Geography Bee Sportsmanship

“You are the light of the world. A city set on a mountain cannot be hidden.Nor do they light a lamp and then put it under a bushel basket; it is set on a lamp stand, where it gives light to all in the house. Just so, your light must shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your heavenly Father.” – Matthew 5:14-16

A bit of well-placed sportsmanship made my day Wednesday at St. Columbkille School’s geography bee – and set a great example for hundreds of kids who were watching in the gym.

A field of 10 competitors had been narrowed down to two, fifth-graders Brendan Preisman and Daniel Schraeder. The match was close but ended with Daniel as the winner.

Brendan, the geography bee’s defending champion, must have wanted to win badly. He studied hard, apparently without a lot of prompting from his parents, and he knew his stuff.

But at the moment Daniel was announced the winner, Brendan set aside any disappointment or frustration he might have felt and walked over to Daniel to give him a handshake and a hug. Brendan knew what it was like to win, and he was gracious in congratulating Daniel in his moment of victory.

Brendan’s parents, David and Kristi Preisman, might be a little sad about the loss – but they must be very proud, too. Brendan competed well. But more importantly, he was kind and gracious.

Academic success is nice and usually is the product of hard work. So both boys – and all the competitors – should be congratulated. Intelligence is a gift from God, and we must be good stewards of His gifts. But ultimately, it’s our hearts that matter, that make the biggest impact on our world, and the place where Jesus shines through.

So congratulations to all who competed in the geography bee, especially Daniel.

And thank you, Brendan, for showing us how to let Christ shine.

Inspired by the Year of Faith, Susan Szalewski began writing weekly columns for us. Although that year is over, we liked them so well that we asked her to keep writing. Thankfully, she said yes. So watch for these on Thursdays and see the Year of Faith Blog here.