We Are Proud | Teen Ink

We Are Proud

October 24, 2009
By lifeneedskelsy BRONZE, Chalmette, Louisiana
lifeneedskelsy BRONZE, Chalmette, Louisiana
2 articles 0 photos 3 comments

Favorite Quote:
"Never lie, steal, cheat, or drink. But if you must lie, lie in the arms of the one you love. If you must steal, steal away from bad company. If you must cheat, cheat death. And if you must drink, drink in the moments that take your breath away."


In a world with over six billion people, there’s one small community—a parish, that means the world to me. August 29th 2005 caused a big uproar for this little parish and almost wiped us off the map. Almost.


St. Bernard Parish is in Southern Louisiana, just a few miles away from the craziness of New Orleans. We’re a small parish, and sometimes we’re forgotten, but that’s alright with us.

For anyone who’s just passing through, they may see us only for our rough exterior, our gutted homes, or some of our people that tend to flaunt what they have—or don’t have. I’ll bet, though, that if that person takes a wrong turn and gets a little lost, that the shirtless man will send them on their way, in the right direction.

I could say we are this perfect place, that all of the children here go to college and wind up with fabulous job. That isn’t the case with us, though. The vast majority grows up, finishes high school, and works hard for just enough to live. Many of us don’t ever leave here; we just stay all our lives, and raise our children to grow up and follow the same path. We don’t see any flaw in that. Any outsider could look at us and say, we’re not intelligent because we work hard to get a pay check, and we party when times are hard, rather than grieve. Maybe, they’re right, that we aren’t perfect, and we tend to be a little crazy, but I think that’s alright. I’m sure everyone else here does too.

We are broken, but we come together and we will be fixed. I suppose that’s what I like the most about my community; we know who we are, and we are not ashamed. We are proud.


The author's comments:
This piece was originally an essay portion for test we took in my English class. My English teacher recommended I submit it to Teen Ink.

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This article has 65 comments.


???????? said...
on Nov. 12 2009 at 3:34 pm
WOW. Kelsy this is really good and strangley acurate. I wish i could write this good. Good luck, I hope it gets published.

TH126 said...
on Nov. 12 2009 at 3:29 pm
This is an amazing story. It does a great jod describng the parish we all love to call home.

EmilyLucy said...
on Nov. 12 2009 at 3:23 pm
Good work! Hope it gets published!

lk930 said...
on Nov. 12 2009 at 1:51 pm
Your article is the reason the educated citizens of your community come back to inspire, instead of taking our knowledge elsewhere.

msoroe said...
on Nov. 12 2009 at 1:37 pm
Wonderful job. It touched my heart.

EDurr said...
on Nov. 12 2009 at 1:36 pm
Paints quite a picture, I must say. Well done!

lowlow said...
on Nov. 12 2009 at 1:06 pm
Great description of my home. It made me cry and long to get those days back. Our St. Bernard is truly unique.

cturgeon said...
on Nov. 12 2009 at 12:14 pm
Nice work, Kelsey. You really nailed the Chalmettian Nation to a "T." There is nothing wrong with working hard for a paycheck- there is a nobility in labor that many fail to see. Also, the nation needs us harvesting all that seafood!

Jill M said...
on Nov. 12 2009 at 11:26 am
Fantastic article and wonderful description of a great place!!!

Erin J said...
on Nov. 12 2009 at 11:22 am
Great article!

Treasure said...
on Nov. 12 2009 at 10:59 am
Very nice!

James said...
on Nov. 12 2009 at 10:46 am
Nice work!

Bamburg said...
on Nov. 12 2009 at 10:41 am
Great Job! Something to be proud of!

McInnis said...
on Nov. 12 2009 at 10:35 am
Great Job! Hit the nail on the head.

JAtkinson said...
on Nov. 12 2009 at 10:23 am
I love it!

SJaber said...
on Nov. 12 2009 at 10:09 am
Great job, Kelsy. As always, I'm very proud of you.

KWatson said...
on Nov. 12 2009 at 10:07 am
Wonderfully written! Truly captures the place we love to call home.

Paul G said...
on Nov. 12 2009 at 9:59 am
This is a great very realistic article about St. Bernard Parish. It is very well written and does a great job of verbalizing what our Parish is like.

on Nov. 12 2009 at 9:39 am
I love it!

Tony D. said...
on Nov. 11 2009 at 10:23 pm
Well said!! great job!