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COURAGE BY Taskeen Khan, 12 - 1st Place Winner in National Competition

2010-05-20T21:11:00.000-07:00

“Courage. When people hear that word they think of famous heroes. Soldiers, cancer survivors and civil rights activists also come to mind. I think of all those people but there are a few more on my list such as a lady named Ahlam. She had to come from a different country all alone because in her country, women did not have equal rights. Ahlam spoke out against this and was persecuted by her government. She had to flee as an asylee to the US. I don’t know if I would have been able to speak out, knowing those consequences. It’s not always easy to settle in to a new country like she did. You may have to learn a new language, meet new people, make new friends, and get used to a new culture. Those are only a few of the many hurdles new immigrants face.

Ahlam could have stayed in her country despite its unequal treatment of women and done nothing. However, she spoke out against the government risking her own life. It takes plenty of courage to do what you think is right even if your life is on the line. Doing this and knowing you will face challenges is even harder. It’s similar to standing up to a bully at school.

The other challenge was leaving her personal comfort zone to come to America. One of the first issues Ahlam faced in a new country was finding an inexpensive place to stay. Ahlam knew that there were probably many social service organizations willing to help people in her situation from her work in public policy in her own country. She called organization after organization. What made this especially hard was that she knew very few words of English. It takes courage to ask people you don’t know at all for help.

Another problem Ahlam faced was learning a new language. Week after week she collected money for English classes by doing jobs that didn’t require much talking, such as house cleaning. She found these jobs through a lady at one of the social service organizations that had befriended her. It’s courageous to do jobs that are below your qualifications because you feel degraded. Ahlam did it because she knew it was her lifeline.

After her first session of classes, Ahlam could understand the language and say a few words of English. This was progress but the cleaning jobs soon become few and far between. So she got on the phone again. She found a program called RAP (Refugee Assistance Programs) that could help people from other countries find jobs that they were suitable for. After a quick interview, they found she was passionate about cooking. This was important because she didn’t need to be fluent in English and could still hold onto a piece of her culture. They helped her start a catering business from her home that helped her raise more money for English lessons. At first there were very few orders but as word spread and RAP organized public tastings, her business grew. At the end of 2009, two years after she had arrived, Ahlam was fluent in English and had her own business up and running.

Ahlam was now settled into the US because of the help of many people and her original courage to leave her home. She had now seen how many hands make light work and wanted to make it happen for others. Ahlam knew her first problem had been finding an inexpensive house and learning a language. So she started low fee English lessons for people who were new to America. She also used her catering business as a stable job people could participate in till they found other work. The extra money often helped these individuals pay for rent and food. All these good things happened because of one woman’s courage to leave home and start a new life.”

How a vacation changed my life

2009-07-13T15:38:00.001-07:00

By Olivia H., Age 14

My heart was set for Mexico, not a mission trip in the Dominican Republic! I didn’t want to be spending my spring break with people that couldn’t afford to eat all three meals a day. On Spring Break, I’d prefer to be with friends that could afford to pay for hotels on the beach, the dinners and sun bathing, with me. Now my life was ruined. My hands were in fists, my cheeks were flaming red. I had just found out the most embarrassing news ever. My mother just gave up poolside waitresses and laying on the beach, to serve other people, instead of getting served.

Over two weeks my mind had started to drift differently. The thought that kept going through my mind several times was, “is this what I really want, maybe I do want it?” I went to meetings with the group of us going to the D.R. Everyone else there, except myself, is getting so pumped for this. I realized I was the only one being pessimistic about this whole thing. The leader of our group started to show us pictures of other missionaries down there with the children in their arms. That’s when I got so excited! I was ready for what was coming to me; I wanted to be one of those missionaries holding those children, because I love little ones. So, I finally came to a conclusion, yes I do want this, this is what He has planned for me; to serve this Spring Break so I can come home differently.

I will always remember that moment I stepped off the plane. I felt that warm breeze way different than Chicago, but the same as Mexico. My frown happened to turn into a grin, with a good heart inside all that anger which is now erased. This most definitely wasn’t the same as Mexico, but I could deal with it. I was ready for what was coming. I admitted to myself this place would do. So as the warm air turned into a hot air, all fifteen of us, dressed the same, teal shirts, and anxious, piled into the bus in the Dominican Republic.

On the bus ride to the town, Spanish was flying everywhere, teenagers and men were sitting on the sidewalk in the middle of the day playing cards, abandoned dogs were searching for just a scrap of food here and there.

The time was here, this was it and this was what all of us had been getting ready for. I couldn’t believe I was finally here! This place wasn’t any ordinary place. If you call walking on the sidewalk normal, they have no clue what a sidewalk is. It’s just a lot of dirt people have walked over and over on, simply making a path. There you think it’s normal for when dark skinned people ages three to seventy, hang over your fence, begging, and they called this the richer area of this town. There were babies that probably had just learned to walk, walking around by themselves with NO ONE watching over them. Here in this country, you’re on your own, you do everything by yourself, if you can’t do it by yourself, most likely you will die. You have no help from the government; all you can really rely on is the missionaries to help you.

Half of these children had not even a scrap of clothes on their body. We decided for that week to do the mission trip in a school with children at Palo Blanco Care Center. We brought over books for them for their library which was about as big as my closet. The books were most likely used, and were about learning your ABC’s or all the way up to Clifford picture books. It was the best experience watching these children open up a book, having someone read to them. The used books smelled very old and muggy, as if they had been sitting down in a basement for hundreds of years. I would sometimes just sit there and just watch their eyes get as bright as the headlights on a car. Their smile’s would stretch all the way to the moon and back. Sometimes in the U.S we take for granted what most people have. But no, in the D.R food, shelter, money and books are a lifetime treasure.

There was one child that always stood out to me at Palo Blanco Care Center. His name was Andrew, except when he pronounced it, he said it with a rich Dominican accent that I couldn’t even understand. I could never forget his dark, gloomy eyes that just stared back at me. Sometimes all I would do is just stand there with him and he would put his arm around me. Seemed like all he wanted was someone to love him, hold him tight, because he didn’t that to go home to. He was never one of the children that got into fights with another child. He just stepped back, stayed quiet and listened to me make an attempt at Spanish, as I threw in a couple of English word’s here and there. He always came to school hours early, for some reason. Everyday he wore the same shirt. It was dark blue and had a Cubs sign on it. His scent reminded me of horses. For him there was never a place for a shower. We asked the kids not to bath in the stream or to drink the water. It was known to be an “outhouse”, with lots of bacteria.

There was one time when we were all playing soccer and Andrew came across a penny; in their case it’s called a peso. Andrew was so thrilled! I felt terrible, because there was a time when I was walking through the downtown back in Chicago and I saw a penny laying on the ground. I simply put my nose up and walked away. I saw Andrew obsessing over a coin, then I realized he was happy because he could buy something to eat tonight for dinner. At that second my body started to get numb, I had no expression, my throat started to tighten, I couldn’t move. I stood there and looked at him as a tear began to trickle down my cheek and into my mouth.

