{"id":6157,"date":"2020-12-31T09:04:45","date_gmt":"2020-12-31T17:04:45","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/pasadena-library.net\/teens\/?p=6157"},"modified":"2020-12-31T09:38:09","modified_gmt":"2020-12-31T17:38:09","slug":"pateel-krikorian","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/pasadena-library.net\/teens\/2020\/pateel-krikorian\/","title":{"rendered":"\u201cNever Let Go\u201d by Pateel Krikorian"},"content":{"rendered":"

Dream Catcher Story Contest<\/p>\n

2nd place<\/span><\/p>\n

(Category 2: grades 6-8)<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u201cNever Let Go\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n

by Pateel Krikorian<\/strong><\/p>\n

Age 13, Grade 8<\/strong><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0My mother used to tell me to always dream and so I did. I dreamt every night and every day. I dreamt flowers blooming from every corner of my life. Then, my mother died. All those pastel-colored flowers turned black.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0I grew up in a small town in Colorado where dreams were not affordable. Every morning I would wake up at six to watch the sunrise. The sun reminded me of her. It made me feel like she was still here.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0It was especially hard on my dad. He would tell me everything would be fine, but it was not. After school I worked in a coffee shop down the street to help my dad with the bills. I dreamt of becoming a doctor, but dad said to think about other careers. Cheaper ones. But I could not. It had been my dream ever since I was little. My mom and I used to play pretend doctor when I were younger. She would be sick, and I would help her. However, I could not save her when she really became sick, but I did not give up, even if it meant I needed to work more hours. My mother would not let me give up. So, I didn\u2019t. I worked more hours, found better jobs, and made more money.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0When I finally finished college, I remembered the times where I was hopeless. Yet, I could not just throw away my dreams. I remembered the hundreds of friends and family members who told me I could not do it, but I kept telling myself, \u201cProve them wrong. Never give up on your dreams.\u201d When I finally finished college, I proved them wrong, and I know I made my mother proud in heaven.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\n

