Sadie Bilik
"I faced off with the Shadow Snake. He tried to bite me, but I dodged it. I kept dodging its bites, but eventually it cornered me. That was it. I was dead. There was no way I was going to save myself, and everyone else was too scared to help me. Liam just stood there. I was another victim of the deadly Shadow Snake."
From Arjan Toce's "The Nature Walk"
“'Ay, podemos venir otro día a recogerlo,' my parents said.
Tears rolled down my cheeks because I knew that my cousin wasn't going to want to give it back. If only I knew that my assumption was going to become true."
From Lisa Alvarez's "Taken Away"
Artist: Sahil Gupta
"It was a cold December night: Everything was on mute, even the crickets."
From Welner Gramajo's "Who Is the Shadow?"
Artist: Naomi Rodas
"All of the board games, long walks with my family, face-to-face conversations with my friends, really taking the time to connect with people. This is what is important. This is what we should value most in life. Not the millions of activities we have after school, or the time we spend staring blankly at our phones. The connections that we have with people are worth more than a ship full of gold."
From Sophie Brennan's winning Lifting Up Westchester contest entry
"What if my sister wouldn’t feel connected to me because we’re eleven years apart in age? What’s going to happen when I go off to college and my little sister is at home without me?"
From Kloe El Daccache's "The Kaia Conundrum"
"I had just finished dinner and was about to go to my room to relax when I heard a shout from the basement, 'پانی آ رہا ہے!!' in Urdu, my family’s second language. [There’s water coming!]
From Mustafa Khan's "A Matter of Perspective"
Artist: Eiley Vasquez
"'I enjoy staying home, and not having to worry about going to school, or homework, and drama,' I said to my mom.
'Ugh, I wonder how much longer this is gonna last?' said my mom."
From Laysha Amado Valdovinos' narrative
"I think to myself, Why doesn’t my mom get that music is a part of me? Our family is Caribbean, and Jamaican music is something that gets everyone in the groove."
Read more from Kemi-Nola Balogun's "Music Is The Way To Finding Peace"
Artist: Jack Chiaravalle
What I Need To Bloom
I am a seed, hidden in the soil.
I am among many, waiting for our motivation.
I am waiting for love and care, to stand out in my pool of dirt.
The sun is my food, I devour it like a bar of chocolate.
The water is my energy, giving me the power to grow into my aspirations.
The soil is my family, who will support me throughout my journey.
The seeds are my friends, my companions for life, providing me with strength and joy.
I have a superpower, I am as alive as humans.
I am alive, and I will blossom into an impeccable flower, full of secrets yet to be uncovered.
Natalie Nannizzi (poem & photo)
"'So what are we going to do now?' asks Elise.
'How about we GO SAVE MAL?' Liz replies, anxious.
'I don’t know… we don’t even know where she is...'
'Yes we do! We’ll use her watch tracker!' I say.
'Oh right! Let’s track her!'"
From Lucy Girling's "The Escape"
"Usually teachers love their students. But when I say she didn't like me, I mean she DIDN’T like me."
From Lucy Montorio's narrative
Artist: Emily Thomson
"I grab a Nutella waffle as I rush out the door and onto Blair’s broomstick... She is mastering broom tricks and flying while I am just learning basic, everyday spells."
From Maya Hammarley's "Aubree - An Alien No More"
Maybe you could dispute that parents don't know "everything ... but why do you have to say no to something and your reason is, “Because I said so.” Give an actual reason!"
From Gabe Dzwonek's Cookies, Rights and School
Artist: Gus Constantine
"The sky is streaked with bright colors,
invisible paint brushes seem to decorate it.
The lifeguard’s tall chair creates a shadow on the golden sand,
and the American flag flies above everything."
From Lyla Sheedy's "The Beach At Sunset"
Artist: Evan Gray
"When my grandparents sold the house in 2014,
to a “house flipper,”
I was unphased.
I didn’t realize the least
about what was happening.
But when I saw the photos
of the new listing
that this “house flipper” put up,
I realized that the places
where my memories happened
had vanished."
From Cason Dean's South Winds B&B
Artist: Ellie Millar
"I am from 4:15 wakeups, to the pump-up Kendrick Lamar music before a football game with my dad.
From dirty blond hair, to the dirty feet after a lacrosse practice.
I am from the sports locker room at half-time, pumping my “brothers” up for the upcoming half.
I am from the trophies to the tears."
From Ezra Katz's "It's My World,
Artwork by Elvis Oxlaj-Lopez
Autumn
Outside the birds
Sing before
Their long journey
To a warmer place.
The breeze gets colder
The leaves cover
The ground
And crunch as I walk
The leaves turn
Red, the brown,
Then fall,
As autumn arrives
Out comes gloves,
From the place
They were all summer
And are ready to be used
Ears ice,
Pumpkin picking,
Fuzzy sweaters,
Autumn is here.
Eiley Vasquez
Artwork by Elvis Oxlaj-Lopez
Need a new tennis racket? "Is it reasonable to say that this tennis racket is a good value?"
From Luke Franzese's review
"[I]f I knew what this would cause, I would have turned around. My friends kept on reassuring me that it was easy and that I could turn back if I needed to, and how there was no pressure to continue. But there was. I do not like being left out or getting made fun of by my sister, so there was no option of turning back."
Read more from Elena Collins' "Praying After the Fall"
"Whenever you went to New York then, there was always a feeling of belonging."
From Stella Ormrod's narrative
"Crunchy leaves under my feet
Apple cider, oh so sweet
Pumpkin donuts, with sugar on top
Jumping in leaves, I just won’t stop!"
Read more from Giuliana Schrenker's "Autumn"
"California is lit up by forest fires every year
Life will soon be over if we do nothing now.
Do whatever you can until it's too late.
Read more from Clare O’Neill's "Climate Change"
HMX Writer Editors
Artist: Mirah Mass
