The Mighty Jump
This was it. I could see it in front of me. The stream was ending. I had to jump. The strong current was blinding. The mischievous drops of water were going against me. I picked...
Poems
Poetry and verse from young voices
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This was it.
I could see it in front of me.
The stream was ending.
I had to jump.
The strong current was blinding.
The mischievous drops of water were going against me.
I picked up speed.
Flapping my tail fin one hundred times a second.
Propelling forward faster and faster.
I jumped.
Elegantly soaring through the air.
Slipping right through a grizzly bear’s jaws.
I feel tears welling up in my eyes
I try to suppress them
I don’t want to cry
At least not here
In front of people
But I do
I do cry
I cry and I cry
And I try to push it back
But I’ve waited too long
I think about it
About the mess
About my parents
My childhood
My home
My safety
And I cry even more
The mess is big
It overwhelms me
It makes me shiver
It makes me cry
My mother didn’t love ...
Water
Laughter is like a cool glass of water.
Refreshing, enjoyable.
A cool trickle going down your throat.
When you laugh, you forget the pile of homework,
waiting at school for you.
You forget about the fact that your mom is in the hospital,
and you’re not sure if she’s ever going to come out again.
You forget about grades and projects and friends.
I don’t see her until she makes the noise
A noise that breaks my heart
I turn slowly to see the graceful face
Her pale green eyes full of hunger and want
One paw snakes through the metal bars
She twists her lithe body so that I am looking into her eyes
She makes that piteous call and I am completely transfixed
She seems to beckon me
My body obeys
I reach through the bars to stroke velvet fur
Her...
On cool summer nights,
My grandpa and I sit out
On the back porch.
We look at the sky,
And together,
We watch the sun go down.
Quiet while we think, we sip our tea,
Pondering the world about us.
I gaze into my mug,
Staring at my dim reflection.
Blowing softly on the smooth glassy surface,
I make the dark water ripple.
Looking up again, I watch the pink clouds
As they cushion the sun’s descent.
Two black-and-white dogs
Dash across the beach
Legs pumping
Flicking mud into the sun
The sun
Turning the lake
Those same brilliant colors
As the glowing red rocks around it
Fiery fluid
Creeps up on the shore
Where two dogs lie
In slumber
Noses in the blood red sand
My last chance,
One more miss
And it’s over,
Cool sweat trickles down my neck.
I risk striking out,
My pride.
My hands tremble
My swing wobbles
My body
Not my own,
I can’t do this.
To everyone else,
A spring day,
Warm and beautiful.
Dandelions cover the field,
The opposite of my emotions.
I worry,
I fear.
The day is too sunny,
I doubt.
I hear the sound,
Loud and clear.
A pea-green shoot pokes out of the ground.
Through the last sprinkle of snow,
It stretches.
Straightens.
Reaching towards the sky, it whispers,
“Spring. Spring. Spring.”
It battles the icy wind
And the winter-beaten mud.
Slowly
A bud grows,
Rounder, bigger, smoother.
One day…
Yellow.
Finally.
Five fairy petals caress the warming air,
Surrounding a golden crown.
A crow or raven
against the black night.
A cry from a lone child.
A smooth dark rock
thrown at you.
A dot, sweet, warm,
and black on your tongue.
A musty smell,
revolting at first,
sweet afterwards,
though too quick to catch.
Scented like a black horse.
At first sight,
A child tattered,
crying, and though silent
makes the loudest sound.
It is a whinny heard in the distance.
A silver van pulls up the desert driveway
From sliding doors
Spill three cousins
Holding teddy bears and swords
Lonely fields are filled once more
Screams and hollers absorb the sun-baked summer air
We stumble together, reminding each other of our game
Played only near the overgrown grass
And where Christmas trees grow during summer
MONSTER TAG.