During this game I also realized these kids don’t play soccer with anything fancy. They don’t have the proper clothing. They don’t have any cleats or shin guards. They even sometimes don’t have a real soccer ball. Back over in the States if we don’t have the proper materials to play, we would pitch a tantrum. Back home why were so many people so selfish? Why must we have everything and still want more?

For these children, life was beautiful, with or without anything. If you lived in a concrete house at least 12x12, you were considered a rich Dominican of this town. If you could feed your family at least once a day, you were considered blessed by God. Therefore, as an “Americano,” I was assumed blessed by God and rich in every area. God is very important in everyone’s life down there. They all had a smile on their face, all the time.

There’s that saying “you can have everything in the world, and still not be happy”. I truly do believe in that quote. Because, I have seen it happen. I live in a town of millionaires; I’ve seen them have everything in the world, everything going for them. But, for some reason they aren’t content. I have been around the world to see people going on in their life when they can’t even eat all three meals a day. Young Dominicans don’t need everything to make them happy, God, a soccer ball, one meal a day and family and friends, is what fulfills their life.

I don’t exactly know what touched me the most on that trip. Maybe it was seeing children with nothing, bringing their selves to school with a smile. Or, maybe it was the books, their houses, or the love they can still have toward each other despite all their problems. I just know ever since then my life has changed. I look at spending money differently. At first it was just normal and came along with my life, now it’s a privilege I have to earn. I don’t put my nose up anymore when I walk by a penny. Now, I take care of what I have. I thank God everyday for giving me another day of life with happiness in it. Every time I held a child there, I was finally content and the happiness of just one hug could last them a life time.

The Great Big Pinata - Group Poem

2009-01-24T14:22:00.000-08:00

By Ainsley S., Evelyn G., Hamza A., Lilly S. Max H. Yousuf K.

Boom Blast Boom!
The night sky was lit up with a thousand stars

Ch Ch Ch, the popping in your ear
Colors everywhere for you to see,
Red, white, blue.

The night smelled cheerful
Sweet like candy
Red, Blue, Green, Orange, Pink, Yellow
Glittering.

Fireworks flashed bright in the sky
Blasting high in circles, umbrellas, the American Flag.

They look like stars
They look like candy
They look bright.

It's a great big Pinata in the sky.

The Haunted House

2008-10-07T15:12:00.000-07:00

By: Abhi A., Age 9

This summer, I got a chance to go with my family to visit our old friends in Colorado. After a long flight and driving through the mountains, we finally reached their house in Golden, CO. I was so excited. We talked and played for a while, ate lunch and then got on our bikes to visit the area. Soon we were biking by open grasslands. There we saw a big, old house covered with creepers and high walls with thorny bushes around it. The house appeared empty. There were five black crows sitting on the gate watching us. It was getting quite dark so we headed home. We decided to come back next day.

Cock-a-doodle-doo, the rooster crowed the next morning. We got up early and were all very excited. We biked to the house. The front yard had very tall grass with shrubs and weeds. The door creaked loudly as we pulled it open. We went inside. It was dark. Suddenly, the door started to close by itself and strange scary sounds filled the air. As we turned on the light switch, a big spark lit up and everything was dark again. We wanted to escape but were trapped! We were scared.

We turned on our flashlights and searched around. As we kept going from one room to another we found lot of silky cobwebs. The rooms smelt of mold. Suddenly, my foot hit something and I tripped over and fell down. It was a handle of a trap door on the floor. We opened it and found a passage inside. Curiously, we crawled in. The door closed automatically. It was a tunnel with light at the end. We could not turn back. We kept going.

Finally, after five minutes, the tunnel opened in a place that looked like a barn. We were in the backyard of the house. This was our chance to escape. We grabbed our bikes and fled home as fast as we could.

We told our parents what we saw. They immediately called the police and took us back to the house. As we reached the house, things looked different. The crows were gone. The door did not creak or close behind us. The rooms were empty but clean and had no cobwebs or mice. We were really confused. We ran out and looked for the barn. There was none. There was a children’s swing set instead.

Our parents looked at us and frowned. They thought we lied and made this story up. As we slowly biked back to our homes, we continued to wonder what happened.

Next day, we headed back to the airport. In the plane I sat quietly and wondered. Why doesn’t anyone live there any more? Was the house haunted? Did those crows have anything to do with this? Maybe we will never know.

As the plane took off, I looked down and saw a flight of black birds flying away into the sky.

I am a Muslim American, By Camraan K., 10yrs old

2008-08-16T15:48:00.001-07:00

I am happy to be a Muslim American.
I ask God to make it easy for me to make good choices.
I do this five times a day to keep myself on the right track.
I treat my neighbors and friends respectfully.
I fast in the month of Ramadan it reminds me to be grateful and to help.
I go for Friday or Jumah prayers at the Mosque, when everyone prays together.
I give charity for the poor and help out when I can.
I tell my friends about Eid celebration at school.
I am very much like everyone else.
I like to see people smile and be happy with each other.
I share the same dreams and worries as my friends.
I like to laugh at jokes, and play tricks on my brothers.
I like macaroni and cheese, and pizza. I just won’t drink alcohol or eat pork.
I like being this way.
I help my team in football, baseball, and basketball.
The world is our team, not a free-for-all.
If we take turns and share, if we can play fair, we can all win again and again.
I am happy to be a Muslim American.

ALGOL'S BIG DAY By Yusuf R. Age 6

2008-08-06T07:29:00.000-07:00

Once upon a time there was a family that owned a dinosaur. The family has one boy and one girl. The boy is 14, his name is Mahad. The girl is Maryam, and she is 8. Their Dad is Mansoor and their mom is Tazeen. The dinosaurs name is Algol. They got him from the Field Museum. He came home with them by walking giant steps behind their car. Bam! Bam! Algol is a brown stegosaurus. He has smooth skin, he is 26 years old, and he is thin.

His best friend is Mahad because they find food together, from the jungle and from a store called Meijer. One day mom was cooking dinner. She forgot the ingredients so she went to the store to buy them. Accidentally she forgot to turn off the stove! And the children didn't dare touch the stove and Algol didn’t touch it because he might do something wrong.

When the mother came back with the ingredients the house was on fire. Swoosh! Swoosh! the fire spread. The dinosaur was sleeping in the yard and so were the kids. They heard the Swoosh and they felt the hotness of the fire and they saw the red fire. They wanted to wake up Algol to blow the fire away but it was too late. The fire already touched the grass and came on to Algol.
Algol screamed "Ouch" and jumped up at the same time. Then he saw the house on fire. Then he said to the family "I’ll blow the fire away."

The family said "OK". He blew the fire out with his mouth. Fooooo!

