Kyle Ferguson

17

Filtered through the leaves of a simple tree the rays alight on a simple hammock with a simple man enjoying simple summer nap

Samuel

16

"summer"

summer please stay
never go away please stay
please stay till I'm gray

Mariam

17

Petals Plunge, Heavily

Remember the roses
their white wisdom waning
our loud hearts deafen amongst
heated night rains

Remember the roses
richly red as life he once gave
now set ablaze, under the morning
light’s wrath

Remember the roses
vicious and violet
the shade of his blood
long resting upon the sun

Remember the roses
blistering into blackness
as the winds rise again
send me away until the next year

Petals plunge, heavily
honor slaying at our souls
You could have run, he said
well, I’m running now

into the light
into that summer day
blissful and blind

Marie-Rose

14

Was It Shakespeare That Said

was it Shakespeare that said
shall I compare thee to a summer’s day?
how did he know, in the sixteenth century,
or seventeenth (I forget),
that one day, would walk on this earth,
a girl like a light sea breeze,
with eyes, droplets of blue,
and arms like the tanned branches of trees in their prime?

how did he know, he couldn’t of, really,
without a time machine,
or some such device,
that one day your smile would be the sun,
and my heart the earth,
warmed and delighted with innocent rays;
that your peach blossom hair would silkily sweep me,
that we would dance, our arms glistening,
waving,
beneath the warm rain?

was it Shakespeare that mentioned
star-crossed love?
how, how did he know,
it doesn’t cease to amaze me,
that summer would end,
and mom would yell to get in the car,
but you’re staying, just one of the trees,
waving leaves in goodbye,
your hands just starting to fall?

Anthony

15

A Midsummer’s Night

Even though I’m smart
I find it hard
to understand what my dreams
mean to me.
So I must admit,
that I haven’t met you
ever before,
but I know you from my dreams.
It may sound corny
and a bad pick-up line,
but what I say is the truth.

Alone,
walking under a streetlight,
with someone
following right next to me;
that person was you.

But you are leaving
for ever, and I am staying
here, for ever;
so this is the end of it all.

Anthony

15

Kill The Communists

Sitting here in my room
listening to the explosions
I ponder if Francis Scott Key,
ever thought that his poem
would be played on 99.5 FM
Cleveland’s Country, at noon everyday.
It strikes me funny that us Americans
celebrate the birth of our country
with hundreds of firework related
emergency room visits.
We go throughout the day
drinking “Authentic American” beer,
(AA if you will)
while swimming in our American
flag bathingsuits,
pissing secretly into the lake.
Cruising around in our collector
cars, only brought out
on this day,
to compete with everyone else’s,
the true American drive.
Sitting in a field
full of strangers,
while bombs shoot into the sky,
making explosions
that daze the crowd for twenty
minutes without interruption,
the real American dream.
Driving down the interstate
next to a Jeep full of sorority
girls, dressed in tight
American flag shirts,
high waisted jean shorts,
and a matching bandana
hanging out the back pocket;
Bruce Springsteen style.
To get rid of the lights and rockets
would be a crime,
disliked by my fellow Americans.
Although,
I wouldn’t mind
to lay in the tall grass,
off from some unknown dirt trail,
with a girl that I’ve known
for awhile;
watching the sun disappear
behind the mountains in the sky,
having the cool night air drift
through the grass,
over the hills,
and into my face.
Enjoying that quiet moment,
at peace from the commotion
of war
and patriotic explosions in the sky;
I am free.

Anthony

15

Fire Bombs In The Sky

It’s funny how
large explosions of light
can entertain a carnival of people
sitting on the wet grass
of the overcrowded soccer field.
I had kissed her earlier.
A hug,
she leaned in, giving me the sign,
I gave her a quick kiss
of friendship or desire,
following the French philosophy on it,
strictly platonic.
Now she sits crying
as those bombs
explode into the night,
drunkenly leaning against some other guy.
I pretend not to notice,
and watch the fireworks,
not blinking at all,
because the good stuff is always next.

I find myself in the backseat
of a car pulling into the drive,
kids emerge from the backyard, beckoning
us to the fire they had created.
I walk smiling and ready,
the innocence of my mind still holding strong.
I sit down on the remains of a stump,
watching the fire kill itself
through all the paper and wood.
I cough and turn my head,
only then do I focus
on the cheap bottle of beer
in the hand of the girl
to my right,
and the one,
to my left,
and the one,
across from me,
and the kissing girl,
off away from the fire,
inaudible sounds emitting from her
beer filled mouth.
Some tool pours gasoline
on the fire, somewhat impressing
the intoxicated girls;
the bookbag is opened,
a beer is grabbed,
opened,
and drank.
Screams now echo
from the girl I kissed,
silence encapsulates the fire,
and those tranced by it’s wild dance.
A drunken stumble and she’s
helped by her friends to the driveway.
They stand there,
I pay no attention, until the yelling
starts to puncture my ears.

