Essay Division

1st Place – Mairead Benson, 11th grader at John T. Hoggard High School “The Azaleas of 2021”

Mairead Benson is the 1^st place winner in the Essay category of the Azalea Festival High School Writing Contest with her piece titled, “The Azaleas of 2021.” She is an active 11^th grader at John T. Hoggard High School, carrying a challenging academic course load, playing on the Women’s Golf team, and participating with the Beta Club and in its many service projects.  Mairead is also active at her church as an acolyte and lay reader and particularly enjoys spending her Sunday afternoons relaxing and hanging out with her youth group friends and working on service projects with them as well.  Toys for Tots is one of her favorites.   She has sung in her school choir since middle school and is looking forward to finally getting to attend the Governor’s School of North Carolina this summer for vocal music.  Mairead’s favorite subjects in school are History and Psychology, which she would like to study in college.  Right now, she is immersed in the application process for three US service academies.  Her family has a strong military background so she hopes to be accepted at one of them, following her lifelong dream and her family’s footsteps. 

“The Azaleas of 2021”

This past year, the world completely stopped, turning our lives upside down. Everywhere we turned, on every TV channel and in every newspaper headline, we saw and heard the same words: “Coronavirus,” “riots,” “political divides and unrest.” It literally felt like the world was spinning out of control and would never stop. Schools and businesses closed their doors, protestors took to the streets, and our country was more divided than it has ever been. Everyone longs for some semblance of normalcy, a tiny piece of the old way of life. But it seems so out of reach. I want nothing more than to go to school and learn at a desk, not behind a screen. I want to hug my friends and see their smiles, not stay six feet apart and try to understand how they are feeling and what they are saying through a mask. However, no matter what is happening in the world, days turn to nights and the clock keeps ticking. Spring turned to summer, which in turn became fall, and transitioned to winter. When spring is finally here again, it will once again be different. This year, there will likely not be any parties, parades or concerts. Despite all that has happened over the past year, springtime in Wilmington is one thing that we can count on to make things better and brighter. The sun still shines brightly from the azure blue sky. The wind still blows softly, rustling the leaves on the trees and carrying the sweet scent of azaleas and the ocean. The beautiful springtime flowers still bloom and grow, and the pollen still causes lots of sneezes and itchy eyes. It looks just like it did last year, but in a way, it is even more beautiful. In the past, we have celebrated the coming of spring together in person, but this year, like last year, we will likely be celebrating together at heart. We are not able to honor our old traditions, so we should establish new ones. It is time to take more mindful walks on the beach or in the park, and really see and feel the beauty of nature that constantly surrounds us and that we normally take for granted. It is time to read a new book under the shade of a tree, or spend an evening with your family around a firepit. After all the sadness that has plagued our country and the world, it is time to relax and appreciate the good things in life, like the coming of spring and the love of friends and family. The Azalea Festival is more than just parades, concerts, street fairs, and parties. The Azalea Festival is the embodiment of the feeling of togetherness that people from all over North Carolina feel when they celebrate spring and honor the beautiful azalea. Although we will be celebrating in a socially distant fashion and likely with just our families this year, the 2021 Azalea Festival will proceed exactly as planned.