“The Animals All Stopped”

There once were so zebras

they were galloping

so I said Hey zebras you can stop now

There once were some tigers

they were roaring

so I said Hey tigers you can stop now

There once were some hippos

they were swimming

so I said Hey hippos you can stop now

There once were some peacocks

they were pecking

so I said Hey peacocks you can stop now

And they all stopped.

---Zoey M., age 5

“Katelyn”

I, Katelyn

Funny, cute, smart, witty

Sibling of Elena

Lover of puppies, horses, family

Who feels hyper, silly, anxious about Spring Fling

Who needs quiet time to read, family fun nights,

sleepovers with friends

Who fears bugs, injections, the dark woods at night

Who would like to see horses running free on Chinoteague Island, a sunset in

Hawaii, the Eiffel Tower in Paris

Am a resident of Phoenix, Arizona

I welcome you to my poem.

                                                                                    ---Katelyn H., age 8

“depression”

there is a land far, far away

with a home that i know

a dark, dank Castle

for only the lowest of the low

inside the Castle

within its black walls

people cry and scream out

for help they call

but someday, sometime

a Knight will come

riding a white horse

armor gleaming in the sun

he’ll fly through the drawbridge

the chained will be free

we all know the Knight

once he even saved me

so beware when you frown

cry, shout, or mope

for the Castle is called Depair

and the Knight’s name is Hope.

--- Delaney K., age 12

“The Pit”

Sometimes

I fall into this cold, dark pit.

I don’t want to fall in

but if can be so easy to fall in

so hard not to

so easy to stay in

so hard to get out.

Yet I know I’ve got to

pull myself up

I can’t wait for someone else

I have do it myself.

But all the better

if I choose

to never

fall

in.

---Victoria J., age 15

“These Buildings”

Flattened eyes made from sheets of opaque glass

Elongated cheekbones formed from steel bars

Hair tangling over streets in smog wisps

Chest cavities that hold you deep inside

Their hearts beat to the pattern of your steps

And lungs gratefully pump your every word

Your fingerprints make tattoos on their skin

Until the day their plaster skin forms cracks

And their concrete bones grown with arthritis

These buildings you have erected watch you

--- Allison W. age 18