the passage of time

Poetry·Yuli Zucker — A quilt with intricate patterns of flowers and pine trees holds untold stories and unasked questions in its silent, soft interior.

Story·Alice Pak — A Ukrainian boy and his mother flee their war-torn town for Russia, leaving behind his best friend Varya, and later he begins writing her a letter about rebuilding their home.

Poetry·Sierra Elman — A speaker recalls childhood memories of braiding sunlight and being carried by her grandmother to meet the sun, until darkness intrudes on the reverie.

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·Ethan Issadore — A camping scene unfolds through rhyming verse as the speaker reflects on fire, forest, and the cyclical nature of outdoor experience from night to dawn.

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·Ida Wiesenfeld — Swallows move through a day from dawn to twilight, their appearance transforming with the changing light from silver firs to moonlit wings.

Poetry·William Clark — A playful, energetic poem captures the exhausting joy of endless banter, with words crashing together like the conversation itself until silence finally arrives.

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·Clarie Pierce — A rock on the beach narrates what it has witnessed over ages — seagulls, tides, weddings, sunsets — and invites readers to make memories it will keep safe.