Poetry
— After a week of camping, a girl appreciates indoor comforts — shower, pillows, warmth — until she realizes she misses the stars that were her companions outdoors.
— A mountain biker becomes one with the trail, feeling every bump and curve while nature cheers them on through forest and stream.
— A student on a creek field trip catalogs sky and water discoveries, from mud puppies to scraped knees, reluctant to leave when time runs out.
— Evening fog cascades over mountains like a waterfall, settles in the valley through sunset, then retreats at dawn back to the sea.
— A first-person retelling of the Icarus myth captures the exhilaration of flight and terror of falling through breathless, punctuation-sparse prose that mirrors the experience.
— A young poet confronts racist taunts of 'Go back to Asia' by questioning where anyone truly belongs, reminding us that only Native Americans aren't immigrants to this land.
— A sudden storm transforms a sunny afternoon in the park, sending a child running and slipping on raindrops as darkness overtakes the day.
— A young musician describes the physical and emotional experience of playing a brass instrument, from cold valves to the music flowing through her body.
— A hummingbird hovers at a window screen, holding the speaker's gaze in a moment of mutual wariness before vanishing in a green streak.
— During band practice, a student sneezes directly into his trombone, creating an explosive sound that stops the entire class mid-song.