HEB ISD School & Family Magazine April/May 2016 | Page 7

“Ben has Libya, and Joseph has Morocco…”.
I didn’t even have a chance to blink before he
continued, “…and the correct answer is Morocco.”
Joseph was promptly declared 2015 state
champion. My hopes were dashed. My career in
the geography bee was over.
One has to realize that participating in the National
Geographic Bee is like signing a waiver willing to
accept losses for factors outside one’s control.
Many things that happen to a person in life are
setbacks or even catastrophes that he or she
cannot control, but must accept.
The next day, I got a nasty surprise for a birthday
present. My picture accompanied the Fort Worth
Star-Telegram headline: “For Euless teen,
second is a familiar place.” A flood of sympathy
and birthday wishes, as well as support from my
friends and parents, helped me get through the
defeat. However, the fear that years of studying
had gone to waste crept upon me, like a dark
shadow of failure.

the huge scholarship checks that the National
Geographic Society and Google hand out after
the finals. It’s about the journey we all take: of
becoming an educated, well-rounded, and cultured
member of modern society, prepared to receive the
baton of leadership from the previous generation.
That’s where the geographical journey is leading
us. That’s the direction this path is taking you. So
soldier on, friends. Use those moments spent over
atlases and books to soak up the world. Step up to
It slowly dawned on me that the studying did not go
the plate and take the helm of our global society
to waste. Although I hadn’t achieved my paramount
with a flourish.
goal, to win the National Geographic Bee, I had
emerged from the pursuit as a different person.
For more information about my project, please
I realized that I wasn’t in the geography bee to win; visit http://ageoconference.weebly.com/.
that I had a true love of geography that wouldn’t Thank you.

It’s not about winning. It’s not about losing. It’s not
about who’s eliminated first or last, or who gets

2. The Aral Sea is located on the
border of Kazakhstan and what other
country?
3. Name the northernmost capital
located on the Persian Gulf.
4. Which city, located on the Schelde
River in Belguim, is one of the world’s
leading diamond cutting centers?

4.Antwerp
3. Kuwait City

1. In addition to four main islands,
which Asian country includes the
islands of Awaji, Tanega, and Sado?

2. Uzbekistan

Here are some questions from the
state Geography Bee:

1. Japan

We all only have a maximum of five years in the
geography bee. But our pursuit of geography
doesn’t end there. We live in a world of geography
from the moment we emerge into the bright lights
of a hospital room to our final dying breath.

TesT your GeoGraphy KnowledGe!

Answers:

stop just because I’m too old for the bee. I had
become more worldly, more disciplined and more
tolerant of people who didn’t share my opinions.
I continue my pursuit of geography today in the
form of the American Geographic Conference,
my project in conjunction with HEB ISD’s Young
Entrepreneurs Academy. It will be a nonprofit
organization dedicated to geography education
beyond that already in schools to instill openmindedness and international-mindedness in
American students.

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