Category: 2017-18 Submissions

MANHATTAN bright with

Tinsel shopper arms of christmas gifts

I stood outside McDonalds

Glass small patch of white, people BLACK and WHITE

Hamburgers Fries

MY stomach empty for 2 days now
WAtching

Burgers

Potatoes

Cold soda

My mom is the Sun,
she keeps us all in order with gravity.

My dad is Jupiter,
he is big, strong and tough.

My sister is Venus,
small, clouded and very vicious

I am the Astroid belt,
right in the middle of it all.

Autumn auspice daunting from the ash
Remained cradling teacup so quakes couldn’t take it
Two of them now, tearing through the trees
‘Is it a bad omen?’ I asked
When morning was eclipsed by the flock
But the bird in confinement had been pensive
His warm sable feathers seemed inviting
Slipping my fingers through the slits of the cage,
He kissed them and sighed
‘When the time comes, you have nothing to fear
In the eye of the storm or the beholder
Focus fixed on you is a blessing, not a curse’

---

Austin High

11

Some don’t feel it
Some feel it
The pressure of it
It can be overwhelming
But once you get it under control
It will lift a load off your chest
Don’t let it overwhelm you
Once it does it will feel like a
Ton on your chest
Don’t let it win

At the dawn of the journey, a chord was struck, so gruesome
Odysseus had a ship filled with the spoils of war, but carried an even more peculiar cargo-
Pride.
The arrogant sailors provoke the gods and are expelled by the wine-dark sea, so unrelenting
Odysseus finds himself on the brink of his demise
Luckily, salvation befalls him
He is recovered by the nymph Kalypso
Odysseus remembers his home and abandons the nymph without question. So bitter
He journeys to the underworld to seek exemption from his torment
He ventures into the darkest corners of the world
Upon his sacrifice to the dead, Odysseus gains the knowledge of his escape
Odysseus is encapsulated by the shrieking and surging of death and destruction
Finally, after his assessment, a chord was struck, so bright.

Sweets, chocolates, hugs, and kisses
Valentines is so delicious,
Filled with love and happiness,
In the air is love and affection,
Bringing people together forever,
What could be more enjoyable,
then having a happy family on the most lovable day of the year.

Petals circling, dancing
Grown from passion
Embodying devotion

Thorns; sharp as a needle
Perish from brutality
Break under embrace

My heart is pounding as if it’s trying to escape my chest. My stomach is trying to fly out of me as well. My head is scared, scared of what might go down, when I walk out onto the platform in front of hundreds of people. Wanting the moment to never come, to keep pushing it farther and farther away. But finally it is here. Walking toward fear, away from solitude. Until I realize I’ve got it all wrong, it doesn’t matter what happens on stage what matters is how confident you are in whatever does happen. This is where I belong. All these people here to support me, came all the way here to see me. Make the most of it. Be proud. That is all I have to say.

Land of White boys

racists

No justice

Ocean of black boys

FREE

BUT no security