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A humid, rainy day is not ideal weather for a festival, however, that’s what was provided for the Siren Summerfest Chalk Art Competition. The optimism of the Maple unit, a competitor in the contest, was abounding and brightened the gloom of a possible thunderstorm.

When we arrived at the old Fourwinds Market parking lot and saw that it was vacant of competitors, truth be told, I was nervous about the Maple units reactions to the possibility of the event being canceled. To my relief, they were understanding and said it was okay. I gave them two choices, we could turn around now and have a regular day of Saturday programming, or we could play at the park and go back when we felt tired out. When one of the residents asked to check the sign out by the road to see if there was any new information about the event, out of blind optimism, I said sure, maybe it moved.

Lo and behold, IT MOVED to Crooked Lake Park! The fish pavilion was our new destination! As we gathered our blankets and chalk, I anticipated there being a few contestants already hard at work with masterpieces, but to our surprise, Maple unit was the first to arrive! The group convinced Olivia, one of Maple’s Weekend Primaries, to participate as well and she sidled up right next to us creating her own brilliant artwork.

Maple unit began mapping out their plans and was fast at work in harmony and contentment. The artwork began to take shape and transformed into a whimsical underwater visual splendor with the main subject, a Mermaid, eating a cheeseburger. This completely encapsulates the Maple unit’s humor and style constantly quoting funny movies and telling jokes.

Time flew by and our 5’ by 5’ square was complete, but Maple unit and Olivia were the only competitors! The Siren Chamber of Commerce, Chris, pulled me aside and asked if Maple unit would enjoy the prize items that were originally dedicated for a much younger group, a large basket of Crayola art supplies, to which I had to reply “ABSOLUTELY!”

Maple unit was incredibly gracious when they accepted 1st place and were awarded the treasures of the grand prize. They stood proudly by their work for some photo ops and we ended the morning by having lunch and a treat at the local Dairy Queen, which many Maple residents would argue that Pop Rocks DO belong in ice cream. What a great day it turned out to be and I am so incredibly proud of the Maple unit’s accomplishment.

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