On cool summer nights, My grandpa and I sit out On the back porch. We look at the sky, And together, We watch the sun go down. Quiet while we think, we sip our tea, Pondering the world about us. I gaze into my mug, Staring at my dim reflection. Blowing softly on the smooth glassy surface, I make the dark water ripple. Looking up again, I watch the pink clouds As they cushion the sun’s descent. I take in the beauty all around us. So much of it, we take for granted. My grandfather is silent, While we listen to the sounds of our world. His face is serene as he rocks In his wooden chair, And sips his steaming tea. Together we look out at the rolling hills, Sharing our favorite time together. Gazing at a summertide sunset, We sit, And we listen, And we treasure a moment, Side by side. Nastassja Carusetta, 13 South Pasadena, California
Poem
Blood Red
Two black-and-white dogs Dash across the beach Legs pumping Flicking mud into the sun The sun Turning the lake Those same brilliant colors As the glowing red rocks around it Fiery fluid Creeps up on the shore Where two dogs lie In slumber Noses in the blood red sand Jeremy Trujillo, 12 Montrose, Colorado
Moment of Truth
My last chance, One more miss And it’s over, Cool sweat trickles down my neck. I risk striking out, My pride. My hands tremble My swing wobbles My body Not my own, I can’t do this. To everyone else, A spring day, Warm and beautiful. Dandelions cover the field, The opposite of my emotions. I worry, I fear. The day is too sunny, I doubt. I hear the sound, Loud and clear. A glimmer of hope sparks inside of me, A candle in a dark room. The ball is gone. It flies with the birds. The ball touches down A mile away, Out of sight. The candle turns into a torch, A thousand torches, The game is mine. I’m at the top of the world. “Keep this moment forever.” A feeling comes to me, Sweeter than any peach or pie, Victory. Marshall McKenna, 12 Lexington, Massachusetts
Daffodil
A pea-green shoot pokes out of the ground. Through the last sprinkle of snow, It stretches. Straightens. Reaching towards the sky, it whispers, “Spring. Spring. Spring.” It battles the icy wind And the winter-beaten mud. Slowly A bud grows, Rounder, bigger, smoother. One day… Yellow. Finally. Five fairy petals caress the warming air, Surrounding a golden crown. A lone beam of sunshine, Among browns and grays. Head high, It is the herald of spring, Announcing the arrival of sunshine, The birds, and Other daffodils. Madeleine Yi, 12 Derwood, Maryland
Noire
A crow or raven against the black night. A cry from a lone child. A smooth dark rock thrown at you. A dot, sweet, warm, and black on your tongue. A musty smell, revolting at first, sweet afterwards, though too quick to catch. Scented like a black horse. At first sight, A child tattered, crying, and though silent makes the loudest sound. It is a whinny heard in the distance. It’s something or someone you love Who Dies. That’s Negro. Jonah O’Hara David, 10 Norman, Oklahoma
Morphing into Monsters
A silver van pulls up the desert driveway From sliding doors Spill three cousins Holding teddy bears and swords Lonely fields are filled once more Screams and hollers absorb the sun-baked summer air We stumble together, reminding each other of our game Played only near the overgrown grass And where Christmas trees grow during summer MONSTER TAG. Skip through the bushes Or near the woods And find a place where none can see If tagged You’re it! The new monster, searching for its prey Adults cry, “Be careful,” as we prance off Their words are meaningless in our ears Drifting up with the subtle breeze We disperse Each racing around the house’s corner Looming fingers creep up the gray walls Peering through the bushes, I glance across the fields of green The monster’s footsteps slow A lion before the deathly pounce Grass bowing beneath its feet Paw by paw, step by step Nervous excitement builds up inside me Where to run? Where to hide? The bush embracing me with its prickly Yet protective branches I duck out from under my shield The chase begins. Candace Huntington, 13 Boston, Massachusetts
The Jewel Case
I see you in a bowl Tantalizing me. I pick you up Your smoothness Goes unnoticed As I cut you into quarters Eagerly trying to get to Your ripeness. You are a red jewel case With red jewels inside you, Shimmering Like drops of blood. I take one jewel I put it to my lips I smell nothing But taste the Heavenliness Sweetness Deliciousness Of the Red pomegranate. Ruhi Sah, 11 Brooklyn, New York
The Nature Walk
I shut the door behind me Exasperated and overwhelmed And start walking briskly As I walk I hear crickets chirping like a marching band I hear leaves crunching under me Soothing me over my bad day at school I feel the cool, fresh air across my face As I walk forward I smell the sweet smell of the nighttime dew Just like after a rainy day I slowly inch forward daydreaming Feeling like I am on the top of the world I cannot describe it It is simply the feeling of a nature walk Tanay Kumta, 12 Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
My Coat of Many Colors
A carpet of sand melts into a sea of blue whipped cream I inhale the golden scent of joy Like syrup on my tongue The seagulls’ voices are wind chimes in the warm summer air They call to the sea and the sky I reach out my fingers to touch the sunset And wrap it around my shoulders like a coat Matthew Brailsford, 11 Corona del Mar, California
Farewell
Our last night was a joyful one Yet dread waited, a heavy fog As we both knew it had to end. The next sight of each other Would be like Pixilated building blocks. Seated under the rosy sky Her laugh the flutter of a jay’s wings The wind’s small sigh. Her room Like a doll’s house Stacked with boxes, marked Ireland Two years too long The wail of my heart As I look back Until she disappears And rain trickles down. Sarah Wood, 12 Seattle, Washington
Fall Night
I gaze at the fall night sky I lie down in the cold grass Close my eyes Breathing slowly I imagine I am a falling leaf I float in twirl in the slow breeze I open my eyes stand up I look Around and all I see are bare Trees and fallen leaves I lie back down and stare at the Fall night sky Elizabeth R. Herndon, 10 Paradise, California
The First Morning of Winter
It is silent. Skeletons of trees. A lonely crow shrieks. And is gone in a black smudge, Erased from the sky. The air is cold melted silver, Each breath freezes and falls, Then shatters on the ground. Blades of grass cocooned in frost, Crackle when you step on them. The last leaf falls, A drop of orange on the white sheet. Winter is here. Cammie Keel, 13 Boulder, Colorado