He said to the family, come on my hand and then he blew on them so they felt cool. And then he blew so hard they began flying. They were going to fall so Algol caught them on his back but not on his spikes.

Then they all felt cool on the grass because the dinosaur had watered the grass before they landed on it. They landed with a soft thud.

Then they said thank you to Algol and went to a forest in the woods where they roasted yummy marshmallows and ate them.

THE END

Thirteen feet tall, By Yusuf R. Age 6

2008-08-06T07:25:00.000-07:00

One day my uncle bought me four boxes of candy. Two boxes sounded like chhhh chhhh chhhh. The others sounded like shaka shaka like a maraca. The candy was Raisinets, Air Heads, Nerds and Sour Patch. Raisinets taste like raisins and were mushy. Air Heads feel sticky when you lick them and touch them. They taste sweet. Nerds feel hard but they taste sour. Sour Patch tastes sour but feel soft. When I ate all the candy in one day, I became ten feet tall.

I said "What happened to me?"No one replied because no one recognized me.

My mother said "Get out of here - who are you?"

My father said "Yusuf where are you, I have something for you".

Now that I'm ten feet tall, I can play basketball and do slam dunks. I can only sit in a van because my head will get bumped in a car. Thud. I can go on all the rides in Six Flags. That will feel good - and bad because my stomach will make a gurgle noise and my teeth will chatter if it is a high ride. My clothes will grow with me. I will jump from roof to roof. Swoosh. Swoosh. My shoe size will be 20.

Then by eating healthy food like vegetables and chicken I will grow thirteen feet tall. These foods taste yummy and awesome. They sometimes feel soft and sometimes feel crunchy. Orange chicken or fried chicken is crunchy.

All the kids in the whole universe will buy the same candy and eat them all in one day like me. So then they can become ten feet tall too. But when they will eat healthy food, they can become thirteen feet tall like me.

The End

A Model Super Hero By Azhar G. ( first story)

2008-08-03T22:29:00.000-07:00

There once was family of superheroes. Parents, Greg and Kathy Wayne, had only one child. They named hin Matthew after his great grandfather. Matthew Wayne A.K.A. The Viper, the greatest superhero on earth.

Greg and Kathy were also great superhroes. Greg Wayne was Mega Man and had super strength as well as the ability to fly. Kathy Wayne was Lightening - Woman. She had super speed and the ability to move things. She was also able to hold onto a force field.

Matthew had just turned thirteen and was hoping to get his powers. After all every super hero got their super powers at about that age. He couldn’t wait. He had already made his costume. One sunny afternoon as Mathew was walking along the sidewalk, to the park he saw a garbage can overflowed with garbage. The smell reminded him of his old friend Roger’s dog. But Roger had moved years ago.

Matthew thought to himself ‘What should I do about this?’. He went straight to City Hall to inform the mayor about the pollution. But sadly the mayor turned him down . Matthew couldn’t just stand there., he had to do something about this.

Matthew went back home to tell his parents about this. His father told him that he should do something about it. His mother agreed. Matthew went back to the park to clean up the mess. Matthew thought to himself, ‘This isn’t as easy as I thought it would be, because I still don’t have my powers’. But that didn’t stop him from cleaning the mess from the park. Matthew even called the janitor of his school to help him. Together they cleaned up the whole park.

Over time, Matthew learned that you don’t need to have powers to be a hero. You can be a hero just by cleaning the enviroment.

Matthew grew up , got married and had kids but he never got his powers. But he was powerful in his own little way and would live on to influence people and their lives.

THE END!!!

A Peculiar Vacation By Zahra G. ( First Story)

2008-08-03T22:10:00.000-07:00

One day my mother told me we were going to Mexico. ‘We are leaving there in three days,’ she said. It was going to be just her and I. I was delighted because I’ve always wanted to go there. The next morning we started packing for our trip and we did more of it the day after that.

The day night before we were leaving I had to get a good night sleep because we had to wake up at 6:oo a.m. The next day we went to the airport and waited at the gates for about 2 hours. After that we finally went in the airplane.

It took four hours to get to Mexico. First we went to a hotel called Grand Marine. Our Room was awesome and overlooked the sea! The room number was 204. We went to a beach and while I was collecting some seashells I found a red ruby diamond. I quickly put it in my sack and didn’t know if I should tell my mom.

We ate lunch at Sam & Harry’s but my mom finished quicker and left. I sat there finishing my fish and by then I'd forgotten my room number. I just knew it was 20 something. It was at that moment, that I passed this awkward looking man who asked another man, "Did you find the red ruby?"

“No,”the other man replied.

I think my room number was 208. I put the card in the slot & it opened. But when I took one step forward , I realized that it was the wrong room. Then I heard the same men in the hallway.

"How come you didn’t find the red ruby?" said one.

“It wasn’t there,”the other replied.

"Wait !" I said to myself. "I have the ruby!" I slowly tried to get out of the wrong room but the man caught me.

“Well what have we here? Who are you?” he said.

"I’m Zahra” I told him but couldn't imagine I was dumb. I thought I shouldn’t have told him my name.”

"Who are you?” I asked.

“I’m Carl,”he said.

I quickly left before he could ask anything else . As I passed it, I suddenly remembered the room number! It’s 204. When I went in the room my mom asked, "What took you so long?” .

“I had to finish my nachos," I said with guilt.

When we went to sleep all these questions were in my head. “Why do they want the ruby so bad”? “Why did I pick the ruby up”?

The next morning , I just couldn’t take it anymore. I called the police & they rushed over. I opened the thieves door and told the police the whole story.

The police said to the men, “You are under arrest.”

I gave the police the ruby . “Wait a minute ,these guys are on the ten most wanted list”. “That means you get $1,000!” I was filled with joy.

All through this, my mom stayed clueless and didn’t know a thing that happened . THAT’S WHAT I CALL A PECULIAR VACATION!

Big Bunny’s Surprise By Anisa Q.(first story)

2008-08-03T21:56:00.000-07:00

One cool summer day, Big Bunny woke up in his awesome beach room. It had “sand” on the floor and his bed looked like a shark with the roof looking kind of like an umbrella.What's more, there was a small little pool just for him outside. IT WAS THE BEST!

When he awoke, he knew something was different, he just knew it but he didn’t quite know what was different.

“I wonder, I wonder, well, what’s going on?” said Big Bunny.

All the same he got on with the day. First, he brushed his teeth and washed his face and then he went outside for a little dip in the pool. When he returned, he dried himself off and put on his warm morning clothes. Then, he walked up to his parents room and found they were already awake and to top that they were building something! His parents didn’t notice him, and Big Bunny thought there were working on some toy, so he walked downstairs. He remained curious even as he readied himself for breakfast. But instead of cereal and milk, across from him, there was scrambled eggs and mush! The eggs smelled okay but the mush smelled just horrible! What on earth was that green stuff he wondered to himself?

