Wiiners of the “A Dream Realized” essay and short story contest have been announced at McAlester Public Library. Caitlin Clifton submitted the first-place entry and will receive a $25 prize. Gwyn Hubbert’s entry earned her a second-place $15 prize.
Members of the Night Readers book club served as judges. Here are the winning entries.
MORE THAN ONE DREAM REALIZED
By CAITLIN CLIFTON
“Man! I can’t believe she assigned a two-page essay on our dreams for the future!” Sam groaned disgustedly, “I mean didn’t we already do that in the ‘My Plans After High School’ paper?”
“Well, I dream of becoming a famous writer.” Chelsea exclaimed.
“I dream of a world free from soggy french fries,” Jacob said as he wriggled a limp fry in Hanna’s face. Hanna crossed her eyes and stuck out her tongue. The five seniors had settled down at their lunch table to enjoy the main entrée of the day slightly green coneys.
“So what do you dream of doing, Hanna?” Edward inquired.
Hanna looked out over the lunchroom. “Is it really fair that the rich kids get better choices? The free and reduced lunch kids don’t get a choice.” She turned back around and continued, “I dream of a world where people are truly equal. I really just want to make a difference in the lives of others.”
“That’s a noble thought,” Chelsea laughed, “but I hate to tell you that we just aren’t powerful around here.”
Everyone always said how corrupt and horrible their town was. The youth, all except for Hanna, wanted to leave as soon as possible and the adults were certainly doing nothing to improve things. It was much easier to sit around and complain. Hanna liked her town. She really did.
“I might as well forget about making a difference and I’m stuck here, anyway,” Hanna thought, as she hurried back to her class. The moment she walked in, the intercom buzzed, telling her to go to the counselor’s office. Mrs. Leeds had something to discuss with her. Mrs. Leeds was an ancient lady, around 46, with Revlon medium brown hair and a gentle personality.
“Hanna, are you familiar with the New Start program?” Mrs. Leeds inquired as Hanna sat down.
“That’s the one where they help people get better jobs, isn’t it?”
“Well, they help them acquire the skills they need. The director called and asked me to suggest someone to be a tutor. It seems they have a 27-year-old Hispanic woman who is taking college courses. She wants to become a nurse and support her daughter. Her name is Josie Smith.”
Hanna recognized the name from church. She had married a man from the area, but he had been killed in an accident. Josie knew no one and was renting a dung heap on the outskirts of town. Mistaking her silence for something else, Mrs. Leeds quickly added, “She immigrated legally with her family when she was young.”
“I assumed,” Hanna replied, “but I don’t know. I’m really busy and I’m not sure I’d be the right person for the job.”
“I’ll give you some time to think about it. Hanna, you need to get that EPA scholarship in to me by next week.”
Back at home, Hanna flipped on the TV and stabbed a straw into a juice box. She’d get to the essay later. For now, she’d work on organizing the old pictures for her mother. Hanna picked up photograph of her grandmother Mary. She was pretty and had a spark in her eyes.
“I wonder what she dreamed of doing.” Underneath the albums, there were journals. Hanna picked up one off the top and began to read.
I will graduate soon and everyone else seems to know what they will do. Emma plans to become a nurse and Louise a teacher. Imogene will soon marry. I don’t deal well with sick people and children are fine only in moderation. I could marry, but depending on a man doesn’t really tickle my fancy. I could work as I maid, but if I wanted to do that I’d just marry. Really, I want to make a difference in the world. I want things to be more fair.
“I guess we share more than our good looks,” mused Hanna, “but she never did anything amazing.” The next entry was a few years later. It was mostly stuff about boyfriends and who married whom. Her grandmother could get more dates than she could. That was sad. Hanna picked up the journal and continued reading.
Susan can’t sit still and is quite tiring. I inquired for a secretarial position, but this town is full of cruel people. The other ladies at social gatherings make nasty remarks about me. They call me the worthless immigrant child as though they aren’t descended from immigrants.
Hanna couldn’t believe it. Were people really that hateful? There were no more entries to tell her if she got the secretarial job. Hanna knew she eventually became a court reporter. Hanna walked over to the computer, googled “Court Reporter,” and clicked on a site. Wow, court reporting was detailed work, and her grandmother did it without modern gadgetry. Someone must’ve given her a chance
Hanna called the director of the New Start program and set up a time to meet Josie. Josie was energetic and smart. She explained that her school hadn’t been the best and so she was behind. Hanna tutored her for many months. They even had a few classes together.
As Hanna was preparing to graduate from college, she ran into Josie on the street. Josie was working at a local doctor’s office and living in town. Her little girl had just started school. In fact, Josie had been tutoring others and two had already graduated. Hanna walked down the street to her home and found the last of the journals in a box.
I guess I never achieved my dream of changing the world and it certainly isn’t any fairer, but perhaps I’ve made a difference somewhere.
