Pepi Wins Daunt Short Story Contest

Congratulations to Pepi, Gr. 6, who had one of the winning entries in the Daunt Books Short Story Competition.

The collection will be published later in the year with 14 others from varying grades.

Here is Pepi’s winning entry:

The Collector
by Pepi E.
Age 11

Once in a very small town, not too far away from yours, lived a man. An old, crippled
sort who you’d expect to spend life at home with a newspaper as old and crippled as
he. But this story is not about that for this old man was an avid collector. A collector
of feelings.  He’d stroll around the town and record the most pure or amazing things
he experienced in his leather bound book . A flickering candle, the aroma of a scarlet
flower, the sensation of a tear running down a cheek.  This unusual collection
astounded the people in the village just as it astounds you now – The villagers were
unsettled by him and wanted to help the man get on with a more normal life.

They all gave him their recommendations but each never seemed to help.
Blacksmithing for a start was not his thing. He’d begin his hard work  then stop
when he heard the clang of metal, drop all his things and write it all down. Even
after that, he’d begin to record the feeling of powdery soot on his fingers, and
the ferocity of the fire. He couldn’t work with animals, he could only stroke them for countless hours, irrespective of creature, noticing their fur, their breath. The villagers only had one more solution for the dreamy man: music. Surely, they thought he could conduct a single orchestra without documenting something? But once again they were wrong. The old man only danced around the stage absorbing  all he could. It seemed he could do nothing useful. Backstage the old man groaned. He had never believed there was anything wrong with the writing but now he began to wish that he could collect buttons or yarn and be more like the others.

He took a final look at the book and settled it down onto the grimy stone floor. This was a large decision but he stiffly shook his head and began to hobble away. Yet before he could open the backstage door, the most beautiful thing struck his entire body. He was quite sure that it was a sound but it seemed to engulf his body like a liquid. Still standing frozen in awe, the man heard the sound get louder and louder until into his vision, came an old woman who looked almost as beautiful as the music she was singing. He stared at her and listened intently to her music and grabbed his book of favorite things. He tried to write everything he noticed about her but found he had already written all of her features down in previous entries, when he wrote about the moon, twilight on water or the smell of fresh vanilla. Suddenly, the old gentleman knew what the meaning of this book was. He closed the book, and passed it gently into her grasp. “This is you.”

Copyright Pepi E., Age 11

Human Library Comes to YHS

Margot Sangster - National Human Library Day
Margot Sangster talks to the Gr. 6’s and 7’s about her experiences as a woman working in Afghanistan

January 26 was National Human Library Day. The Gr. 6’s and 7’s were treated to a special “Human Library” guest in the Junior Library. Margot Sangster lived and worked in Afghanistan and shared her stories and photos with the girls. She provided lots of background information on the culture and political climate of the country. Hearing first hand accounts is what a Human Library is all about. Justyna L., Grade 6, fills us in:

What is the human library you ask?
The Human Library is a program where humans take on the role of books. A person can be a living book who provides first hand information about their life or job.

Margot Sangster - National Human Library DayWho was our human book?
Margot Sangster
is a Canadian women who has been living and working in Afghanistan for the past year and a half.

She was the Program Management and Coordination Advisor with the Ministry of Agriculture in Afghanistan. Prior to that she was the Employment Service Center Specialist at the Ministry of Labor, Social Affairs, Martyrs and Disabled (she was actually employed by the Civilian Technical Assistance Program in Afghanistan).

What was it like for her living in Afghanistan?
A womens daily life is much harder than a women living in Canada. She has to wear clothing that covers her body in a modest way. She wore a head scarf, a skirt that reached the ground and a jacket that covered her hips. When a women goes out she would have to be accompanied by a male relative.

Why did Margot decide to go to Afghanistan?
Ms. Sangster wanted to go to Afghanistan because she heard of the horrible the conditions that girls and women had to face and she wanted to help.

Will she go back to Afghanistan?
She will go back to Afghanistan if she can get another job in Afghanistan.