change

Poetry·Maya Ruben — A speaker flees with something precious that transforms from innocent to dangerous, until pursuers take it away, leaving emptiness.

Personal Narrative·Mark Chen — A boy leaves his childhood apartment and playground behind, struggling with loss before slowly transforming his sterile new home into a place that holds his memories.

Poetry·Gia Koo — A child observes a lime tree through the seasons, noting its winter bareness, spring birdsong, summer growth, and autumn abundance of leaves.

Poetry·Grace Zhuang — A young poet captures summer through garden growth, beach days, and songs, ending with a wistful plea for the season to remain.

Poetry·Hana Shqairat — Spring's arrival transforms a winter landscape as snow melts, flowers bloom, leaves sing, and the natural world awakens to renewed life.

Poetry·Emma Catherine Hoff — A woman falls through collapsing stairs, her body fragmenting into surreal objects—banjo, Picasso painting, brooms—while she prays not to be seen or painted.

Poetry·Hazel Grace — A stone travels through the world, shrinking from road to boot to child's hand, until it becomes a skipping stone dancing across water.

Poetry·Sascha Deal-Lessin — A lament for lost beauty — stars replaced by planes, fish by empty oceans, trees by barren ground — asking where the world's wonder has gone.

Poetry·Gemma Crimmins — A rhythmic poem cycles through the seasons, from winter's wind to spring's hum to summer's speed, ending where it began with winter returning.

Poetry·Madeline Male — A child watches their old house disappear through the car window as the family drives away to a new home, capturing the moment of leaving.