By now, Big Bunny was very curious, so, he quickly ran upstairs to ask Mom and Dad Bunny what was going on? As he got there he could hear extremely loud crying and it smelled really, really horrible! And when he got there, he saw a BABY Bunny!

Big Bunny completely freaked out! His eyes popped out, his mouth fell open and he went completely nuts!

He yelled, “I have a sibling! Why didn’t you tell me?”

“We were but we wanted it to be a surprise”, they said.

“Well it sure is!” Big Bunny said! But Big Bunny didn’t know if it was a boy or a girl. But he didn't care. After the initial shock wore off, Big Bunny found he was so HAPPY! He now had a sibling! But Big Bunny also felt sad because the baby would get all of the attention and he would get none. But guess what? It turned out that Big Bunny got treated the same way! And they both loved each other! The baby loved her crib and her name was Baby Bunny. WHAT A SURPRISE!!

The End

Lost in the Woods By Huma Fatima N..(first story)

2008-08-03T21:28:00.000-07:00

Once upon a time, I was wandering through some very dark and spooky woods, searching for my best friend, Jill. It had all started when Jack, her brother, scared Jill away when he popped out of the closet very quickly to scare her. He knew that Jill was a very sensitive person but he did it anyways. Since this wasn't the first time he had scared her, she overreacted and ran away from our village. I went running after Jill because I didn't want her to get lost…..unfortunately, I couldn’t find her!

All of a sudden, with a whoosh and a swish horses came galloping at me. I fled for my life! Where had they suddenly appeared from? I thought, feeling as if my heart would jump out of y skin. I had loved horses since I was a little girl, but the horde had startled me by appearing out of nowhere. Suddenly, my curiousity won the upper hand over fear and I wanted to see where these quick and fast horses were headed. to. I hoped they were headed for Beanville, my village, or else I would be stranded. I didn't want them to run away from me, so I followed them sleathily hoping that they would not see me, a small child who was lost. I was very tired, and my eyes drooped. * * *

At the crack of dawn, the horses stopped galloping and I too had become tired and sleepy. The run had lasted a very enormous period of time, much longer than I had thought it did. Before long, I was asleep by a tree.

When I awoke, I was frightened and sad because Beanville wasn't even on the horizon. Weary from running, I decided I would just get on the horses, insteaded of chasing them. I jumped up on one of them.

I think I passed out again because when I awoke from my slumber, I was completely unaware of which town I was in. When I looked up, I saw a great, big castle made of candy and chocolate! Marshmallows, Jollyranchers, Twizlers, Hersheys, Sour Straws, frosting (which stuck the candy together) and many other different kinds of candies and chocolates!! But I warned myself that those delicious candies had to be ignored until I knew who lived in there! That curiosity of mine I know one day would really damage my diminutive brain!

As my curiosity and the horses led me to the left wing of the candy castle, I spotted three odd looking doors. I was hoping Jill would be there. I desperately wanted her to come back home!

The first door led to the horses’ room where small, medium, and big sized horses lived. I saw a lot of grass and hay in that room too! It smelled putrid! The horse that had me on his soft, fluffy back dropped me gently and all of the horses went inside that monstrous sized room. Jill wasn't there though.

When I forced an entrance at the second strange door, I found the runaway Gingerbread Man and his girlfriend having breakfast together. They were eating candy and the whole room was made out of gingerbread! I was very surprised to see them here and noticed that they were very embarrassed to be seen by me, so I said sorry, closed the door, and went to the third door. I shook my head sadly. Jill hadn't been in there either.

The third and last door I saw was painted with beautiful, prettye Blue Jays, chirping above two crowns. That looked really creative! What was more, I heard ballroom music from the inside of the room. I opened the door very slowly and who should I see but Snow White and the Prince dancing in the ballroom! This time I knew I had to ask why they, the royal couple, were living here and if Jill was near by.
* * *
It turned out that the prince had ordered the castle to be made when he was addicted to candy, at the age of 10. They would live in it until all of it was devoured. Snow White and the Prince also welcomed runaway creatures, such as the horses, to live with him because he needed help eating the castle, before the candy rotted away or spoiled. The horses had run away from their owners because they had wanted a free life. They were coming back from getting some exercise after a heavy meal, when I happened to take a ride. Snow White also told me that Jill was living in the right wing! She told me that she had found Jill wandering around hopelessly while she, Snow White, had been out looking for berries. Snow White had brought Jill back with her to the castle.

I had to meet her! My best friend was really happy to see me as I was to see her and we hugged each other. She also thanked me profusely for having made such an effort to bring her home. Afterall, she said, she'd worried about never seeing home again. After my joyful meeting with my best bud, I asked Snow White to show me the directions to Beanville, our hometown. She gave Jill and I huge pieces of her candy castle and sent a horse to bring us home! We had the most enjoyable ride home and what it made it all the more special was that my best friend was returning with me !!

That adventure was the most best experience of my life! I would never forget it!

A JUBILANT CHANGE By Zara V.

2008-08-03T21:06:00.000-07:00

On July 23rd, 3:01 a.m., I found myself face-to-face with the biggest change of my life. I was blessed with a pair of identical twin brothers. I had been so excited when I'd initially found out my mom was having one baby boy, but when she discovered she was having a pair of twins, my heart raced with joy! I couldn’t wait for those nine months to finish because I wanted to see my siblings' adorable faces. During those nine months, I made quilts for each of them, and went shopping to get their clothes, toys, blankets, strollers, and swing.

Then came the day, and my twin brothers were born into this world. It was a jubilant change to my life. “Aww, they are so cute,” was all I could utter. I had these two adorable brothers and I didn’t know which one to hold first. The first one was named Ismail and the other one was Ishaq. Ismail was born three minutes before Ishaq. They both had brown hair and sky blue eyes. Ismail was 8 ounces and 18 inches while Ishaq was 7.2 ounces and 19 inches.

They smelled so fresh, looked so cute, but when they cried, my ears would hurt because of their piercing cry. They didn’t cry that much, but when they did, it was very loud. What was most difficult was when they started crying at the same time. It was challenging for my mom as well. She had to take care of two babies at the same time. My dad, siblings, and I helped my mom a lot. They kicked and later rolled all over when you tried to put on their diaper. When I tried to feed the babies their apple sauce, sometimes they ate it but when they didn't want to, they spat it out on my face. They burped all over their clothes and make them so dirty. Their toys and various accessories also made the house untidy and messy. But we weren't just helping mother out with the babies, we shared the housework as well. We did the dishes, sweeping, moping, and cleaned the counter tops.

I loved watching my twin brothers grow and even though they were very small, over a few months they developed their own, cute personalities. Ismail cried more than Ishaq but Ishaq made more of a mess. Ismail always pretends to talk on the phone and Ishaq loved to watch TV and pretend to drink coke.

It is hard to have a pair of twins but a great pleasure having them around too. They fill our life with color, and I am not just talking about all the finger painting handprints all over the walls!!!

