nature

Story·Anna Currey, age 12 — Stranded on an island for five days after crashing her boat, Mae survives on crabs and snails while watching distant Fourth of July fireworks spark an epiphany about life's beauty.

Poetry·Amanda Johnson, age 13 — A camping night unfolds through sensory moments: smoke rising, crickets chirping, a marshmallow catching fire, and finally the warmth of a sleeping bag as the fire glows through the tent.

Story·William Gwaltney, age 11 — A boy discovers a sea turtle nesting on an evening beach walk and spends his summer secretly protecting the eggs until they hatch.

Poetry·Anna Preston, age 12 — A frog on a lily pad becomes a graceful dancer, tensing and leaping through rain to catch her dinner with a flick of her tongue.

Story·Brigid Cami, age 13 — A girl rushes through homework to spend thirty minutes by a lake, feeding ducks and contemplating the vast sky and her future.

Story·Margaret Bryan, age 12 — A cross-country runner experiences the transcendent sensation of flying during a race, moving between competitive awareness and pure physical freedom.

Story·Sophie Stid, age 13 — A thirteen-year-old experiences her first family Ski Day tradition, culminating in the discovery of a candlelit ice rink hidden in the wilderness under a diamond-bright winter sky.

Poetry·Rory Lipkis, age 9 — A child walks along a canal towpath, observing nature's beauty alongside human intrusion—from dragonflies and turtles to litter and a dying fish.

Story·Alana Yang, age 12 — A seventh grader sneaks out at midnight to her childhood faerie circle and witnesses real faeries dancing under the full moon, who spell her name in daisies and leave her...

Story·Connor Pickens, age 13 — During a Boy Scout hike in California, two boys spot a forest fire and must lead their troop in a desperate race to reach a ranger station before the flames...