This is bullshit.
I pull myself together and walk past,
phone in my hand,
speed dial is calling me.
Claire steps out from the pack
surrounding the girl I kissed.
This Bitch.
She looks angry,
I really don’t care about drama bullshit.
She stops me,
putting a hand on my chest,
and forcefully her foot on mine.
Don’t kiss her again,
she spits out at me.
Don’t kiss any girls again.
Period.
I don’t really want to deal with this,
I push past her,
the voice is rising.
I turn,
her middle finger raised to the sky.
But That’s Life.
I nod and walk
down the dark street,
feeling no emotion,
as I flick the top on my lighter.
Sick Youth.
The party had turned
to a bad AA meeting,
where all the sober people
met in a bar beforehand,
and showed up hammered.
So Long, Farewell a bid a boo a doo.
I’m singing to myself,
as I walk alone to the corner,
maybe as some sort of comforting
message. I don’t know.

I sit back on the curb,
watching the cars drive by,
oblivious to the dangers of teenagers.
A bumper sticker reads,
“Shit Happens”
off the pizza truck that
pulled into the house across the street.
It makes me think,
but I can’t come to any conclusions.
Awwwww Shit
A mindless ramble,
solidified by the mean of paper and pen.
At the beginning of a record,
the scratchy silence,
where everyone is waiting for the music.
we must wait for the music
but it never comes.

Debbie

14

"She looks way different."
"She's hella pretty now -- I can't even recognize her."
"I don't even know who she is, but she looks great."

The Fall wind doesn't feel cold, because I'm on fire.
I radiate others' dreams of having a transforming Summer.
SUMMER. The time Sandy went to Costa Rica.
Well, this time I look fitter than she looked tan.
The pedestal opens up for me.
Average is not my middle name anymore.

The time that obeys our education system.
The simple three months of lazy poolside stories,
Is my only chance to become that person.
The person.
My one true identity the whole school will know.
It's only a penumbra of the cloud that is my dreams.

"Talbert and Smith street! Last stop!"
The lady next to me is asleep.
I wonder if I should wake her up or let her dream.

Keagan

16

You. With eyes like the sea after a storm.
You. With hair as dark as these summer nights.
You. With skin that the sun can’t get enough of.
You. Who doesn’t care what people think.
You. Who swims against the waves.
You. Who has stolen my heart.

You. Can keep it.

Anisa

14

Summer Blues

'Twas a day in the summer.
It happens every year, as unproductive as the last.
I pulled the curtain and glimpsed out my window at the picture-perfect day.
The sun stood before me, showing off its magnificent rays.
I turn to my left.
Kids were running around,
Young and carefree of the world around them.
There were high school students studying SAT books on the
Grass, laughing with one another.
To my right, I see senior citizens walking and chatting.
People of all ages were enjoying the crisp, yet warm day.
Days like this are rare to have; we must enjoy them when we can.
I walk outside my house and
The warm weather beats on my pale skin.
The radiant sun, which finally crept out after winter,
Warms the entire town.
I close my eyes, sit on the hammock, and drift off.
I wake up to the sound of birds chirping.
As I open my eyes I am inside my bedroom.
I look out the window and I see a sheet of white.
Confused I get up and realize it was all a dream.
Winter has come, and so has the cold.
Twas' a fun summer.

Anisa

14

All Good Things Must Come to an End

Running out to the beach
I dove into the icy water of Lake Michigan.
I swam not thinking about anything,
Not my hungry stomach nor how cold the water was.
I was only focused on swimming.
Left, right, my hands moved in a pattern,
Increasing pace as I went faster.
I stopped in the water and took a peek at the shore.
There were kids my age making sand-castles.
There were more serious adults reading books and of course,
There were those talkative adults, chatting away.
Elderly women could be seen from a distance walking their dogs.
After swimming for more than an hour,
I walked along the shoreline with my mom.
She insisted on buying me strawberry shortcake ice cream
Which was simply delectable.
Eating my ice cream in the beach chair, I watched as the
Waves crashed across the sand so beautifully.
I stood up from my seat and threw my hands in the crisp air.
After all the day would end and so would the fun.
All good things must to come to end.
Now those days are gone
And I am older, wiser.
Now when I go back to the beach,
I see kids eating strawberry shortcakes.
And I just smile to myself.

Anisa

14

The Blink of an Eye
It all happens with the blink of an eye.
This lazy time called summer.
You have to enjoy it,
Like there’s no tomorrow.
Kids sat on porches eating their color filled popsicles, probably packed with diabetes.
Clueless about the health facts, the children messily ate away.
Adults sat down talking, chuckling.
Teens attempted to tan in their yards.
Not one soul was seen working.
Unproductiveness is good.
It allows us to feel happy about ourselves when we
Are in fact productive!
I closed my eyes.
All the warmth, the smiles, the popsicles went away.
With the blink of an eye.

