nature

Story·Marlena Kilian, age 11 — A Spanish nobleman's son discovers a fossil in the mansion's garden creek that turns out to be an ancient baby dragon's tooth, bringing him lasting fame.

Story·Sascha Farmer, age 12 — After moving from a small Canadian coastal town to Houston, Gale struggles with homesickness, remembering her life among pine forests, gray jays, and ocean fishing.

Story·Alexa Rivera Rockwood, age 12 — A monarch butterfly loses half her wing crossing a polluted city on her migration to Mexico, but continues on foot, determined to be the first to complete the journey.

Poetry·Malcolm Dillehay and Bryan Lux, age 9 — Two boys explain why frogs croak in rain: when clouds made god cry, the clouds turned gray and frogs began croaking 'it's okay' to comfort.

Story·Sierra Glassman, age 13 — A young crane faces exhaustion, cold, and an eagle attack during his first migration over the Himalayas, finally reaching safety in a warm field.

Poetry·Poppy Lowenthal Walsh, age 12 — A night walk under stars becomes a meditation on darkness, cricket songs, and the paradox of the sky's brightest blue appearing as day fades.

Story·Hudson Benites, age 11 — In a climate-ravaged future, an old person who preserved each season in jars watches a child accidentally break one, releasing spring back into the world.

Story·Carmen Flax, age 10 — A ghostly lilac figure wanders through pine forests and black rivers on an October night, crying out in sorrow before retreating into shadows.

Story·Andrew Wu, age 11 — A philosophical narrative following four reincarnated beings—seed, insect, fish, and bear—each discovering Nature's cyclical patterns of creation, destruction, and renewal through their brief lives.

Poetry·Grace Jiang, age 11 — A year cycles through the seasons as Little Deer grows from playful fawn to father, echoing his own father's words about preparing for winter.