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Poetry·Genevieve Gray Fink, age 9 — A drive with grandmother from countryside to town traces the fading of a mauve sunrise and warm breeze into cold morning and indifferent crowds.

Story·Kate Bailey, age 11 — A girl adopts a mysterious horse from a shadowy seller at a carnival, only to discover he's a stolen Chincoteague pony who must be returned to his island home.

Poetry·Jinny Min, age 11 — A summer beach day builds from hot sand and waves to the moment of witnessing a spectacular sunset that leaves the observer speechless.

Story·Jem Burch, age 13 — A family drives through Los Angeles on the Fourth of July, discovering multiple firework shows from the freeway and finally seeing the entire city lit up with distant explosions.

Story·Mackenzie Crum, age 10 — A girl daydreams about owning a pony she can't afford until her struggling parents surprise her with the horse, strengthening their family bond across generations.

Poetry·Brooklyn Jeffcoat, age 12 — A young person captures the intensity of friendship through sensory snapshots — ice cream sweetness, rushing downstairs, laughing until breathless, then returning to solitude.

Poetry·Solana Ordonez, age 11 — A young musician celebrates the daily joy of orchestra class, from unpacking instruments to playing together as an ensemble creating harmonious music.

Poetry·Jem Burch, age 13 — From an airplane window, the world transforms into miniature islands and tinfoil seas, rising through clouds into pure sunlight, chasing sunset into stars.

Story·Alexandra Orczyk, age 12 — Through letters to her absent mother, a French orphan girl chronicles her journey to America on an immigrant ship, through Ellis Island, and discovers an unexpected family connection.

Poetry·Celie Kreilkamp, age 12 — Rain transforms a city into a sanctuary, wrapping it in gray blankets of mist while thunder and lightning create a world apart from complications.