childhood

Personal Narrative·Ilina Chaudhury, age 11 — A four-year-old visits her grandmother in India and gradually understands what death means when her grandmother dies of cancer during the trip.

Personal Narrative·Alicia Xin, age 13 — A privileged teen volunteers at a camp in rural China's Liangshan mountains, where friendships with local Yi children reveal the true meaning of gratitude.

Personal Narrative·Kateri Escober Doran, age 12 — Two kindergarteners get locked out of their classroom during a bathroom break and must overcome their fears and rivalry to find help together.

Poetry·Tatiana Rebecca Shrayer, age 13 — A nine-year-old city girl boards a fishing boat and watches Hyannis dissolve in the distance like a homeland she's never visited.

Poetry·Analise Braddock, age 9 — Three parks compete to be the best, each amazing in its own way, fighting daily for supremacy while pleasing children who don't understand the rivalry.

Poetry·Analise Braddock, age 9 — A playful meditation on hair elastics transforms a mundane object into something magical, capturing the physical sensation of summer heat and the relief of pulling hair back.

Poetry·Analise Braddock, age 9 — A baby named Daisy visits a rocking chair in the woods daily until vines overtake it and it disappears, leaving only memory.

Poetry·Analise Braddock, age 9 — A child's declaration of eternal play extends from day to night through cosmic destruction, flying cars, and the world's last light being blown out after a thousand years.

Story·Anya Geist, age 13 — A nine-year-old Jewish boy is smuggled from Warsaw to Switzerland inside a curtain during WWII, separated from his family but eventually finding hope through a letter confirming their safety.

Poetry·Sabrina Guo, age 13 — Bluebells trigger memories of a childhood garden in Roslyn, where the speaker once folded fertilizer beads into soil, calling them 'green pearls' that held perfect potential.