silence

Story·Heather Goff, age 9 — A father and daughter paddle across a foggy lake at dawn, observing wildlife until a beaver slaps its tail in warning before disappearing into its dam.

Poetry·Travis Wilkins-Smith, age 12 — A cacophony of crying baby sounds builds to overwhelming intensity until suddenly the infant sleeps and the house transforms into exaggerated silence.

Poetry·Hudson Jetton, age 12 — In overtime's golden goal moment, a young soccer player faces a penalty kick, feeling the pressure mount before making the winning shot.

Poetry·Norah Brady, age 13 — Night sounds — cricket drone, rain on gutters, distant conversations — become a symphony as the world falls into sleep.

Poetry·Anamaria Grieco, age 13 — A child drifts to sleep in a hammock, moving from stillness through sunset to starlight, cradled by gentle swinging and soft sounds.

Poetry·Ellanora Lerner, age 13 — A teenager finds solitude at abandoned railroad tracks, contemplating how nature reclaims human progress and feeling the ghost of trains that once passed.

Poetry·Rainer Pasca, age 9 — A nine-year-old observes a river scene at an arboretum, recording nature's details while a speedboat disrupts the peaceful meditation of water, birds, and trees.

Poetry·Lauren MacGuidwin, age 12 — A night at a lake where moonlight transforms water into something magical, from skipping stones to being splashed with captured moonbeams.

Story·Meg Bradley, age 13 — A twelve-year-old girl, alone in an empty house after her father left, discovers that writing poetry can be its own form of comfort when traditional lullabies are gone.

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.