Author: Cynthia L.

The air smells fresh,
Springtime’s such a glory.
As I watch the children laugh and play,
Oh how it really makes my day.

Oak Tree chuckles while the birds sing,
And whispers to Rose Bush:
“Listen to that tone ring!”
As the sun glitters with that shimmer and shine.

With a blink of the eye, summer is here,
Not a single cloud in sight.
The breeze ruffles my green and healthy leaves
Blocking some heat, while the sun is still bright.

Our neighbor, Treehouse, is crawling with kids about,
Children screaming and children chasing.
I see her glance longingly towards us,
As the sky was painted pink and orange after all that fuss.

Now it is autumn, the nights are getting chilly,
My leaves were dyed red, my friends eyed them with envy.
A soothing breeze calms us all down,
All the people have ended their day.

I watched in horror as Oak Tree’s leaves started dropping,
Leaving nothing but bare branches underneath.
Winter will be here soon, we will need to warm up,
But not if our only clothes won’t stay up.

“Brr!” I woke up to see the frost on me,
As the jingle bells sounded and the sky bled to gray.
A cold wind passes by, making Rose Bush shiver,
It’s a bit difficult to bear this type of day.

Midnight has arrived, bringing slightly more snow,
I look up to see a man riding in the clouds.
His vehicle powered by eight little creatures,
They sure don’t seem to mind the cold!

Waking up again, a warm wind rushes past,
Once again seeing the young play
And the elderly relax
Nature is going to start getting busy again.

---

Canyon Creek Elementary

5

I feel it seeping out
Of some,
And soaking in
To others.

Those who hate
People who are different,

And those who abhor
Others like themselves
Who reek of hatred,
Never self reflecting.

There is no way to rid humankind of hate
With hate.
You can’t hate anyone enough
And make them hate less.

The only way
to cure us all
is love
for one
another.

As the wisdom
Of greeting cards
And old proverbs
Say,
We must give to our enemies,
Sacrifice for our foes.
Then maybe,
Just maybe,
They will see that hate
Is not the only way.

---

McNeil High School

9

I let her change me,
To who she wanted
Me to be.
Her clothes,
Mid-drift
And fashionably done hair.

I didn’t say no
(I was head over heels,
I couldn’t have.)
I was weak,
I was passive
I let my guard slip,
And suddenly I was not myself.

I cussed,
I flirted,
I yelled,
I did an array
Of non-me things
That cause guilt
And regret
Today.

We don’t speak anymore
(that girl and I)
I shut her out,
Realized she was poison,
And tried to rid her of my conscience.
But she still shows up,
In my infrequent
Self-detrimental comments,
The bits and bobbles
Of caring what I look like,
The year full of
Memories
Tainted by her presence,
And my caring.

---

McNeil High School

9

Football this basketball that
It’s all I ever hear
but nothing about the white coat
that helped to heal your arm
when you broke it
or the white coat
that was right by your side
making sure everything was good
while you laid on that hospital bed
No
it’s all about the man who kicked a ball into a net
or ran a ball to the touchdown
stop to think
that the person who wears the white coat
is one reason I’m here watching this game today
not the person on the field
or on the court
No
but the person in the white coat

---

Lyndon B. Johnson High School

10

I feel it.

The pulse of desire
Pushing the blood in my veins
To each crevice of my being
And pulling it back
To my heart.

The crash of my feelings
Pulling my diaphragm
in,
and out,
Forcing my lungs into regular breath.

The steady cycle of my emotions
Driving me forward,
Inch by inch,
Minute by minute,
Step by step.

That glorious, terrible lump in my core,
Where my feelings find lodging,
Propping my eyes open for yet another

Day.

---

McNeil High School

9

Why is everyone
So afraid
Of death?

Is it the unknown?
Or is it the known?
We don’t know where we go
Upon our departure,
But we do know that which we must leave.
We know everything that we are leaving behind,
At least temporarily.
Friends,
Family,
Belongings,
Memories.

But where do we go?
That we do not know.
So why be afraid?
We know death is certain,
Why not be
Excited?
We will be leaving many things,
But what we find could be better.
Who knows?
I don’t know,
But,
Personally,
I am excited
To find out.

---

McNeil High School

9

Leaves crunch under my feet,
As the cold brisk air brushes against me.

A warm cup of apple cider,
makes my hands feel happy.
I bite into a piece of pumpkin pie,
and identify the strong flavor of cinnamon.

I watch as the red, orange, and yellow leaves sway on the trees, as I think about my love of fall.

---

Barton Hills Elementary

5

In a world of imagination
Many topics waiting
To be written
By a poet eager to get
some inspiration
for a piece of
lines, stanzas,
and words clumped
together to make a miracle of writing
in books paper
everywhere
in genres of
mystery, love, humor,
joys, sorrows, nature
up to down
left to write
scribbling across the page
marks
this is where I come from
from people who write
an unusual
work of art
I am a poem

---

canyon creek elementary

5

As a little ball
Sleeping with joy
Two grown ups
Hover over your face
As you take your first bite
As you wobble and fall
Babble to talk as it’s
A new baby language
A first for a ride
On wheels of wonder
A place where you have
Never been is in front
Of you with tons of
Knowledge to suck in
For a new journey
Is awaiting in a
Whole other year
New people waiting
To greet you
Fractions waiting to be learned
Life waiting to
Reveal itself
But best of all
More friends awaiting
You grow through the years
You cherish the good
Care for the bad
Make a new life
Start new love
Help the poor
And at the end
When you have learned
That will shift into a new journey
New pictures and memories to make
A whole new path to
Discover
Uncover
Recover
A new growing destiny