A Night of Terror By Ayesha V..(first story)

2008-08-03T20:49:00.000-07:00

Once, on a cold winter night, I was alone, and feeling increasingly scared . To keep my mind off of it, I made popcorn which was crunchy and delicious and watched a movie called "KungFu Panda". Suddenly I heard a creek and I jumped. Then I heard a thud which made me even more frightened.

Then the phone rang ,I walked slowly to answer the phone but no one spoke. I was scared so I went upstairs with a stick. I walked very slowly the stairs creaked as I walked into my parents room - the biggest room of all time. To my horror, that's when I spotted the shadow. I fled down stairs and tried to call my parents and they didn’t pick up the phone so I had to think of something and I locked myself in my bedroom closet.” Oh my god I made a mistake, I can’t leave now if I do he’ll probably kill me."

I was so scared I said the shahada, a prayer thinking it was my last day to live. My body hurt from staying in that teeny place for so long. The pain was unbearable for me. I wanted
my parents to show up fast so I could go to them and not feel as worried.

I was still scared but I stepped out anyways thinking I would rather die than continue to be squished in that closet for an hour longer. I tiptoed to check my sisters room. There was no one there. It was the same with my room. The only room left was the scariest, the master bedroom. I can’t do it, I thought. Building up some courage I said the Three Kul prayers and started walking with a bat and a knife. Everything was fine until I found myself upside down. I was trapped!! I wiggled so much that I escaped.

Suddenly, I heard a door fly open and hid under the bed. The the person started screaming my name "Ayesha", and it sounded like my mom. So I rushed down stairs and saw my mom, dad, and sister. I gave my mom a big hug; and as soon as I turned around I glimpsed the man by the hiding behind the stairs . I screamed so loud that my parents too saw what has frightened me. They called the police. They arrested the man and took him far away from me. But ever since that day, I've always been scared that one day he will return for revenge. He'd come to kill me. Maybe next time he would do worse things. I try and push the fear aside. I tell myself, I am safe and secure, that Allah will protect me, that for now I should just be happy and live life.

A LIVING NIGHTMARE BY ZARA V. Age 12 .(first story)

2008-08-03T20:41:00.000-07:00

One dark, cold, Halloween night, I was walking home from my friend’s house, when I saw a man holding up a knife. He was dressed in a black gown with the hood on his head. I was so scared, that I thought it was my last day to live. I started running at top speed and as I was about to enter the garage, when I tripped on a sharp rock. The jagged edge of the rock went into my knee with the other half still left sticking out. I screamed for the pain was unbearable. I was trembling in fear and my heart was thumping but the man was still there and I knew if I wanted to survive I had to go inside the house.

With tears streaming down my face, I limped into the garage and closed the garage door. I had never experienced something so scary and frightening before. My knee was hurting so much and I was out of breath, but I felt safe and no longer worried about the man.

I dragged myself to my parents’ room, explained the whole story and showed them my knee. They screamed in panic on seeing my knee and quickly called the hospital. An ambulance came to my house and put me on a stretcher. They took me to the hospital, and the nurse took me to a room that smelled of different types of medicines. It was very stuffy in the room. The doctor examined my knee immediately and decided I would need surgery. When I heard that I would need surgery I started crying like there was no tomorrow.

They wrapped my knee and gave me an ice pack. They said they would start the surgery the following morning. I thought of nothing but the surgery the whole night. I did not want to go through with it. I was worried they would cut off my whole leg. I was afraid that something would go wrong in the surgery. What if I was not able to walk again? All these worries in my head were making this surgery a lot scarier. I tried reasoning with myself - I had to get surgery or else the pain in my knee would not go away. It was my only option, so I had to deal with it and have a positive attitude. I tried to get a goodnight's sleep and forced myself to forget about the looming horror.

When I opened my eyes to an early morning, I knew that the surgery would begin; but when I took a quick glimpse at my knee, the rock had been removed.

I limped to my parents and the doctor, and told them the good news. The doctor smiled and said they'd already done the surgery while I was sleeping. I was so happy because it hadn't hurt a bit. I had been worried for nothing!

I was hobbling on my crutches to ask the nurse if I could leave. She said that I would have to stay in the hospital for some more time until my knee healed completely. I was okay with that. When I went to my room the nurse was already there. She examined my knee, and told me that it is not healing. Worse, they needed to do another surgery.

This time the surgery would happen when I was wide awake. I closed my eyes as the doctor brought in the huge needle. He said that they would inject that into my knee, and squeeze out all the bacteria such as pus into a tube. Also they would give me lots of different shots, and antibiotics. I didn’t want to be scared this time, because last time I didn’t feel a thing.
The doctor started the surgery by giving me medicine that numbed me against the all the pain. Then he injected the needle and squeezed out all the pus, blood, and bacteria. It hurt a little bit when he put the needle in my knee. Then he injected a few more shots and gave me antibiotics. The doctor said I could leave after an hour.

I was so happy all the surgery was done. I could finally go home. On the way home I recognized the man with a knife ! He was taking Haloween decorations off his house and I realized the costume and he had been fake. It was only a Halloween costume and theme party that my neighbor had organized! I'd learned the very hard way that things might look scary but in reality are not that bad.

THE END

My Frilled Lizard Project By Azaan K. Age 8

2008-08-03T20:38:00.001-07:00

My class was working on an Australian animal project. My animal was the Frilled Lizard. I don`t know why I picked the frilled lizard, I just did. It has those frills to scare away other creatures and I thought it was cool. I did a lot of research, and even went to the library and read books on the subject. Then I started to make lots of notes that night. When I was too tired, I decided to go to sleep.

The next day I didn’t need to take my homework to school so I left my project on my desk in my room. I came back from school and went to my room to do my project, I wasn’t able to find my paper full of notes. I looked all over the room. I still couldn’t find the notes!

Suddenly, I saw a messed up paper airplane in the garbage. I realized that it was my page of notes. I tried to read it, but I couldn`t. All my writing had been smeared. Seeing this made me feel angry and sad. I was frustrated that I had to do it all over again. I was trying to figure out how this happened and who did it. I didn’t know what to do. I asked my little brother if he messed up my paper and he quietly said, “Yes.” I was so angry at him, but then I realized that he was very little and I should have kept my notes away from his reach.

Finally, I found mom and told her the whole story. She looked at me and smiled. She said “You should keep your homework away from your little brother”.

I was wondering why she was smiling? Maybe she didn’t think it was important?

She took me to the computer room and told me to turn on the computer.

I turned it on and guess what I saw? I started to smile too. My notes! She had typed them on the computer before my little brother turned it into a messed up airplane.

THE END

The Rose Bush Dilemma By Imaani Ali, Age 14

2008-08-03T20:33:00.000-07:00

“Ding Dong” went the doorbell at exactly 9:00 A.M., as usual. I smiled as I opened the door to let my friend, Hannah, in. We exchanged brief hellos and headed out for our usual spot under the big oak tree in the backyard. As I stepped outside, I covered my eyes from the bright sun that greeted us and I quickly scrambled to the wonderfully cool shade of the tree. I dropped down onto the grass, while Hannah, being her usual graceful self, lowered herself down next to me with ease.

