By: Kiran Smitka

All over the world people stand for their rights

As the country splits hands of peace join

Stories come out and conspiracies are planted

People nervous to step outside

Parents refusing to let go of their children

Promises made, hearts broken

Children crying out for their lives

Solutions that benefit the media are discussed

Pictures surf the internet

There is only a problem when a child shows up to school with a issue in their hand

More and more cries for help

The parent continues to worry

The teacher continues to teach

The child continues to be scared

More problems rise above the surface

Only grasped to talk about for a moment

Then released and vanished into thin air

Then to be forgotten

By: Manal Trombati

I shivered as I went through the long line

Snaking around and around

It felt like an eternity for others

But for me,

Time flew

I was pressured to go along

But then,

I hadn’t noticed,

The fate that awaited me

I finally arrived to conquer my fears

My palms sweating as I walked up

My heart racing as I questioned if I was safe

“But what if I wasn’t safe?” I thought

“Thump, Thump, Thump” was my heart racing

Each step I took felt cold,

Lifeless even

I reached the top

The wind whistling in my ears

All I had to do was take one step

And I’ll softly land

I took that step

To conquer my fears

Then swiftly landed to safety

By: Priya Rathnakar

Birds singing,

The smell of dry earth and rain,

In the middle of it all

Stood a girl

Her tears glistened in the sun

As he drove away

A symphony of silence that followed

Head down, helpless and hopeless

As she walked home

Smiled at the dingy store

With a wistful look in her eye

She swiftly speed up

Not wanting to be haunted

By the shadows of her past

As her destination loomed closer

She thought “What Now?”

As she walked home

By: Megan Averyt

10 years ago,

Was the first time I went to the beach.

The car was filled with excitement

On the long,

Seven hour trip to North Carolina.

We passed the big and bright welcome sign,

And there were brightly colored houses in a line.

There were big sandy beaches

That stretched on forever.

We bolted out of the car

Onto a beautiful sandy beach.

The sand burned our feet

Like a hot oven

We sprinted to the water,

And the cold waves crashed over us.

As the sun began to set,

Red, orange, and yellow painted the sky

The smell of toasted marshmallows filled the air,

As we gathered around the fire,

Savoring the taste of delicious s’mores.

With smiles on our faces,

From the fun, tiring day,

We know we will never forget this family vacation.

By: Kaitlyn Sourinhong

It was the crack of dawn.

Birds were singing, overgrown grass were swaying against the wind,

and the trees were whispering.

But something felt different.

It was not how I ruled over the land even though I only control

the time and the weather.

Or how the clouds would like to block my view from below.

But over all the trees and its shadows,

I could see a baby deer, lost.

I watched as the deer went over to a bush,

but anyone with eyes could see that he was injured.

I had this urge to help,

but instead I watched from afar.

He’s injured I thought, no mother should ever

leave their child behind.

So I just watched from afar.

With a sudden jolt the deer collapsed against the bush,

and looked at me with pain and hopelessness in his eyes.

I wanted to do something,

but instead I watched from afar.

So I kept on spying on the poor deer,

alone at a young age and nowhere to go, injured and despondent,

but I looked down on him,

and watched from afar.

By:Vrithika Krishnaswamy

The sun glistening on the metal

The laughter of children

As I started to get onto the warm seat

Slowly creaking as I got on

I pulled the handle down with a loud clang

The ride was moving upwards

Quickly picking up speed

Then the wind brushed against me and there was a sense of calm in the air

The ground beneath my feet

The trees were as short as mice

The leaves as green and bright as fresh paint on the wall

It was as if I was chasing the clouds

The blood in my veins rushing like a river

The cool air refreshing against the hot sun

Birds gliding in the sea of blue above

As I closely watched the gentle breeze drifting away

Slowly and quietly I stopped

The sounds as soft as a whisper

Everything a sleep

As the white flakes flew down

And fires warmed houses

I knew it was that time of the year.

Where little kids wore big coat

with hats and gloves

Snow covering noses like blankets

Faces red with blood

I knew it was that time of the year.

Houses glowed with lights and decorations

Homes filled with love and joy

Snowmen all where the eye can see

Family visiting from close to far

Children waking up in the morning

with all the gifts they can imagine with them,

I knew it was Christmas time for this year.

By: Faith Sikes

I never knew today was the day.

The day that we were not safe.

He barreled through the front doors like a freight train.

The shots started.

The unbearable sound of pain being inflicted on my peers.

We were locked in for an eternity.

The only person who was in control was the person who had their finger around the trigger.

This was the place we were supposed to be able to learn.

This was the place we were supposed to be safe.

But now, no one will feel that way.

The bleachers were packed like an ant hill

As I walked on the court, I could feel their eyes

The feeling of anxiety covered me like a wool blanket

The player walked over to their positions

The ball was thrown in the air like confetti

As the score board went up, we all went down

Time flew by like a seagull on the beach

The fourth quarter was here and we were down

Time froze as the ball touched my hands

I observed the court as a game plan drifted around my head

I slowly dribbled down the court

As the defender reached for the ball

I quickly crossed over like a hawk

I drove down the court as the defenders came at me

I did a quick spin move like Chris Smoove

And filay’d the ball like grape jelly

Adrenaline pumped through me like the ice in my veins

The game winner banked in like the cash at my atm.

Ashish Tammisetti

By: Claire Nguyen

Splash!

The world turned upside down

as I plummeted towards the ocean

the water looking as if it were a portal

to a new world

chills run up my spine

with the water splashing against my face

I look around

at the world below

Coral reefs flooding the area

fish swimming by

waving hello

bubbles rise to the surface

sunlight scaled everywhere

I feel at home

with the waves

in the world below