acceptance

Story·Georgia Melnick, age 12 — Ten-year-old Tallulah struggles with leaving her small yellow house until she learns her aunt is moving into their old home, making the new place feel familiar.

Story·Timothy D. Cho, age 12 — A boy constantly moving with his struggling immigrant family runs away in Brooklyn, only to realize through memories and reflection that he cannot escape his past or abandon those who...

Story·Rose Amer, age 10 — A girl who hates her ugliness wishes on a star to bring her stone gargoyle to life, then learns through painful transformations that she was already beautiful.

Story·Bo-Violet Vig, age 13 — A girl who knows every corner of her beloved childhood home must move across the country, discovering that home is defined by the people you love, not the house itself.

Story·Jamison Freis, age 12 — A boy gets a dog his mother hates. After the mother repeatedly tries to abandon the dog, it saves her from a mugger, changing her heart.

Poetry·Teddy Lykouretzos, age 13 — A meditation on impermanence that moves from photographs and fireflies to wedding cake and stone statues, arguing that nothing can truly be preserved.

Personal Narrative·Claire Jiang, age 12 — A girl reflects on moving to a new house five years ago, making peace with everything except the mismatched fence her friend calls hideous.

Poetry·Tatiana Rebecca Shrayer, age 13 — A poem explores the paradox of someone who embodies contradictions — friend and enemy, peaceful yet at war, standing perpetually between opposing states.

Poetry·Analise Braddock, age 9 — A portrait of a beloved teacher with hairy beard, runny nose, bitter jokes, and hard math who wins students over with cupcakes and stories.

Poetry·Analise Braddock, age 9 — A young writer explores how imagination can't be controlled or remade, getting lost in holes of deep thinking but remaining uniquely yours.