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Story·Adam Smith, age 10 — A boy describes an idyllic natural scene with waterfall, river, and wildlife, finding pure happiness in nature's beauty before returning home to dream of it.

Poetry·Anna Calegari, age 12 — A speaker sees herself as a monochrome old photograph in the mirror, noting only pink shoelaces and purple under-eye bags break the grayscale of her reflection.

Story·Sabrina Guo, age 12 — A girl observes her cat's nightly ritual of staring at a grandfather clock, finding in the cat's simple presence a lesson about time and certainty.

Story·Kyra Yip, age 11 — A girl with severe food allergies navigates birthday parties, medical emergencies, and social awkwardness, ultimately finding strength in her difference rather than shame.

Poetry·Katie Turk, age 11 — A wolf moves through a moonlit forest after rain, howls to awaken the night creatures, then watches as the forest comes alive around him.

Poetry·Charlie McDermott, age 13 — Wind attempts to teach bare trees to dance, but they thrash awkwardly; the speaker wishes to become the wind's pupil instead.

Story·Natalie McGee, age 13 — An emperor seeking to build a palace in a birch forest must solve a riddle from the mysterious Dea, leading to his transformation from tyrant to protector of the animals.

Poetry·Hannah Parker, age 12 — Day transforms to night and back again as God casts spells, fairies dance under stars, and the sun emerges like a yellow ball of fire.

Poetry·Maya Wolfford, age 13 — Fire-colored butterflies, falling snow, and guiding stars become a meditation on how fate guides rather than controls, ending with the declaration that not all maps must be followed.

Story·Linden Grace Koshland, age 11 — A small hut on a hill weathers a fierce storm, then settles into sleep as the sun emerges, its empty interior somehow full of the warmth of home.