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The Note

I thank the silence
That keeps us apart.
And the darkness
That lets me sleep at night
Without pondering the question that looms above
What are we?

They said love was warm and soft
Like the baguettes found at a french bakery.
Yet it feels heavy and cold
Almost like guilt.

They said love was beautiful and gentle
But as I pass him,
I feel like I’m being stabbed
As false joy disguises dread.

They said love was a blessing
But they’re wrong
It’s a curse
Coated in desire.

It all started with a note
from him.
So obvious and blunt:
I love you.
So simple and evil:
I love you.

I cried.
Maybe from pure joy
or pure anger
I loved him too.
Just not what we’ve become.

Lamar Middle School

6

Why

Those special memories
When we climb Mr. Bijan’s favorite
tree and steal the fruits

Those special days
When we cheat on the tests but
we never got caught

Those special times
When we tie the running contest
and we had to share the trophy.

Why we stopped it
Why can’t we stay together like
we used to do

Is it because we are far away from each other.

Lamar Middle School

6

A Satisfying Morning.

The sun rises up in the sky
Making pink, yellow, and orange
Colors that dance onclouds
In perfect harmony
The birds tweet a song
A song that makes the world clearer
A song people wake up for
A song I wake up for
Dew drops sit on the roses outside my window
They look so delicate
So smooth
So real
And yet when I touch them
They disappear
Like a spirit in the real world

I can only imagine where they go
Does it snow there?
Do the stars shine?
Does the sky turn gray when melancholy?
I’ll never know

Morning doesn’t last forever
But it always comes back
When the sun and the moon switch places

Lamar Middle School

6

Dog Fight

Running from a pack of wild dogs
Only to be cornered
Grasped by the collar, pulled up by the alpha
Socked in the face

A million bees sting me
A hundred alligators bite me
A thousand people laugh at me
Nothing compares to the pain I feel right now

Thrown into a dumpster, the pack howling and saying,
“You couldn’t hit a bunny!”
I drah myself home, like a pitiful puppy
I return to my pack, blood and dirty while they lick my wounds with love

The next day I come back like coyote looking for its prey
With bandages on my side and pain my heart
I show up to the pack of wild dogs
And leave a token to say “thank you for making me tougher.”

Lamar Middle School

6

Papá

Cuando te fuiste,

ni un adiós me diste,
tan sola en la noche fría,
se escuchaba un silencio triste.

En la obscuridad de la noche,
soñaba que vienes a mi.
Las noches tristes y desoladas
por ti pensando sobre mi almohada.

Pasaron los días y yo te esperaba.
Deseando volvieras, para abrazarte y
decirte te extraño.

Los días, las horas y las semanas
se hicieron años. Ahora no me queda más
que seguirte esperando.

Espero algún día abrazarte papá,
decirte cuanto te amo, te quiero y
te extraño. Los años pasan como el viento y cuento las horas y los días para estar contenta.

Con tu partida papá, me dejaste sola
y triste. No pensaste en la soledad y
tristeza que me causaste. Nunca pensaste
que mi vida cambiarías.
Ahora necesito una mirada que me diga:
Aquí estoy para ti, hija mía.

Extraño las tardes, aquellas cuando paseabamos. Cuando
por las tardes un helado tomabamos.

Te extraño papá. Deseo tanto un abrazo
que las horas se detuvieran
para no separarme de tu mano.

Barbara Jordan ECP

First Grade Bilingual