Lauren received her award from Rotary Club of Rutland President Bruce Strickland. She is the first national win in his 50 years with the club! Her powerful story ‘Wondrous Water’ wowed judges across the country. Well done, Lauren!

Lauren’s story:

The sun stares down at me, its menacing glare causing sweat to trickle down my forehead. I look up at the brilliant blue sky – under different circumstances some might call it pretty. I squint upwards, sighing when once again there’s not even a wisp of a cloud.

Staring down at my bare feet – caked in dry, cracked mud – I slowly drag them across the barren ground beneath me. In a matter of weeks green fields have turned into ragged wastelands, the clean crisp air now thick and heavy. My throat scratches, crying out for a drink as I feel my resolve beginning to waver under the burning heat.

No shade.

No water.

No comfort.

No hope.

Then, just as I think my time is up once and for all, a drop lands on the wizened earth before me. I frown, confused. Is this but another mirage sent to trick my weakened mind? It happens again. And again. Each drop swallowed by the barren ground, hungry for its first taste of life. Every bead washes away the drought; every bead washes away my doubt. A laugh escapes my chapped lips, a rare smile pulling them up over my teeth.

Tilting my head up to the sky, I close my eyes as a waterfall of hope cascades down upon me.

I am saved.

Saved from the searing heat.

Saved from my near inevitable death.

Saved by the wondrous gift of water.