We take a lot of pleasure in congratulating Cousins Middle School student McKenzie Snyder for winning the Newton County Spelling Bee contest for the second year in a row. She’s obviously a bright girl with a love of words, and we hope she carries that passion throughout her life and career.

The Spelling Bee may seem like an antiquated past time with the rise of social media and mobile technology and the advent of chatspeak — the series of abbreviated words that save time and effort while texting.

We ourselves struggle, as some of you well know, with spelling (and grammatical and syntax) errors, depending too much on spell check and grammar programs that are far from foolproof.

The senior member of our editorial board fondly — maybe not so much — remembers the days when the skill of learning to spell was backed up by Mr. Ruler. It wouldn’t surprise him if his dear Sister Simplicia is teaching the angels, or their cousins, how to spell using that same ruler.

We hope McKenzie cultivates her skills, and perhaps some time on her future, she’ll find herself passing on the value of such a skill to the next generation of students.