Adventures in Odyssey Home Page

A Question of Loyalty

Album: Gold Audio 13: It All Started When

Episode: 185

Lesson/Theme: Loyalty.

Bible Verse: Micah 7:5

Characters: Lucy, Whit

Writer: Paul McCusker

Sound Designer: Dave Arnold

Original Air Date: March 7, 1992

Last Air Date: September 4, 2008

Description:
It all started at Odyssey Middle School. The Odyssey Owl is having an important meeting. Mr. Burton, the school's sponsor and editor, makes an announcement about a county-wide newspaper contest, a competition to determine the best middle-school newspaper in the county. The contest is open to all middle-school newspapers, including the Odyssey Voice. The Voice is a fluffy, low-budget paper, put together by kids who don't know good writing from a hole in the ground. The Owl staff is excited about the contest and thinks they have a good chance of winning. Lucy is especially involved in the contest. She even goes out of her way to encourage and coach a talented, shy, new girl named Emily Fowler. Lucy teaches her the basics of newspaper writing and helps draw Emily out of her shell. A friendship is born. Unfortunately, Emily and Lucy's friendship quickly withers when Emily begins to receive praise for her articles. Soon, Emily finds she simply doesn't have time for Lucy anymore. Things worsen when Emily goes to Mr. Burton and demands that her articles get front-page status. Mr. Burton asks Lucy to talk some sense into Emily, but it's no use. Either Emily gets the front page, or she defects to the Odyssey Voice. The Owl refuses, Emily leaves, and the contest becomes heated. It is a hard-fought, close competition, but in the end the Owl wins! Only, Lucy doesn't feel like rejoicing. She's lost a friend. She has also learned a hard lesson about loyalty, that its betrayal can have long-lasting and heartbreaking consequences.

Questions:
Why did Emily suddenly decide she didn't have time for Lucy anymore? Since their friendship turned out so sour, would Lucy have been better off not helping Emily in the first place? Explain your answer. What was the worst act of betrayal in history? Why?