Poetry

Eleanor Levy, 8Valley Glen, CA Anxiety Eleanor Levy, 8 Unleashing anxiety Nervous feelings consume me Shivering feelings through my body Extra worried now Tremendous fear Traumatizing state of being Lurking pain In shock about what’s happening Nice feelings shattered away Getting back up to try again

Callum Hicks, 12New York, NY Static Callum Hicks, 12 The electric blue buzz of the computer screens. The soft hum of the machines keeping us alive. An evil cackle of a monster behind me, casting a shadow on the cold concrete. Snap. My legs break in half like breadsticks. The masks I am wearing. They let me breathe. Living history as if it’s some sort of consolation. The shrill voices. Crackle. The pressure. Ping-ding-ring. The drone. Zoomzoomzoomzoomzoomzoomzoomzoomzoom. The whir of white noise. Zzz. Zzz. Zzz. Author’s note: The poem plays on both definitions of the word “static.” It’s about the sounds of quarantine during Coronavirus and also the fact that I had to stay in one place. I thought quarantine would be quiet and boring but it has been the polar opposite! I wanted to convey the loudness and chaos of my quarantine experience. With all of the FaceTimes and the Zoom calls and the texts and emails, it’s been overwhelming.  

Prisha Aswal, 7Portland, OR Outside My Window Prisha Aswal, 7 Outside my window, Are trees, And bees. No one is out, Because of coronavirus disease. No crowds, But clouds, And a big black dog I see. I miss what this place used to be. Look far away there is a house, From over here, it looks like a mouse. My other window has a different view, Squirrels running over the fence! Phew. The butterflies are dancing around the flowers, And the flowers seem happy to soak in the showers. That brings a smile on my face, As I start enjoying the days. Only hi and hello no hugs. This mask on my face does bug. But it is important so wear we must, Because doctors say that and them, we must trust. It will save lives and let us help each other, Because we are all in this together.