Patriotism — the devotion one has for their country. People know what the word means, but fifth-grader Rowan Pulkrabek set out to explain it in her own words.
Pulkrabek heard about the American Legion’s essay contest at school and decided to enter because of her love of writing.
“I really like reading, writing and art,” she said. “I usually write realistic fiction — the kind of stuff that could reflect you or me.”
The essay contests posed the question, “What does patriotism mean to you?”
“I wrote about how you can be a good American citizen,” she said. “I think a good citizen is one that doesn’t believe in violence, someone who only wants to help our country. Someone who wants to be involved and stands up for our rights, kind of like everything a president would be.”
Pulkrabek said she always enjoyed writing, with her one of her earliest memories being from kindergarten.
“I used to ‘write’ these little books,” she said. “I didn’t know how to write yet, but I was drawing pictures. One day I just discovered that I could read my own little books, so I created more and more. When I learned how to write I would write in a notebook every night before bed.”
Pulkrabek won the contest with her one-page essay and received a plaque and trophy to celebrate her accomplishment.
“We were on vacation, and I had just gotten back from the ocean,” she said. “My mom told me she had a surprise for me, and I thought it was going to be about a birthday party or a sleepover. But then she told me I’d won the contest. I started screaming and I had tears in my eyes because it felt so good.”
