Dear Congress

A story about an unknown young girl that has written an innocent letter to congress which stirs an individuals conscience.

             ‘Dear Congress;’ the young girl wrote. She carefully sculpted each letter; to be sure each was just right. ‘Dear Congress, Why do you do the things you do?’ She sat down the pen and read her words aloud, sounding out each word to ensure its spelling accuracy. She wouldn’t have Congress laughing at bad spelling on her behalf.

            You must be wondering why she does not type her letter, or have her parents help her. I’m sure if she could, she would have done both of these things, but you see, this young girl has no home. Her mother was laid off by the restaurant she had worked at for almost fifteen years. And her father? He was a janitor, living far away, working in a government building, trying to make some money to send back to her mother and her. Her parents did not have enough money and they were evicted from their apartment. Having nowhere else to turn, the mother and daughter slept in the mother’s old beat-up car.

I am by no means saying that her parents did not love their daughter dearly. On the contrary, that child was loved as much or more than most American children are.

Then why did the mother not help her daughter write the letter? She would, but because of their terrible situation, her mother had to leave her daughter unattended for long periods of time. Her mother had to find work where ever she could to buy food for them and the only place that would hire her was a small window washing company that traveled all over the state they lived in to clean windows for stores, office buildings, apartments, family homes and everywhere else. Sometimes, her mom would go so far away she had to leave her daughter alone for days.

Whenever she could, her mother took the old newspapers out of the trash and off the streets to learn what was happening in the world. She would teach her daughter to read and write from them. She would read out loud about the government’s stalemate in deciding on the budget division for the year. She read that they were closing down the government and would no longer pay the government workers.

That’s all fine and dandy for some, but for this particular family, they were barely getting by as it was and without the money coming from her father, they couldn’t even afford feed their daughter. Not wanting to frighten their young girl, her parents decided not to tell her about the situation they were in. Instead, they gave up their own food so she could eat.

Knowing what her parents were doing, but not why, confused the young girl. It didn’t make sense to her for the government officials her fellow citizens had elected to let this happen. She thought the government existed to provide order and help the country as a whole. She saw the government as a superhero; one that helps others in selfless ways, caring about everyone not just a few. She imagined the government as her Guardian Angels, sitting above her to guide her on her journey �" not to prevent her from having a journey.

This is why the young girl carefully checked her letter before she sent it to Congress; because even though she has felt the worst, she is still optimistic; because even though she has never really had a childhood, she is still strong; because even though she has barely gotten by, she is still here. Could you say the same?

 

Look around you; there are thousands who can.

So don’t tell me, but tell her, why do you do the things you do?

Author's Note

Any editing, please tell me. I plan to send this to my local newspaper and go on from there (when i have it edited to perfection)

Reviews

[Steve]

Hey Exa,

Sorry I took a while to get round to this. I like this piece, it has identity, a constant voice that that you maintain throughout. Good luck with the submission!

Steve

[Sammy]

I can't see any spelling or grammatical errors within this piece. I found this story very intriguing and written well. I hope all goes well with your local paper. :)

[Eli]

For one, the way the government was explained here is a communist government, or at least a very liberal one. The government isn't supposed to stand over us and provide direct order and tell us what to do. It's supposed to provide opportunities for us certainly, but not that direct. They're just supposed to take care of more major and general issues in the national and foreign realm.
And how old is the girl? I don't think a mother would try to explain so much to a little girl.
Other than all that, I think it sends a good message of the courruption in our government and so many others. Good writing :)

[Tasha]

This was really good, and so sad for that poor little girl. I wonder why some officials do the things they do... amazing job!! :)