Losing Never Felt This Good

Let me just get right to it. Our youngest daughter had to learn a poem for her Literature class. Having experience in acting, monologues and so on, this was considered an easy assignment. After reciting her poem for the class, her teacher insisted she participate in the Poetry Out Loud National Recitation Contest. She would compete against other classmates at school (with two poems) and then the top three winners would go on to the final round in Washington D.C.

A little reluctant, she agreed to participate. I told her to look at it as practice for her next project; preferably a paid one. The day before the contest at school, she was extremely sick and spent most of the evening in bed with no appetite. Dropping out was not an option. The next morning she picked out her “It’s showtime!” outfit, took some medicine for upset stomach, and headed off to school. This time there were only nine participants, and the judges were from a local college nearby. Before the announcer could finish her name, the crowd went wild! No stranger to the stage, our daughter approached the mic, took a deep breath and recited her first poem. The applause were overwhelming. Round two was no different with the exception of a standing ovation. She felt great about her performance and enjoyed the attention, of course. And the winner is….not her.

That’s right, she didn’t even place. She looked over at her Literature teacher. “I’m so proud of you”, she said. Surprised, disappointed and hurt, she kept her head up and congratulated the three winners. That’s our girl! “Mommy, I don’t understand how I can go on auditions, get paid to perform and not even place at a school contest”. “I know baby. It’s their loss”. To her surprise, later that evening she began receiving text messages: I can’t believe you didn’t win. You should have won. You were the best one up there. You are a “phenomenal woman” (the title of one of her poems)! She text back: Thanks guys.

The next morning the unthinkable happened. As she walked down the hall, her classmates began the applause all over again. Even two of the winners congratulated her and told her she should have won first place. Teachers also congratulated her on a job well done. One even had “phenomenal woman” written on the board when she walked into class. We don’t know what happened, said another. As for her Literature teacher, she had the class give another standing ovation and the class next door joined in. Wow….losing never felt so good!

On a different note:
It would be selfish to share our family joys and not acknowledge Haiti. Words can not describe what the people of Haiti are experiencing right now. I commend every worker, volunteer and country for their efforts and support. Our family prayers go out to Haitians all over the world; and we will continue to do our part in helping as well. In the meantime, I dedicate this song on their behalf http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ztCZ1NMhNPU  .

Be blessed.