“You certainly did,” thought Hanna, “and now it’s my turn.”
LITTLE CABIN ON THE TAKOTNA
By GWYN HUBBERT
“I don’t know why we don’t go stay in the cabin in Alaska!” I shouted.
“Okay, let’s go,” Steve answered back.
Steve and I lived in Alaska for 9 ½ years throughout his working career. The last two years there, our youngest son talked us into buying land on the Takotna River. Abe and Steve then built a 12 x 12 cabin in our corner of the wilderness. We had dreamed of returning to it after Steve’s retirement; and summer of 2008 seemed a good time to do that.
Preparations began; and the shopping list for Anchorage was made:
1 Coleman stove for cooking. The cabin has no electricity.
2 5-gal. plastic jugs to haul water from McGrath. The cabin has no running water.
1 hand-held water filtration system. We can filter river water for washing and cooking.
Canned foods.
Blueberry pancake mix.
Friends thought we had lost our minds. “No electricity, no running water! Why would you want to go there, Gwyn?”
“It is so beautiful,” I replied.
“Beauty cannot replace running water and electricity,” they would argue.
“Oh well, to each his own!” I shrugged.
By July 8 our bags were packed with grungy outdoor clothes. Our dogs were farmed out, the refrigerator was emptied, and every door and window was locked. “Are you sure we didn’t forget anything?” I asked.
“If we did, we’ll buy it in Anchorage,” Steve replied.
We were off!
After one day of shopping in Anchorage, we boarded PenAir Flight 235. One hour later, the small plane flew over the Kuskokwim River and landed on the McGrath, Alaska runway. Excitement was high as we climbed off the plane and saw long-tine friends waiting to greet us. After visiting and lunch, we made the trip upriver in a friend’s boat.
The twists and turns of the river were all familiar. Even one large beaver lodge was still in the same place it had always been. As we rounded the last bend, I could see the 40-foot pine tree that stood sentinel on our bank. Unlocking the cabin door and stepping inside made me aware our dream of spending a summer on the Takotna had now begun.
The first wildlife to greet us were the Canada Jay, commonly known as camp robbers. They will eat anything from food to metal. We limited our contributions to bread crumbs. Their gray and black bodies soared through the dense trees and landed on my hand to eat. They were like the old Dr. Pepper commercials, appearing at 12, two and four o’clock for crumbs. We learned to recognize the different ones that came regularly.
The football field-sized meadow in front of the cabin was thick with green grass, reaching five and a half feet high. The tall grass isn’t eaten down, mowed or burnt yearly. During the deep winter snows, it lays over and eventually decays. This forms large clumps called tussocks. It is a challenge to walk through. We chose our steps carefully to avoid twisted ankles.
Bears hide successfully in this tall grass. Several times we encountered reminders of their presence in the form of black bear scat. I kept hoping to see a black bear, but it eluded me. On the other hand, I was thankful I was never attacked by one of the sneaky creatures.
Every week we looked forward to the 15 mile trip on the river into McGrath for supplies. Our boat motor was a 5 hp Briggs and Stratton. That equated into an hour and a half to go those 15 miles. “What else do we have to do” became our motto. We were there to relax and enjoy the scenery and wildlife.
Ever-changing is the best way to describe the Takotna River. The trees in July were vibrant shades of green. By the end of August they had begun their fall wardrobe. Soft to bright yellows, then orange and finally red, the leaves were different each time we passed them. The air was filled with the woodsy smell of the wild cranberries, high bush cranberries, rose hips, and blueberries.
Baby ducks, learning survival skills from their mothers, were around each bend. They practiced diving, wing flapping, and scurrying back to their mothers as boats passed by. The ducklings grew as summer went on, and we enjoyed watching the progression.
Steve enjoyed sitting in the boat at six a.m. to see what the river life did at that hour.
Three beavers usually came by. One stayed in the middle of the Takotna staring at him. One swam underwater, popping his head up occasionally. The third swam right along the edge of the boat never noticing that Steve was sitting in it. He named them Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. “I can’t figure out if they are coming home from the midnight shift, or going to the eight o’clock shift,” he would say.
Alaska is known for its massive creature with a large rack—the moose. In the first two months of our stay, our meadow was visited by several of them. Our meadow was on the route through the woods because it held a small pond. Cows, small calves, and bulls meandered slowly across stopping to drink. Bullwinkle was one occasional visitor, along with twins, Romeo and Juliet. I have always considered it a privilege to have been able to watch moose. They are a gentle giant of the wilderness unless separated from their calves. Then they are no different from human mothers trying to protect their children. They attack!
October 4 arrived, signaling out time to say goodbye. Ice was beginning to form on the Takotna. We thanked the small cabin for a wonderful, de-stressing summer. Promising to return again, we boated the hour and a half into McGrath. It was a long, cold boat ride. I could never thank God enough for helping us realize our dream come true in the little cabin on the Takotna River.
McBook 