“So,” she said, “What should we do today?”

I sighed and shrugged my shoulders. It was summer vacation and on the last day of school, Hannah and I agreed to spend everyday of vacation together. Well, after four days of art projects, fashion shows, internet surfing, movies, and kite flying, we were bored out of our minds.

Just then, a blue bird landed on my mother’s favorite rose bush. Suddenly, my mother ran out of the house and towards the bush. Hannah and I giggled as we watched my mother shout at the birds and shoo them away with her flour covered hands. Apparently, she had been in the middle of one of her many baking projects. Finally, the bird flew away.

"Oh, I wish those birds would stay off my bush,” she gasped, out of breath, “They keep trying to build nests and it looks very unattractive.”

That gave me an idea, so I turned to Hannah and said, “I bet we could think of a way to keep the birds away. We could throw something and scare them.” Hannah agreed, but my mother was shaking her head.

“I don’t want you two to hurt the birds,” she said, “just keep them off my bush.” Then she walked back into the house in a huff.

“How about we throw something next to the bush instead of on it?” Hannah suggested.

I agreed and we immediately got to work. We looked all around the house for things to throw. We tried cotton balls, but they were too light. We were going to try spoons, but my mother stopped us because she didn’t want them getting dirty. Next to the rose bush, my mother was very protective of her silverware. When we tried water balloons, they were working for a while, but we had to keep pausing to fill up more and it was taking too long. Hannah and I tried many things, but nothing seemed to work. Finally, we got hungry and looked in the refrigerator for something to eat.

“Whoa!” Hannah exclaimed as she saw the contents of the refrigerator, “You guys have a lot of eggs!”

It was true. Two whole shelves were occupied with just cartons and cartons of eggs.
I smiled and said, “My mom recently learned how to make devilled eggs. She bought all of these eggs so that we can eat them everyday. Although, when she made them, they weren’t that good. Now we’re not so sure what to do with the eggs…” my voice trailed off as an idea formed in my mind. I looked at Hannah.

She smiled at me and I could tell we were both thinking the same thing. We each grabbed a carton of eggs and scurried outside.

When we reached the backyard, there was a whole flock of birds resting on the rose bush. Hannah and I each grabbed an egg, aimed, and fired. As the eggs cracked, the birds fluttered away in fear. Hannah and I high fived each other at our success, and continued chucking eggs. One by one, the eggs left the cartons and landed near the rose bush. Before long, there were 24 cracked eggs around the rose bush and Hannah and I each held an empty carton, laughing hysterically.

“That was so much fun!” Hannah said after she got her laughter under control, “I can’t believe we used up two whole egg cartons!”

“I know! Come on, let’s go get more!” and we both ran back into the house, giggling again. As we entered the kitchen, we met my mother holding a large plastic bag.

“What are you girls up to?” she asked.

“We’re getting more eggs to scare the birds away,” I said quickly as we opened the refrigerator.

“Are you talking about the birds on my rose bush?” my mother questioned, sounding suspicious.

“Yes,” Hannah replied, “We are throwing eggs by the bush to make the birds fly away. But don’t worry, we aren’t hurting them,” she added quickly.

“You’re throwing eggs on my precious rose bush?” my mother said in disbelief.

When we nodded, my mother looked as though she was about to explode. I could almost see the steam coming out of her ears.

“Girls!!” she hollered, “I appreciate the help, but I didn’t want you to throw EGGS!! They will go rotten and smell bad and it will look a lot more unattractive than a bird’s nest!” My mother was fuming.

“We were just trying to solve the bird problem,” I said, trying to act as innocent as I could.

“I didn’t want you to solve it by throwing eggs, and besides,” she said as she revealed the contents of the bag, “I bought this for the birds,” and she held out a birdhouse, “I figured the birds would build their nests in this instead of on my bush.”

“Oh,” Hannah and I said in unison.

“Well,” I said, “I guess we could spend the rest of the day painting the birdhou—“

“NO,” my mother said firmly, and pointed towards the backyard, “You two will spend the rest of the day cleaning up every single egg out there.”

Hannah and I stared at her, open-mouthed, in shock. When my mother’s expression remained the same, we each heaved a sigh and muttered, “Fine,” as I grabbed a bucket and we both trudged outside. This was going to be a long afternoon.

The End

The Scarecrow’s Clothes By Sabreen Ali, Grade 6

2008-08-03T20:16:00.000-07:00

On Monday morning I woke up at 5:00 am. I made myself a bagel with cream cheese and went out to the porch. It was hot, but there was a gentle breeze which made my hair rustle. I sat in my old rocking chair, and took big bites of my bagel and chewed slowly while I watched the sun rise. Then I went out to the farm and checked on the crops. I found crows eating the corn stalks.

“Get out of here!” I shouted, but only one flew away. I waved my hands in the air at them. Two more flew away. I crossed my arms and grunted in frustration. Those birds always ate my corn stalks! I quickly walked to the shed and got out my whip. Then, when I got to the crows on the corn stalk, I cracked my whip at the remaining birds. They fluttered in fear. “Caw-caw! Caw-caw!”

I need to find a way to get the crows away from my crops, I thought. When I went inside, I decided to look online for ideas. I sat in my pink fluffy chair in front of the computer. Then I typed in the address bar “google.com”. Tap, tap, tap went the keys on the keyboard as I searched “keeping crows away from plants.”

I was amazed by how many results I got! I clicked on the first link. It brought me to a website with many ways to prevent birds from eating crops. This was exactly what I needed! The first thing on the list was “make a scarecrow.” When I read this, I knew it was the perfect idea.

I clicked on “make a scarecrow”, and it showed me the materials needed to make it and instructions. I needed a pole, straw, and clothes. I decided to go to the store just for the pole and straw because I could just use my own clothes for the scarecrow. I went to the store Michaels because I knew they would have everything I needed. I lived in the country and it was a long drive into the city. The car bumped along over gravel until I got on to smooth city roads. On my way, I passed a garage sale. I should stop there on my way back, I thought.

After I bought all I needed from the store, I stopped at the garage sale I had seen earlier. Some things stood out including the different kitchen utensils, but what made my eyes pop was a set of clothes. “They are perfect for my scarecrow!” I thought out loud. The shirt was checkered with red and white squares. There were blue overalls to go over it. There was even a little straw hat to go with it. I have to buy this outfit, I thought. Why waste my own clothes when the perfect clothes to my scarecrow were right here! I brought the clothes over to the lady at the table in front of the driveway.

“Good luck,” she said as I paid her.

What did she mean by ‘good luck’? I thought. You don’t need luck for clothes.

