nature

Story·Abbie Brubaker, age 12 — A hunting party sets out to trap a unicorn using a maiden and golden bridle, but when the moment comes, none can bring themselves to kill the magical creature.

Poetry·Annie Rudisill, age 11 — A swimmer embraces the ocean's depths, feeling the sandy bottom and salty breeze, drawn repeatedly back into the water's welcoming coolness.

Poetry·Riley Grace Carlson, age 9 — A child walks to a tree swing in a pasture, falls asleep, and wakes to find autumn has arrived while they slept.

Poetry·Benjamin Firsick, age 11 — A boy raking leaves watches migrating birds, imagining one small bird who flies the opposite way eventually saves the flock from hawks in Costa Rica.

Poetry·Gabriel Wainio-Theberge, age 12 — Late geese flying south become a mourning choir whose honks lament autumn's end and winter's arrival, their voices mistaken for hunting hounds.

Story·Alexis Colleen Hosticka, age 12 — A father and son hiking trip turns dangerous when an avalanche strikes, and a mysterious deer saves the boy's life by warming his unconscious body.

Story·Kevin Wang, age 11 — Two boys visit their favorite river where one confronts his pain over his parents' divorce, leading to a dramatic rescue and deepened friendship.

Poetry·Gabriel Wainio-Theberge, age 12 — Autumn transforms from blazing red leaves and jack-o-lanterns to encroaching night, frost, and brittle mushrooms frozen like victims of Medusa's stare.

Poetry·Laine Bruzek, age 12 — A child lies in grass watching the sky transform from day to night, observing clouds, sunset, stars, and moon in their eternal dance.

Poetry·Rhiannon Grodnik, age 11 — A young observer watches the sunset over San Francisco Bay, experiencing a moment of profound solitude and connection to the infinite before the city lights disappear into darkness.