Joshua: Greetings, readers, and happy holidays! Welcome back to the Guys’ Spotlight column, where this month we’ve brought a special guest all the way from the banks of the Nile river. Everyone, please welcome Elijah Jore!
Elijah: It’s… uh… Jore.
Joshua: That’s what I said.
Elijah: Not quite, it’s Jor-ee, not Jor-ay or just Jor.
Joshua: Ah, I see. My bad.
Elijah: (chuckles) You’re good, nobody ever gets my last name right.
Joshua: I can imagine. Alright, let’s get started with some basics about you: how old are you and what grade are you in?
Elijah: I’m 17 and I’m a senior. Same as you, actually.
Joshua: Wait… how did you know that?
Elijah: Oh, I stalked you on Forums a while ago. I’ve actually stalked a lot of people.
Joshua: Ok then… that’s not creepy at all… anyways, I’ve heard you live by the Nile, but where exactly?
Elijah: We live in little village, only a few hundred people, in Uganda, about 45 minutes northeast of Jinja. Our house is a couple hundred meters from the river.
Joshua: Wow, that’s pretty cool. What do you do for fun around there?
Elijah: Swimming in the river is always fun, though I also enjoy camping, reading, and knife throwing.
Joshua: Knife throwing?!?
Elijah: (nods) Knife throwing.
Joshua: Mental note to self, don’t get on Elijah’s bad side… what TPS classes are you taking between swimming and hurling sharp objects?
Elijah: Just one: Modern History, Literature and Composition Honors.
Joshua: Gotta love those long course titles, huh?
Elijah: For sure. This is my third year in TPS, and the titles just seem to keep getting longer.
Joshua: I know, right?
Elijah: For real. Oh, by the way, I’d like to take this moment to offer a word of wisdom to younger high school students. I’ve survived this long, so I think I’m qualified to give advice.
Joshua: Ok, shoot.
Elijah: No matter how many assignments and deadlines you have, remember this: there will always be time to procrastinate.
(awkward silence)
Joshua: … I’m not sure I’m legally allowed to put that in my article.
Elijah: Oh, come on, it’s not like your editors don’t agree with me.
Joshua: I’m withholding my opinion to avoid getting kicked out of the clay staff. Next question, what’s your favorite food?
Elijah: Mm, food, I love food. That’s pretty tough choice. But I don’t think you can go wrong with a good, quality cheeseburger.
Joshua: Sounds like a good choice to me. And what’s the weirdest thing you’ve ever eaten?
Elijah: Weirdest food or weirdest thing? Because the answers are different.
Joshua: Do tell.
Elijah: Weirdest food is probably grasshoppers, a lot of them like to come out around November. They usually hover around lights, so we catch them and fry them in oil and salt them. They’re delicious. And the weirdest anything would be leaves. Lots and lots of leaves. One time when we were younger my brother and I decided to try all the different kinds of leaves in our backyard. We fortunately did not get poisoned, but we did learn that most of them were gross. There was this one kind that had a white sap that dried out our mouths. It was quite the experience.
Joshua: (laughs) I can only imagine. Speaking of your brother, how many siblings do you have?
Elijah: I’m the oldest of six; Judah, Hannah, Jay, Julia, and Evie are my younger siblings.
Joshua: Sounds like quite a busy household.
Elijah: Yeah, and that’s not counting the goat…
Joshua: Say what now?
Elijah: The goat. It’s one of our pets. I’m pretty sure it’s evil though…
Joshua: (mutters) I suppose this explains the knife throwing…
Elijah: What?
Joshua: Nothing. You say you have other pets besides the… ahem… evil goat?
Elijah: For sure. We’ve got four dogs, three cats, the goat, the occasional chameleon that we catch and keep for a few days, and technically a pair of cows as well.
Joshua: Wow, that’s quite the variety.
Elijah: For sure.
Joshua: Ok, serious question, what’s your favorite bible verse and why?
Elijah: 2 Corinthians 5:17, “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.” (ESV) It symbolizes rebirth in Christ, leaving behind old life and entering into new life with Him, which is something that’s really important to me.
Joshua: That’s awesome! Another serious question, who is one person you want to be like?
Elijah: I know this sounds like the lazy answer, but I’d say my dad. I think it’s always a good think when guys can answer this kind of question with their father, he’s someone you can look up to and learn from most every day of your life.
Joshua: That’s really great! Alright, before we finish, I have an obligatory Christmas question for you: what’s your favorite holiday tradition?
Elijah: (laughs) No problem. Each day of December, my mom will bring out one of the Christmas books she’s collected over the years. It’s always fun to read them and enjoy the memories. We also like to open one package on Christmas Eve instead of Christmas Day like the other ones. It’s almost always books.
Joshua: Cool! I think that about wraps it up. Thanks for coming out here, enjoy the break!
Elijah: No problem, man, happy holidays!