think Clemmet would be able to climb a tree anymore!
Clemmet is now healthy, happy, and an amazing cat. We are so lucky we have him. To this day, I remember the warm glow of joy and pride that filled me as we fed him. We saved Clemmet, and it makes me so happy to know that.