Jieun

19

Title:Humidity In Summer
That same rhythm,
one, two, three;
The rhytms lays over
the horizon.

Horizon is covered with the
mundane routines
You only find
tiresome choppies on
the line.

That day, that week or
even that month
humidity makes us frown,
yell, and scream.

We are, afterall
confined in humidity, in the fragment of the fog.

Jillian

16

Eclipse

She wore a cloak of fire,
With sunbeams in her hair.
It burned the eyes to look at her,
No one could even dare.
She could thaw the heart of anyone,
Whether it was frozen or in stone,
Her fingers were kissed by danger,
For they could blaze your home.
She was called the ruler of the sky,
But only when it was blue.
Only one thing ever rivaled her,
And that was the moon.
Their paths could never cross
For he only emerged at night.
However, on one summer day,
There was a blinding light.
Although it did not last for very long,
And it did not seem like much,
The Sun and the Moon were in harmony,
Finally able to touch.

Jillian

16

Anatomy of a Summer Child

I washed June out of my tresses,
And with it flowed
The pealing of a school bell,
A lonely cricket's lullaby,
And a firefly's lantern guiding me home.
July branded its name beneath my skin
As the sun caressed me with its fiery fingers
And paint was splattered in the sky
By a vengeful artist
Who matched their work with the explosions.
August tied itself into my toes
As they tasted the minty complexion of the grass
Or felt the waves kissing them
Before the sand clung to them
And ordered the waves away.
No matter how ferociously the mouth of winter may bite,
I will still feel summer in my toes or hair
And remember.

Emilie

16

i stitch together the endless days with thread spun from my clouds of memories
STITCH
the songbook falls into place, and i begin to plunk out a childish memory on the faux ivory keys
STITCH
the water squelches under my goggles, the chlorine biting my eyes even as it dries out my skin, but i still climb the skyscraping diving board, trying hard to look undaunted
STITCH
the shadows race across the sky as i race through the bone colored pages of my treasured books, my eyes weighed down with ink
STITCH
the sweat runs salty down my nose on the burned gold days, and the heat seeps through every crack, ignoring the fans' twirling gates
STITCH
the rising sun is a bright bird perched on the windowsill, its song coloring the flavors of my early morning dreams
STITCH
the rocks beneath my tire treads shriek crunch, crunch, crunch as i tirelessly bike home near dusk
STITCH
the rain jumps gleefully through the cloudy days, giving this desert the only water that comes all year while i flit through puddles and pine needles
STITCH
the long black carpet of asphalt unfolds before me, heedless of my hurry, its white and yellow lines blurring together on the endless journey to yet another family reunion
STITCH
if a stitch in time saves nine, then i’ll never be able to count the stitches i’ve saved

Constantine

14

Breathability

You.
You prefer the shallow water
With solid ground at your feet
You prefer to be close to shore
Where you can easily retreat.

You're incapable
Of swimming far
Because you lack the skills
You're afraid
Of diving deep
Because for you, it kills.
Unlike you I have the skills
I am capable of diving
Unlike you I have gills.
I am prone for surviving.
So if you wish
To swim in the shallows,
Just please don't hold you're breath,
For I have gills
I willingly swallow,
Unafraid of death.

Constantine

14

Birds

Why is it
that birds can fly
while our bodies
are so grounded?
Why is it
that they soar the earth
while we are so
confounded?
Evolution is not kind
to give them wings
when we wish to fly
Why is it
we always find
our heads in the clouds?
Foolish minds.
We were not born to fly
nor born to soar
so stop trying to do
what you’re not meant for
Foolish minds,
Foolish words,
with your heads in the clouds
leave that to the birds.

Constantine

14

Sinking

It grabs me by my little toe
and starts to pull me under
but every single move I make
is just another blunder
the ground is climbing
up my legs
no use in trying to run
It pulls
It sucks
I’m sinking in
each limb one by one
It’s closing in
around my ribs
I’m being crushed to bits
my heart just fell
below the line
will this ever quit?
Air flees
from the punctured balloon
in my chest
this current
keeps on
pulling me through
please give me a rest
I try to remember
every song
that I have ever sung
but now it’s up to my face
and it’s grabbing at my tongue
my nose and eyes flood
like the salt of the sea
I can’t open up
or I’ll no longer see
I’m falling, I’m sinking
in a mass of entropy
just caught up in thinking
of how I lost me.

annabelle

17

Coming Back To The City

the air is hot down in the city
crawling down from the mountains everything seems larger
on eye level
no perspective or distance
all thats known to comfort me eludes to my separation from reality
my distance from concrete has made my skin soft
the sharp blades of grass up on the hills penetrated my soul and opened me to new beginnings
wound my heart backwards as if to reset
realign my temples
the cold licks of late night turning into early morning patted my face gently
and that long bus that took me from a place of simulated serenity to a warm Brooklyn.
A place that continued to evolve and turn without me.
I come back to leave cabins and community
enticed by the permanence of year round living.