The Monster By Haopu (Max) Xu, 10 The monster’s name is Ackalasaf. You could find him in the depths of the breathtakingly scary wardrobe in Castle Fagg Ghast on a small island floating in the middle of the Pacific. Ackalasaf smells a trillion times worse than tons of rotten eggs and you can smell it even when you are still 1000 km away sailing towards the Castle. He looks like a giant snake with a quadrillion heads of different species (spider, bat, turtle, scorpion, hawk and any other species you may think of). The monster’s whole body is covered by sharp blackish dagger-like scales with billions of creepy green eyes on them staring at you all the time. It also has a thousand arms and tens of thousands hands with each hand having a very deadly type of poison. If you dare to touch it, you will die in 0.01 second. You could kill the scary Ackalasaf by stabbing it right in its heart one hundred consecutive times with the sharpest dagger you could ever find, but sadly Ackalasaf is as heavy as hundreds of full grown lions and as powerful as trillions of Minotaurs combined together, and your chance to win him is really very low. Feel horrified by Ackalasaf? But to tell the the truth: right now there is something more deadly dangerous and widely spread than Ackalasaf: COVID-19. SO LET’S DO OUR BEST TO KEEP ACKALASAF AND COVID-19 SOCIAL DISTANCE AWAY FROM US. Haopu (Max) Xu, 10 Oakville, ON, Canada
Short Stories
Special Feature: Kids React to Gun Violence
Sometimes at Stone Soup we receive several submissions that have to do with the same topic. Over the past weeks, we’ve received several related to gun violence, most notably school shootings and police brutality. In light of the shooting in Santa Fe, Texas today, Friday, May 18, 2018, we’ve decided to publish a selection of these sadly relevant pieces online. Drawing by William Drewes, 13 There is a lockdown on October 23, 2015. by Aidan McClure, 7 Lullaby by Rebecca Beaver, 13 Seventeen Graves by Kate Kuan, 11 Plus, a reminder to read our March blog piece, 5 Ways Children Can Make a Difference by Lucy Regnier Kline There is a lockdown on October 23, 2015. by Aidan McClure, 7 It was very scary! We had to hide in the coatroom for an hour and a half. Everybody was freaking out except for me, you know, because I am writing this. The police needed to give us an emergency early dismissal but not the good kind. Some people hid under their desks. We didn’t get to have lunch at school. The people who are working on the track left early. Mrs. Fitzgerald turned on Johnny Appleseed. Someone named Madison is writing about this to remember. I said I wasn’t afraid. Well now I am. Hu hu hu hu. That’s me breathing loud. I do that when I’m scared. I’m pretty sure everybody is terrified, even our fish is terrified. I will never forget this day. They’ll probably make my mom leave early too. I can’t wait until I get home and by the way I am still hu hu hu huing. They are starting to call the buses now thankfully. Some people think that they are going to die. Back to top Lullaby by Rebecca Beaver, 13 This little boy Shot dead- 17 Got into an “altercation” His killer claimed self defense And got away free Florida 2012 That’s where it went down This little boy Hood pulled up Iced tea in hand Skittle in back pocket A figure, observing from inside a van Zimmerman— I’m not even sure he was a man Called the police Said he was afraid Of the little boy Was ordered “Stay put. Keep away.” Wait. Soon the world would know their fate He didn’t Slowly slithered out of his van Stalked the little boy’s way Stared In his eyes So bright, so full of life Suddenly, the “man” Reached for his gun—the bullets… BANG. BANG. BANG. BANG. Tore through him Dressed in red— Alone, the little boy died Hood pulled up Bright eyes dull Light; gone No one seems to care He’s gone, his killer free He becomes a symbol Of injustice Gun violence Police brutality But when all is said And all is done He was just a little boy Loved by a mother Who doesn’t want a symbol She wants her son Here, safe, alive She wishes with all her heart She had been able to tell him she loves him Say goodbye And sing her son Her poor, sweet baby A lullaby. Back to top Seventeen Graves by Kate Kuan, 11 A terrible loss on Valentine’s day Students and teachers dead in the fray How did so many lives end this way Because no one saw the signs He aspired to murder and told others so Through an Instagram profile that showed he was a foe But no one noticed and no one would know No one saw the signs Cruz was nineteen, and passed a background check Nobody knew he would take a trek To a school where his expulsion was put into effect Nobody saw the signs Seventeen gravestones ringed with wreaths Because bullets were shot from their metal sheathes Each grave for a person who no longer breathes Because no one saw the signs Back to top
