This was my second year participating in author Kailei Pew’s 2024 Kids’ Choice KidLit Writing Contest, and my young adult flash piece – From Antarctica, With Love – received an honorable mention! What an amazing surprise!

For those who aren’t familiar with this contest, the judges are KIDS! The contest runs from picture books through middle grade up to young adult. The kids reading will be in the appropriate age categories, and they judge whether your submission will go to the next level of kid judging. It’s a great contest that’s announced and celebrated on Twitter, but the majority of the information can be found on Kailei’s blog. Per contest instructions, these submissions need to be 500 words or less.

‘From Antarctica, With Love’ was initially inspired by a word bank for an online magazine submission. It turns out the magazine wasn’t looking for KidLit voices, but I came out of the process with this delightful piece. Thank you, Natasha De Silva, Kerrie Faye, and Jenny Mattern for your helpful feedback and support in making this piece what it is today.

And now…’From Antarctica, With Love.’

From Antarctica, With Love

“There’s no way this is your fourth time down here!”

I crack a smile at the cute, teenage girl eyeballing me. “It sure is.”

My family spends two weeks every summer on a cruise ship to Antarctica, for one reason—my mom.

She puts her hands on her hips. “I don’t believe you.”

No one ever believes me.

I raise my hand to my chest like she’s wounded me, before collapsing onto a deck lounge chair. “How will I ever go on?” I muster.

She snorts and rolls her eyes, a smile playing on her lips. She settles on the deck chair beside mine. “Okay, you’re obviously dramatic. You must enjoy making up stories.”

I shove my journal, the one where I do, in fact, make up stories, under my butt. “Maybe.” I lean in close, close enough to smell her orange-scented shampoo. “But this isn’t some story.”

She crosses her arms like I’m still suspect. Her eyes catalog my face, taking in every curve and dimple. She’s curious about me. I’m curious about her, too, that’s why I asked if this was her first time to Antarctica. For most, it’s their first and only time. And at fifteen, I suppose I do enjoy telling others it’s not mine.

A paper airplane hits my waterproof jacket, severing our long stare. I shift my eyes over to my little brother, who’s been extra annoying this trip. The red-striped airplane bends in my fist. He snatches it back before I can destroy it.

“My brother’s lame,” Julian says out of the corner of his obnoxious, nine-year-old mouth. “Don’t trust a word he says.”

I could toss this kid onto an iceberg.

The girl’s cheeks bunch up in triumph. “I knew it! I knew this wasn’t your fourth time to Antarctica!”

I give Julian a hard look. It says Tell her the truth, or I’ll put you on the top deck in the middle of the night.

His grin vanishes. “This is our fourth time,” he admits. “We come every year since Mom’s been in cancer remission.”

My jaw clenches in a familiar Mom-related spot. I smack him on the arm. “You didn’t have to tell her about Mom, dummy.”

He shrugs and takes off with his airplane held high.

The girl’s glossy lips grow soft with an apology. I speak up before one can surface. Her pity is the last thing I want. “My mom loves penguins. We save up all year so she can hike through the colonies.”

Her brown eyes shine. “I love penguins, too!”

Everyone does. I’m sorta over visiting the colony, but I’ll never get tired of seeing Mom happy. I lean in again. “Spoiler alert: penguins are smelly.”

Her laugh sends goosebumps up my arms. “Well, would you show me the least smelliest route through the colony tomorrow?”

I bite my lip. This trip just leveled up. Maybe there’s more for me here than a yearly reminder the worst hasn’t happened.

“You can count on it,” I tell her.

Thank you for reading! If you’re interested in supporting incredible authors like Kailei Pew, check out her books here.