By Sloane Helmick

My abyss and my home
More comfortable in it now then before
I knocked on the door and I was greeted by a strong embrace
I slipped as it constricted me and pulled me deeper

It’s intentions were clear as it threw me around and took the me out of me
It had a sweet inviting scent
That turned metallic and sour when it kissed me
Like a fairy tale with an unhappy ending

I was willing to give in to it
For it had stolen my heart
It would soon steal my legs, my eyes, my senses
And eventually my mind
A slave to the familiar despondence

Cold and slow as the day moved on
My mind was floating off
“Come with me!” It said, but I was held by lead shoes
Reaching out for something that I could not grasp
I was lost in a sea of my own demeaning thoughts

I walked with chains around my wrists and ankles
I couldn’t escape from it because I got shut down when I made too much noise
“Let me free, let me free,” I cried and plead
It took me and cut me
And set me free

1. I chose to write and emotion poem.
2. I chose to write an emotion poem because it is fun to put deeper meanings in poems for me.
3. The tone of my poem is hopeless.
4. The theme of my poem is that depression is a very real and sad thing.
5. Two examples of figurative language in my poem are, “I slipped as it constricted me and pulled me deeper,” which is personification, and the second example is, “I was lost in a sea of my own demeaning thoughts,” which is a simile.
6. Two ways that I revised my poem were that I changed, “getting away,” to, “floating off,” and another way I revised my poem was that I changed, “depression,” to, “despondence,” and I changed these things because I felt that they made the poem better and added to the deeper meanings that I was trying to convey.
7. This poem was fairly easy for me to write because writing about sad emotions is very easy and enjoyable for me.
8. I am very satisfied with my poem because I think that it carries a lot of emotion and depth.

By: Aison Tran

A knight standing over his fallen enemy,

Like a world without limits.

Cheering and clapping,

Gleaming gold and wide grins.

Everything you have worked for comes together,

This is where hard work pays off.

Rising above the rest,

Dominating opponents.

Triumph paves the way for positivity.

1.  I published an emotion poem.
2. I chose triumph because as a volleyball player and a swimmer, I know how good it feels to win.
3. The tone of my poem is victorious.
4. The theme of my poem is triumph creates postive feelings and confidence.
5. “Like a world without limits” – This simile shows that you feel boundless when you win. “Dominating opponents” – This personification conveys the feeling of power when you succeed.
6. I changed “shining” to “gleaming” because it created alliteration and used elevated word choice. I also changed “applause” to “clapping” because I felt that it didn’t flow well.
7. This poem was easy for me to write. As a volleyball player and a swimmer, I know how it feels to win.
8. I feel that this final draft is to the best of my ability. The revisions and peer review allowed me to fix weak spots.

by Shreya Krishna

From the tender age of five

I had always admired you

Your rich sound

Like voices singing

Resonating so magnificently

Your gentle melody

Which can illuminate any darkness

Just like glowing fireflies

Your texture is so familiar

Of smooth and polished wood

Smooth like obsidian

Yet bright of cherry wood

And when my bow glides over you

Like a majestic eagle soaring

Everyone’s breath stops

Awed by your beauty

You are precious like a feather

From a rare peacock

Always bringing joy

To all in your presence

You have always been with me

Through my wins and losses

Reassuring me to try harder

Just like a friend who only wants

The best for me

You help me fulfill my dreams

Achieve my goals

And dare me to reach for the stars

Like a rocket shooting into space

You are my safe haven

My outlet to relax

You will always be there for me

And me for you back

1. The type of poem I published was an ode.
2. I chose my violin as the subject of my ode because it means a lot to me. I have been playing it for a long time and it has become an important part of my life so I feel it should be appreciated.
3. The tone of my poem is heartfelt, admiring, and appreciative. This is because throughout my poem, I express my gratitude for my violin. For example, in the phrase “Resonating so magnificently,” the word “magnificently” shows my admiration for it. The phrase, “You have always been with me,” is very heartfelt because it shows that I have a deep connection with my violin.
4. The theme of my poem is that when someone does something for a long time, they form a special connection and bond with it. For example, the phrase “Just like a friend who only wants the best for me,” shows that I have a special bond with my violin. The phrase “You will always be there for me and me for you back,” also expresses a similar message.
5. One example of figurative language is, “And dare me to reach for the stars like a rocket shooting into space.” This simile contributes to the tone and theme development because it brings the sense that with my violin, I have endless possibilities and have no limits. It also compares my violin to a rocket. Another example of figurative language is, “Reassuring me to try harder just like a friend who only wants the best for me.” This simile contributes to the tone and theme development by relaying the message that my violin makes me want to improve and do the best I can. It also compares my violin to a friend. One more example of figurative language is, “And when my bow glides over you like a majestic eagle soaring.” This contributes to the tone and theme development by giving the reader an image of a bird flying as well as comparing my bow to an eagle. The word choice “majestic” also gives an admiring feel to it.
6. One revision I made to my poem is by removing the line, “Which can put me to sleep,” that was originally after the line, “Your gentle melody,” and replacing it with, “Can illuminate the darkness just like fireflies.” This is because I thought the use of figurative language would improve that stanza rather than what was previously there. Another revision I made to my poem was adding, “like voices singing,” after, “Your rich sound.” I made this revision because I thought that appealing to the sense of hearing would be a nice addition to that line. One more revision I made was to add the line “And dare me to reach for the stars,” before the line “Like a rocket shooting into space.” I made this revision because I felt it sounded better with it there than before. I also thought the use of figurative language seemed more complete with that line added.
7. It was both easy and difficult to write this poem. At first, I could easily brainstorm ideas and get a general sense of what to include in my poem. It then got more difficult as I tried to incorporate effective figurative language into my poem because I wanted the figurative language to smoothly fit in.
8. I am pretty satisfied with my final draft, because writing odes are new to me and I think I have done a pretty good job conveying my overall message.

By Heather Sakmyster

Ode to Family

The rainbow after a storm

All the colors come together

Producing a whole relationship

Like the pot of gold that lies at the end

Your family is there always waiting for you

They are like the blanket

When a child is crying

The sun peeking out

After a long treacherous storm

While there is comfort

There is also competition

Each person like a poker player

Trying to win as many hands as possible

But in the end they come back together

There is also love

The love of God

The love like a ray of sunshine

Radiating and spreading onto everything

From the mother’s hug

To that crack of a smile

A family

Always by your side

Has a special bond that is unsurpassable

1. The type of poem I typed is an Ode.

2. I chose family as the subject for my ode because my family is very important to me.

3. The tone of my poem is compassionate.

4. The theme of my poem is family is a very important part of a person’s life

5.

A) “The rainbow after a storm” is a metaphor that shows that family helps calm you after a hard time just like a rainbow is calming after a bad storm

B) “They are like the blanket when a baby is crying” is a simile that shows that a family is like a blanket in a sense that it calms you when you are feeling down.

6.

Revision 1) One revision I made was changing “reaching” to “radiating”.

Another revision I made was changing “wonderful” to “unsurpassable”.

7. It was a little difficult writing this poem because it was hard coming up with comparisons for figurative language.

8. I am pretty satisfied with my final draft because I feel like it represents my tone and theme pretty well.