When I got home, I called my friend Stacy, and I invited her to my house to help me make my scarecrow. She arrived ten minutes later. After I showed her the materials and instructions, we got started. We tried to follow the instructions, but we couldn’t understand them. They were too complicated. It told us to attach the straw in difficult ways that we couldn’t figure out how to do. The only thing we managed to do was to hold the pole up vertically, and that was just from common sense. We decided to come up with our own way to make it. Using rubber bands to hold it down, we attached the straw to the pole. We made arms, legs, and a head. We munched on tuna sandwiches while we worked. Then we put the clothes on it.

“It looks perfect!” Stacy exclaimed.

We took the scarecrow outside and staked the pole in the ground next to the corn stalks.

“That should scare the birds away,” I said as we walked inside.

It was nearly sunset by the time by the time Stacy left. I sat on my porch to watch the sunset. I nibbled on some crackers in my wooden rocking chair. I went to bed after eating a small dinner of chicken noodle soup. The next day I didn’t wake up on time to see the sunrise. Most of the time I do, but occasionally I am too tired to wake up so early. I ate a quick breakfast of cereal and milk, and then went to check on the corn stalks. I wonder if the scarecrow worked, I thought. I had my answer right when I saw the crows feasting on my corn stalk.

“Shoo, shoo!” I shouted. Most of them flew away. Isn’t the scarecrow supposed to scare the crows? I thought. That’s when I noticed the scarecrow was missing!

Did someone steal it? Or did the wind blow it away and out of the ground? I stood there thinking of the possibilities for a few minutes. The wind urged me forward as I looked around for the scarecrow. I found it at the cabbage patch. Only, it wasn’t just lying on the ground next to the cabbages, it was eating them! I stood in the gentle breeze, breathless. Scarecrows can’t move around! I thought. And they certainly can’t eat! I threw my arms up in confusion as I spoke to it.

“How can you be alive? You’re just a scarecrow!”

It surprised me when the scarecrow replied. I didn’t expect it to talk back.

“Oh, hello there, my name is Jane.” Apparently it was a girl because of her name and I could tell she was friendly by the way she greeted me.

“But you’re just a scarecrow,” I sputtered.

“It’s these clothes,” she explained. “They make me feel so…alive.” The clothes are what are keeping her alive? I tried to think of a logical explanation, but I couldn’t think right. I sat on the grass and calmed myself down. I took a deep breath and thought of everything I knew about the clothes. Then I figured it out. I got those clothes from that garage sale! That’s probably what the lady at the garage sale meant by ‘good luck’. But how did she know about my scarecrow? Maybe she heard me talk to myself about the clothes being perfect for my scarecrow.

“You’re supposed to be scaring crows away from my corn stalks. How come you’re over here, eating my cabbages?” I asked, still shocked that I was talking to a scarecrow.

“Sorry, but I got hungry,” she replied, now just standing in front of me.

“Maybe we can make a deal,” I suggested. “If you keep the birds away from my crops, I will feed you everyday.”

She nodded and said, “I would like that very much.”

The next day went just as expected. I woke up, ate breakfast, and fed the scarecrow. I was pleased to find that there were no crows on my plants. We got to know each other better while exchanging the many stories of our lives. One of them was about when I was five years old. I broke my mother’s favorite vase. I blamed it on my older sister, Martha. I was eventually caught and I got in trouble. I told Jane that my sister currently lived in another state.

Jane told me her stories too. She explained to me how she had come to life as a scarecrow once before. Her owner Lucy, the lady at the garage sale, was afraid of the scarecrow; when she figured out that the clothes made Jane come to life, she took them off. Then she sold them to me.

Jane also told me what she liked to eat. She had tried one of Lucy’s apples and she loved it. One time we played catch, and Jane liked it. We would only play when no one was there. When a car or person passed by, Jane would stand still as if she was lifeless. Jane and I became great friends. The whole experience made me realize that anything is possible!

My Summer Road Trip By Emaad A.

2008-07-31T19:27:00.000-07:00

Over the Fourth of July weekend, my family went to Mt. Rushmore. It took 14 hours to get there. On the way there, my sister and I watched some movies like Shirley Temple’s Bright Eyes and the Trumpet of the Swan.

After our long drive we got to the hotel. Since none of us were tired my dad decided to take us to Crazy Horse Memorial. By the time my family got there it was 8:30 and there was a show called “A Legend in Lights” where they lit images on the mountain to tell the story of Crazy Horse, the show was at 9 o’ clock. To pass the time my family and I went around the small museum and watched a movie about the sculptor, Korczak Ziolkowski who had started working on the mountain but died before the face was complete. Finally it was time for the show. We went to our car where we had a good view of the mountain and watched the show. It was amazing how the lights looked on the mountain even though they were projected from the ground. The show told the story of both Crazy Horse and Korczak with different animations.

In the morning I thought I’d be off to Mt. Rushmore, I WISH. First my dad had to find what was happening at Mt. Rushmore and after that my mom made us clean up the car. All in all the morning was a drag. Mt. Rushmore has fireworks on the third of July, that’s when I discovered that not everyplace has fireworks on the Fourth. When we drove past Mt. Rushmore, we saw people getting seats for the fireworks which started at 9:15pm and it was only 10 o’ clock in the morning right then. We could not find a place to park and had to just wave at the presidents as we drove past.

My dad thought we should go to Jewel Cave instead. My mom saw a flyer about the Junior Ranger Program at Jewel Cave National Park. In the program, the Park Rangers give you a sheet of paper that has questions about the national park and if you get them right you are awarded a Junior Ranger Badge. My mom compelled my sister and I to do the Junior Ranger Program. Examples of questions were, how is a forest fire most likely to start? Or, what stone is Jewel Cave mostly made of? You could find answers to these questions by reading the displays or asking a Ranger. When we finished, the Ranger gave us a badge that said, “Junior Ranger Jewel Cave National Park." Then we drove in to the town next door called Custer to eat and get my dad a sweater because the temperature in Jewel Cave is always below 49 degrees.

At two in the afternoon my family and I went down into Jewel Cave. The ranger told us how Jewel Cave got its name. The story is that two brothers were riding their horses in the forest and they heard a whistling sound. They followed the sound and saw that it was coming from a hole, they went into Custer and got some dynamite and blew the hole wider so that both of them could fit through. When the brothers shone their light it reflected of the walls making the cave look as if it was made out of “jewels.” The jewels in the cave are just red rock that reflected light. The sound was air passing through the cave. Even though the Cave wasn’t made of jewels they both devised a plan to make lots of money by giving tours. The tour I went on was amazing, there were many rock formations of different colors and sizes.

After the tour, we drove to Mt. Rushmore. It took us a long time to get there and find parking because everyone wanted to see the fireworks by the national monument. We found a good spot to watch the fireworks just ten minutes before they were supposed to begin. A fighter jet flew above the monument so fast that it shook me enough to loose my balance. Mt. Rushmore’s fireworks are rated eighth best in the nation - I believe them! The fireworks exploded with a boom in all the colors of the rainbow. They looked like colored rain over Mt. Rushmore. It was a fantastic sight to see and I will remember it always.

