Goodbye, Mr. Regret

The first child carefully snipped out lifelike figures of himself and his parents. As the audience watched, his parents beamed with pride, their faces shown in close- up on the big screen.

After the judges offered fair, thoughtful feedback, they each entered their scores.

When it was Jessica's turn, she pulled out her phone and typed her comments, letting her voice be heard through a small device strung on her necklace.

She made no attempt to hide the fact that she couldn't speak. In her very first line, she addressed the audience directly: she explained that she'd lost her voice, and that she relied on smart technology to speak for her. She asked for everyone's understanding if her tone lacked warmth or nuance.

The host was genuinely taken aback. "I never imagined that Miss Jessica Greene, unable to speak, could still achieve such mastery in the art of paper cutting. The effort and perseverance it must have taken are extraordinary. Let's give another round of applause for Miss Jessica Greene."

Thanks to the host's words, the entire room turned to Jessica with newfound admiration.

Henry, watching from the side, was astonished.

Why wasn't anyone making fun of her?

Jessica's feedback for the first child was clear and encouraging: for someone this age, your paper-cutting skills are outstanding and full of potential. You have a wonderfully creative mind. If you can continue to nurture this objectivity and not limit yourself to simple themes like "me and my parents," you'll go on to achieve even more remarkable things in the visual arts.

Each child's work followed the theme of "Me and My Parents," depicting themselves alongside their mothers and fathers.

Some pieces were lifelike, others less so.

Even among the more realistic ones, there were clear differences in skill.

The judges' comments were thoughtful and fair, but Jessica's feedback was always sharp and insightful, able to pinpoint the unique areas where each child could grow.

Finally, it was Henry's turn.

As his work was revealed, the room fell utterly silent.

Not only was his technique impressive-his subject stood out, too. Instead of cutting out himself and his parents, he'd created three cartoon sheep, inspired by a popular animated show.

Two large sheep, one small lamb.

The tall ram wore a suit and tie, one arm around a gentle, beautiful ewe. The ewe was nursing, and the little lamb knelt by her side to drink the classic image of a lamb, humbly feeding from its mother.

It was instantly recognizable: the lamb's devotion to its mother, a symbol of gratitude and filial love. t was a clever twist on the contest's

family theme, mixing a childhood favorite cartoon with a traditional motif.

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The other four judges leapt to their feet, unable to hide their excitement.

For a six-year-old, this was

genius-not only did Henry show mastery in his craft, but he'd managed to express the warmth of family and a deep understanding of gratitude for parental love, far beyond what most children his age could imagine.

Everyone in the room was astonished.

Everyone except Jessica.

To Jessica, Henry's piece was a cruel kind of irony.

Her son wasn't ignorant of a mother's love.

What hurt most was that he knew he understood it deeply-yet he still managed

to pierce her heart.

He was clever, always finding creative ways to solve problems.

But he didn't realize how much his choices could hurt his mother.

All four judges gave Henry perfect marks.noveldrama

When it came to Jessica, it hardly mattered what score she gave high or low, her vote would be discounted. Henry's piece was destined to win first prize.

The host invited Jessica to comment.

This time, Jessica didn't use her voice-emitting necklace. Instead, she turned to Henry and spoke in sign language.