A Birthday Cake in a Pandemic Olivia Ren, 10 I was wandering around my house, not doing anything in particular, just walking around. It was March 16, 2020, and my mom, dad, little sister, and I were trying to adjust to a new life due to COVID-19. By “new life,” I mean a totally different lifestyle. I needed to go to school on my computer at nine, and finish the work that was posted on my Google Classroom by one, and then go and watch my sister for my parents because they were busy with their work. Things were difficult, but there was an even more important issue for us: in one day, it would be my mom’s birthday. During one of my virtual school breaks, I had overheard my parents talking upstairs. They weren’t talking with any of their colleagues, only each other. This was not regular. I was so curious that I forgot to stay quiet, and ran to their room. They were so concentrated on talking that they didn’t hear my loud footsteps on our creaky floor. My dad sighed. “I guess we can’t get a birthday cake for you this year.” I couldn’t bear to listen to my parents talk about my mom’s birthday anymore. How could I just stand there watching my mom’s birthday pass by without cake? I was determined to make my mom’s birthday special. I felt thankful that I had a mom who cared about my birthday, and I wanted her to feel the same. But what could I do? Then…a lightbulb appeared in my head. Yogurt could save the day. *** It was my mom’s birthday, and I tiptoed down the stairs. I ripped open our refrigerator looking for the yogurt. My whole family was doing their own things. Emily, my sister, was making a card for my mom. My parents were sleeping. I stacked slices of breakfast bread on top of each other and slathered them with yogurt to glue them together. Then I drizzled some of the yogurt frosting over my creation. I scanned our fridge, plucked out all the other ingredients I needed. I soon had a problem, though. My yogurt frosting was way too solid. I thought of water right away, but I didn’t even try to imagine what my creation would taste like if I stirred water into my strawberry yogurt. Then I thought of milk. My sister mixed milk and yogurt all the time and it tasted… well, great! So, I went with milk stirred with yogurt. Nah. It was too watery. I didn’t want to bring my mom a disgusting and soggy piece of nothing. It needed to be a little bit stickier. I brainstormed what was sticky. Glue! Well, we couldn’t eat glue. That would be careless. Then I thought of syrup and honey! Syrup made it cloggy, honey made it clear, but it wasn’t half as sweet as I wanted it to be. So, I sprinkled some sugar to make it sweeter. It took much longer than I expected, but I kept working on my mom’s cake, not allowing anything to stop me! After a few hours, it was time for my mom’s birthday celebration. “Happy Birthday to you, happy birthday to you, happy birthday dear mo-om, happy birthday to you.” I sang the loudest! My mom made her wish, and then it was cake time! I got my cake, and carefully placed it onto the dining table. “Wow! That looks beautiful…” My mom said, tearing up with happiness. “I hope you like it!” I told her. “I ran into some problems, but it should still taste good.” “It’s fine! I absolutely love it! I am so proud of you!” Mom sniffled. She hugged me. I hugged her right back and smiled. “Thanks! I felt that every birthday needed a cake, even in a pandemic.” I felt proud, emotional, and happy at the same time. I just loved to make my mom feel happy. “Yeah, I agree! Good job Olivia! I think you just made Mom’s day!” Dad told me. That night, I went to bed feeling amazed by the power of determination. Even during tough times, there is always some way to make others feel special. My goal to get my mom a birthday cake during a pandemic was achieved, and even better, it helped make my mom feel appreciated. This is the true way to spread thoughtfulness during hard times.
Young Bloggers
Reflection: A Twisted Tale, Reviewed by Pragnya, 13
In 1998, Disney released the animated film Mulan, a musical set in Han China that centers around Fa Mulan, an ambitious girl from a traditional family who takes her father’s place to join the Imperial Army by disguising herself as a boy. With stellar musical renditions and a vivid storyline, Mulan had always been one of my favorites. When I went into Reflection, expecting fresh characterization and an entrancing plot, I was treated to that and then some. Reflection, part of the Twisted Tale series where classic Disney movies are reimagined with major plot points undergoing unexpected twists, is a sharp, lyrical novel where Fa Mulan, the protagonist, has to travel to the underworld to save her captain from permanent death. In the middle of a battle, Mulan, sparked by an idea that has the potential to save her warriors turned friends and the entirety of China from the Huns, decides to risk everything and light a cannon that could cause an avalanche. However, in the process of trying to save her from the oncoming avalanche, Captain Shang gets fatally injured by Shan Yu and makes his way to Diyu, the underworld. In order to return the favor, Mulan, disguised as Fa Ping, a boy whose identity she made up to get into the ranks of the army, travels to the underworld. As she makes her way through Diyu, she struggles with identity and first love, fighting spirit demons as she races against the clock to save Shang and escape the underworld before sunrise. With the help of ShiShi, the Li family guardian, and the ghost of Li Shang’s father, she faces obstacle after obstacle with determination and valour, but time slips away fast in Diyu and everyone seems to be out to stop them. Will Mulan be able to save Captain Shang in time or will it be too late? One of the things that stood out to me in this book was the world-building and vivid descriptions. In the original movie, the setting drew from most of its historical aspects, but in this reimagining the setting takes inspiration from Chinese mythology and folklore, along with an authentic historical representation of 15th century China, to create a surreal world for us to fall into. With fast-paced, simple yet intense prose, Lim creates a tension with every line on the page. The characters blend well into the style, with distinct personalities and internal conflict that adds another level of characterization into the plot. I especially enjoyed how the protagonist, whose personal struggles dealt with themes like family, loyalty, gender norms and purpose, felt extremely relatable to myself, which is why I recommend it to anyone in search of a book with a strong female protagonist. Reflection is a book whose story I will think about for a long time. Reflection: A Twisted Tale by Elizabeth Lim. Disney-Hyperion, 2019. Buy the book here and support Stone Soup in the process!
“Positive,” a personal narrative by Sarayu B., 11
Positive Sarayu B, 11 I got the news sometime in January. I was waiting, waiting, waiting for my grandmother to get better. She had tested positive for COVID-19 earlier, and the more I thought about it, the more it seemed so… unreal. I’d heard about many people who got sick and even died from COVID, but I couldn’t imagine my grandma, the one I knew and loved since my birth, passing away from a small, simple illness. It was the afternoon one day—Thursday, I think—when I was told. I was in the room I share with my brother, logged into Google Meet. Since the COVID-19 pandemic, we had been having school through meetings, virtually, learning everything we would normally learn. Then my mom came in, in her pajamas, which was strange. She never came into the room in the middle of my class unless I called her or she was bringing me a snack or something. She was upset. I could tell by the way she stood there in the doorway. Then she told me. The words struck me like lightning. “Ammamma got COVID,” she said simply in Telugu, smiling weakly. The way she said it, she could easily have been talking about a stranger. But no. It was my grandma, her mom. Thoughts were spiraling about in my head, but I managed to say, “How do you know?” “We were told just now,” my mom said. “She’s in the hospital.” My heart lurched. It was like being struck by lightning the second time. My mom left and walked into the master bedroom, the floorboards creaking under her feet. I tried to focus on the meeting, but I couldn’t. This piece was submitted to us via our Classroom Submissions (for teacher’s only) portal in Submittable. If you are a teacher and would like to submit your students’ work, please do so here.
