Charlie the Dragon

Alright, the title of this post sounds a little bizarre. But in fourth grade, when assigned to write a creative short story for our "portfolio" (an elusive, mysterious, district mandated folder which none of us ever actually saw), I thought Charlie the affable dragon was the best idea ever to grace the literary world.

The premise was this (and it is a convoluted premise, so hang with me): Charlie was the friendly sheriff-dragon who lived in a town full of his dragon friends. He was especially large for his size, which is probably why he was appointed sheriff. However, there was something unique about Charlie. Although he was supposed to be seen as the town's valiant hero, his allergies (that's right, dragons are allergic to pollen and ragweed just like I am) prevented his fellow dragons from taking him seriously. When he would sneeze, his nose would shoot out fireballs and consequently light part of the town on fire. This was very stressful for poor Charlie.

Again, I recognize this story is a bit "out there." But to me, it was genius. I loved creating Charlie's imaginary world and was convinced my teacher would feel the same.

Sadly, this was not the case. My teacher, "confused" by some of my details, used her threatening red pen to shred my literary dreams to pieces. She crossed out and actually rewrote sections of my piece for me. I was crushed and decided instead of taking risks on this piece of writing, I would simply conform to her wishes.

Although this was a relatively small moment in my educational career, I think it had a profound impact on me (which is probably why I remember it so vividly years later). This experience taught me not to trust my own instincts, not to reflect, but instead to value the red pen and the final product. Thankfully, my father saved me from this system in middle school and taught me the power of editing and reflexive writing. I know many of my peers were not as fortunate.

Because of this experience, I vow to honor the "Charlies" in the writing of my future students. Instead of using a threatening red pen to correct, I will encourage the mistakes, the confusion, and the reflection in hopes that they can reach their moments of literary genius.

Mackenzie