 <\/p>\n

View a list of all the winners:\u00a0 http:\/\/pasadena-library.net\/teens\/2020\/dream-catcher-story-contest\/<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Dream Catcher Story Contest 2nd place (Category 2: grades 6-8)   \u201cNever Let Go\u201d by Pateel Krikorian Age 13, Grade 8   \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0My mother used to tell me to always dream and so I did. I dreamt every night and every day. I dreamt flowers blooming from every corner of […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":20,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[117,28],"tags":[92],"class_list":["post-6157","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-opinion","category-writing","tag-contest"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p5ZwbD-1Bj","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":6149,"url":"https:\/\/pasadena-library.net\/teens\/2020\/dream-catcher-story-contest\/","url_meta":{"origin":6157,"position":0},"title":"Dream Catcher Story Contest","author":"Jane Gov","date":"December 31, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"We\u2019re pleased to announce the winners of the Dream Catcher Story Contest. Writers were challenged to tell us a story in 300 words or less that is inspired by dreams or capturing dreams.\u00a0 Special thanks to our judges:\u00a0 Natassia Mendez, Jesse Roth, Nick Smith, and Jasmine Sov. Here are the\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Agendas & News"","block_context":{"text":"Agendas & News","link":"https:\/\/pasadena-library.net\/teens\/category\/agendas-news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":6163,"url":"https:\/\/pasadena-library.net\/teens\/2020\/grace-petoyan\/","url_meta":{"origin":6157,"position":1},"title":"\u201cI\u2019m Not the Only One\u201d by Grace Petoyan","author":"Jane Gov","date":"December 31, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"Dream Catcher Story Contest Honorable Mention (Category 2: grades 6-8) \u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m Not the Only One\u201d by Grace Petoyan Age 13, Grade 8 \u00a0 Who me? A dreamer? No, I don\u2019t dream. It\u2019s all within my head. I make senseless goals like buying pints of ice cream. \u00a0 I watch\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Features"","block_context":{"text":"Features","link":"https:\/\/pasadena-library.net\/teens\/category\/opinion\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":6952,"url":"https:\/\/pasadena-library.net\/teens\/2022\/in-the-same-boat-teen-book-review\/","url_meta":{"origin":6157,"position":2},"title":"In the Same Boat — Teen Book Review","author":"Teen Blogger","date":"June 23, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"Reviewed by Giselle Carlos, age 16 In the Same Boat by Holly Green Sadie Scofield is finally ready to accomplish her dream of crossing the finish line in the 265-mile canoe race, the Texas River Odyssey. Ever since her childhood, she\u2019s dreamt of sharing stories like the ones her family\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Book Reviews"","block_context":{"text":"Book Reviews","link":"https:\/\/pasadena-library.net\/teens\/category\/teen-reviews\/book-reviews\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/pasadena-library.net\/teens\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/18\/files\/sites\/18\/2022\/06\/Inthesameboat.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/pasadena-library.net\/teens\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/18\/files\/sites\/18\/2022\/06\/Inthesameboat.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/pasadena-library.net\/teens\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/18\/files\/sites\/18\/2022\/06\/Inthesameboat.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":6167,"url":"https:\/\/pasadena-library.net\/teens\/2020\/maggie-hartigan\/","url_meta":{"origin":6157,"position":3},"title":"\u201cCatching Nightmares\u201d by Maggie Hartigan","author":"Jane Gov","date":"December 31, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"Dream Catcher Story Contest Honorable Mention (Category 2: grades 6-8) \u00a0 \u201cCatching Nightmares\u201d by Maggie Hartigan Age 12, Grade 6 \u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Yawn. I\u2019m so tired. I can\u2019t wait to go to bed. I\u2019m Avery, by the way. I glance up at my dreamcatcher, which hasn\u2019t been doing a very good\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Features"","block_context":{"text":"Features","link":"https:\/\/pasadena-library.net\/teens\/category\/opinion\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":5242,"url":"https:\/\/pasadena-library.net\/teens\/2019\/fong\/","url_meta":{"origin":6157,"position":4},"title":"“The Promise” by Julia Fong","author":"Jane Gov","date":"October 6, 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"3rd Place \"The Promise\" by Julia Fong, age 14 \u00a0 I remember the good times, feeling safe in my father\u2019s strong hands, as he lifts me to the sky and back over and over and over again \u00a0 He is tired now, a little sweaty, as he sits in his\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Features"","block_context":{"text":"Features","link":"https:\/\/pasadena-library.net\/teens\/category\/opinion\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":3704,"url":"https:\/\/pasadena-library.net\/teens\/2017\/simone\/","url_meta":{"origin":6157,"position":5},"title":"Goodbye Vietnam — a story by Simone Nguyen","author":"Teen Blogger","date":"March 21, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"One City One Story 2017 Writing Contest 1st place Middle School category Simone Nguyen Grade 8, Blair Middle School \u201cGoodbye Vietnam\u201d Summary: \u00a0The narrator recalls his or her family\u2019s journey over the sea as they emigrate from Vietnam to Thailand. \u00a0 In 1975, the United States left Vietnam. The U.S.\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Writing"","block_context":{"text":"Writing","link":"https:\/\/pasadena-library.net\/teens\/category\/writing\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/pasadena-library.net\/teens\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/18\/files\/sites\/18\/2017\/03\/ocos2017_snguyen.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/pasadena-library.net\/teens\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/18\/files\/sites\/18\/2017\/03\/ocos2017_snguyen.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/pasadena-library.net\/teens\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/18\/files\/sites\/18\/2017\/03\/ocos2017_snguyen.png?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x"},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/pasadena-library.net\/teens\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6157","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/pasadena-library.net\/teens\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/pasadena-library.net\/teens\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pasadena-library.net\/teens\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/20"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pasadena-library.net\/teens\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6157"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/pasadena-library.net\/teens\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6157\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6184,"href":"https:\/\/pasadena-library.net\/teens\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6157\/revisions\/6184"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/pasadena-library.net\/teens\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6157"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pasadena-library.net\/teens\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6157"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pasadena-library.net\/teens\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6157"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}