HAPPY VALENTINE’S DAY and my VALENTINY CONTEST ENTRY

Here in the south, a snowfall is a rare and much anticipated occurrence. Most of the time (at least where my family lives), when the weather forecast says there’s a chance of snow, we don’t see a single flake. And it is so very sad to see the disappointment on my boys’ faces when they wake up and realize that—once again—the snow has passed us by.

But when it does snow—watch out! It's party time in our neighborhood! So when I learned the topic of Susanna Leonard Hill's Third Annual Valentiny Contest, I knew right away what I wanted to write about. The rules were simply to write a children’s Valentine’s story (214 words or less) in which someone is hopeful. Here is my entry:

HOPING FOR SNOW

by Becky Shillington (214 words)

  

When Dad says, “There’s a chance of snow!”

I dance around and whoop and cheer.

But just as I begin to hope,

I think, “We never get snow here.”

My Valentines are neatly stacked.

I’ve made each friend a special treat.

So if it doesn’t snow tonight,

at least school will be fun and sweet!

When Mom and Dad tuck me in bed,

I toss and turn and sigh all night.

As minutes tick-tock off my clock,

I peek outside and look for white.

Then suddenly, tomorrow’s here.

Mom sings, “It’s time to rise and shine!”

I look outside again. No snow.

But here’s a lovely Valentine!

At school, my friends have sleepy eyes;

it looks like no one slept last night.

“No snow—no FAIR,” they all complain.

“There goes our epic snowball fight!”

“Cheer up!” I say. “It STILL might snow—

the news guy said so on TV.”

I hand each friend an envelope.

“Now here’s a special treat from me!”

They open up their Valentines

and smile when they see what’s inside:

a cookie heart for everyone

and heart-shaped snowflakes made with pride.

“Let’s find some string and hang these up.

We’ll make it snow ourselves,” I say.

But as we work, I look outside.

“It’s snowing now for real! HOORAY!”

I hope you all have a very happy Valentine’s Day!