No updates about how long school will be closed, but Jeff said he heard it could be a long time. If it goes long enough, maybe I'll be able to find insects in time for the science fair. In the meantime, I'll keep working on my project.  Proverbs 18:9 says whoever slacks off in his work is the same as a destroyer. I made a rhyme out of it:
If I blow it off, being lazy and slack,
I'll destroy my grade and I won't learn jack.
I'm sure Dar could come up with a better rhyme. Actually, this one's not that bad. I've done a lot worse.

Wow. Big news today. They closed the school. No one knows for how long. This morning I read this gem: "People cast lots to make a decision; but it is only the Lord who determines the final outcome" (Prov. 16:33). I didn't have anything green to wear for St. Patrick's Day anyhow. Except my basketball jersey.

​Got my science fair topic back. Miss Palamino said it was 'interesting.' She asked where I was going to find bugs at this time of the year. I didn't answer. "Even a fool appears to be wise if he keeps quiet."

"The worker's appetite works for him; his hunger drives him forward (Prov. 16:26). Boy, isn't that the truth! That's exactly how I feel about this science fair. A bad grade is NOT an option right now. Anything less than an A and I'm toast.  I NEED this. Desperately​!

Well, I picked a science project. It's about whether bugs are attracted to light bulbs because of the light or the heat. I wrote it down and handed it in. After supper I read Prov. 16:3 and committed my project to God. I really hope Miss Palamino likes it.

Mom drives me nuts sometimes. I was drawing spine rattlers in my room before supper, but she was on my back about deciding on my science fair project. I don't have to decide until the end of the day tomorrow. But I just read Prov. 13:13. "Whoever scorns instruction will pay for it, but whoever respects a command is rewarded." I guess I can draw beguilers on Saturday.

It seemed to work both ways today. Charlie was pretty bummed this morning (tough chemistry test), but Jeff was in a great mood and really cheered him up. I'm sure I bombed the same test, but Emma happened to come by my locker later with a big smile. I don't know if I smiled back, but I felt better inside.

I found two that work really well together — Prov. 15:13 and Prov. 15:30.  One says a happy heart makes a ​cheerful face, and the other says a happy face makes a cheerful heart. Apparently it goes both ways? I'm going to experiment to see if it only applies to my face and my heart, or if my heart and face can affect my friends' hearts and faces.

       I decided to start this journal to keep track of the gems of wisdom I find in my "treasure book." Okay, I know it's called the Bible, and that the "gems" I find in it aren't literal shiny rocks like the ones Dar gave me in her cave. Still, they're more valuable to me than all the expensive stuff you find in any jewelry store. They help me. Like just this morning.
    Last night I found one that says, "A gentle answer turns away anger" (Prov. 15:1). Nothing earthshaking, right?  Except I was almost late to my 2:00 class because two guys were fighting right in front of my locker. It must have been about something pretty big, cuz they were really going at it, yelling and pushing each other, and kids were chanting, "Fight! Fight!"  I had to get to my locker, so I said, "Do you guys mind moving over?"  The way one of them looked at me (I think his name is Jackson) I thought for sure he was going to punch me. Then that verse just popped in my head, and all I said was "Please?" I said it real nice, and I even tried to smile when I said it, even though I was shaking. But then, all of a sudden they just left. So it worked. At least this time. I was still shaking at the end of class.