Kai Gajilan Fowler, 10 (Leonia, NJ) World Kai Gajilan Fowler, 10 Bright, so bright But Lonely, and tired. Lonely Lonely from being isolated for so long Tired Tired of being bruised and battered and scarred And yet Bright, so bright, The fight is bright, Filled with light But stressed, and fretting. Stressed Stressed for surviving any longer with pain inflicted every touch Fretting Fretting for the sake of lives And yet Bright, so bright, Tonight is bright Filled with light But crying, and calling. Crying Crying from burns and scrapes Calling Calling for others, others alike, others who don’t hear And yet Bright, so bright The world is bright Filled with light And trying with all of its strength, Trying for us Trying for the others alike Trying with hope at heart Hope Hope for us Hope for them Hope, for all.
Poetry
Frost (Portrait of Madame X): A Series in Ekphrasis by Ella Yamamura, 14
The Face of Winter She stands— a frozen flower; frostbitten. A gaze that could wither the sturdiest tree is aimed at the right. Bull’s eye. With skin fairer than Snow White, the Face of Winter ignores all else while being trapped within her dark restraints that weigh her down— the only thing keeping her from blowing away and snapping in half. What a brittle, frostbitten little flower. The Face of Winter she stands— a frozen flower frostbitten. Frost-covered frost living a dream.
The Great Beast (The Great Wave off Kanagawa): A Series in Ekphrasis by Ella Yamamura, 14
The great beast tipped with an army of acid claws it sported a color blue so deep you could fall in and no one would see you sink. It’s favorite kind of prey were the ones with the sanded wooden sides— the ones that bobbed up and down and were filled with goods. The beast lurked just beside that snow capped mountain the only home it ever knew. The beast never stayed still. It liked to roar and attack and spray its poison mist and drag a soul or two d o w n but deep d o w n it hurt a growing pain that radiated like the rays of the sun that The beast hated so much. Maybe The beast ate too much. Everyone has bellyaches.