In the morning we went to Mt. Rushmore again except this time we were able to enter the monument and see it up close from a balcony. We also went to the museum and did the Junior Ranger program at Rushmore. I saw a movie about the sculpting of Mt. Rushmore. In one of the various exhibits they showed a jackhammer that was used in the making of Mt. Rushmore. The most interesting thing I learned was that Lincoln’s nose fell of about five years ago and they had to reattach it.

After that we went to Badlands National Park. We saw lots of animals like bison and mountain sheep and a variety of birds. I even heard some rattlesnakes but I never saw them. The mountains were awesome. Some of them looked pink. Other looked like candy corn with yellow bottoms and orange peaks. There were also small trails with fossils of weird looking mammals. My sister and I both earned another Junior Ranger badge at the park. After Badlands we went to Sioux Falls.

On the way to Sioux Falls we stopped at a place called Wall Drug. Everything at Wall Drug was western and there where many shops selling everything from hunting gear to ice cream to historic artifacts like bones and fossils of dinosaurs. I got drenched at Wall Drug while playing in the water park. We arrived at Sioux Falls late because of our pit stop.

In the morning we went to Sioux Falls, the actual waterfall the town is named after. It was small. So small that I was surprised the town was named after it. I climbed the many rocks and boulders that surrounded the waterfall. It was more entertaining than contemplating the waterfall.

When we returned home I felt like we returned from a great adventure out west. Even though my family had a great time in South Dakota, we were all happy to be back were we belonged. If your family is planning on a summer road trip consider going to South Dakota. The vast Black Hills, the extraordinary sites like Mt. Rushmore and Jewel Cave are all worth the trip.

From the Girl Who Loves Icecream Every Day by Samia A., Age 8

2008-07-31T19:24:00.000-07:00

Dear Reader,
Don’t you think that children should have ice cream everyday of the summer? Well I do and here are some tips to get ice cream everyday of the summer.
Ask your mom at the grocery store to get a huge tub of ice cream to last the summer and if your mom says NO say that ice cream is probably on summer CLEARNCE!
You can always beg and if that doesn’t work say you’ll pay for it. You can pay for it by setting up a lemonade stand in your neighborhood.
You can also do something really good and as a reward go for ice cream.
Try telling your parents you need ice cream for a new dessert you want to make.
You can do chores like cleaning the house or workbooks and if you don‘t get ice cream from that say you won’t eat any other food. I don’t think this will work though.
Tell your parents ice cream is a great cool down in the summer and you will get enough exercise to burn of the calories and will brush extra long before bed to prevent cavities. If they say no then ask for fruit bars instead. Its not ice cream but still is cool and sweet anyway.
If you do any one of these things they will probably work so get out there and enjoy your ice cream. If you do all the things you might get ice- cream most everyday in the summer or at least most days.
Sincerely,
Samia A. Qadir

Family Feud by Sana Kadir, Age 8

2008-07-14T12:54:00.000-07:00

It was a hot summer day and the air was filled with delicious smells of the neighbors BBQ. Jane had nothing to do except feeding the birds some leftover food. It was so boring doing that. Suddenly, Jane remembered that there were some bricks in the backyard shed left over from dad's construction project last year. She had a perfect idea of what to do next. She would make a brick wall and see how high the bricks could go. Maybe she could even climb them to see what the neighbors were grilling, she thought. She picked up a pink and blue brick but because they were so heavy, Jane dropped one of them. The brick fell on the pavement with a loud boom and broke into several pieces and made the birds fly away.

Dad heard the loud sound and ran out yelling "Janette Goodman what have you done now!?!"

"Dad I just dropped the bricks and the birds …"

Just then mom interrupted and said "…flew away!" before adding, "Jane what have I told you about the leftover food that the birds don't eat?"

"Ummmmm...I don't remember," replied Jane.

"The food will rot and ruin our yard and make it smell disgusting like a skunk! Let's go inside", said Mom.

As they walked inside the house, Dad said "remember last time our yard smelled, the neighbors called ROTTEN YARD INC. to complain about our yard. We have to make sure that doesn't happen again."

Just as they shut the door behind them, there was a knock.It was Jake, Jane's older brother.

"Where were you Jake, you are half an hour late!" yelled Mom.

"Mom it's not my fault, Mark took too long to do his HW" said Jake.

"Don't use your friend as an excuse, you shoule have been responsible enough to call me and tell me that you are going to be late," said Mom. Then she ordered Jake to go into his room.

Jane was also asked to go in her room. As soon as Jane got into her room she knew exactly what to do. Spy on Jake with the newest spy gadget, The Spy Fly! It was a mechanical fly with binoculars for eyes.

Jane saw Jake making plans to jump out of his window and head to Marks. As soon as Jane heard this, she ran downstairs to tell mom but, mom didn't listen. Then Jane went to dad but he was busy and didn't want to hear it either. Jane decided to scream the information so loud that mom, dad and even Jake heard it!

Jake got in trouble for the plans he was making and Jane got in trouble for spying on Jake. When she'd apologized to her mom, Jane went outside to play on her red and blue scooter. She also put on her matching helmet. Just as she went on the sidewalk her mom called her and said "Jane, your friend Brianna just called to come over to play. Please go and apologize to your brother before she gets here". A

s Jane walked over to Jakes room she knew her apology would not be accepted but she would try her best to tell her brother how sorry she was for spying on him.

The Stream By Michael Scott

2008-07-13T21:52:00.001-07:00

The water’s sweet smell fills all of the air,
The water flows past my feet with a chill in the air,
The leaves on the trees around the stream are red, yellow and green.

Jordan's Disastrous Day By Michael Scott, 7

2008-07-13T21:50:00.000-07:00

Once my family went to my sister's piano recital. While we were gone my white, fluffy dog Jordan got into a bag of dark chocolate, but we didn't know. He usually is playful and friendly, but now he was limping, shivering and wouldn't play with his toys."Mom, Jordan is breathing weird and acting funny!" I told my mom. But she ignored me, so I went to bed.Suddenly, my sister screamed, "Aaah, there's something gooey and dark brown on my carpet!" My dog had thrown up in four different places in my sister's room! Most of it was dark brown and chunky. While I was sleeping, my mom and my sister Maddie had to clean up the mess, using spoons and a carpet cleaner. Then they had to take my dog to the animal hospital because dark chocolate is poisonous to dogs! Maddie held Jordan with a towel, in case he got sick again in our brand-new car! While they were gone, my other sister, Olivia, woke me up and told me that he was at the hospital. The vet gave him medicine that made him throw up the rest of the chocolate and made him go to sleep after. Then Jordan was able to come home. When he got home, I saw that Jordan had chocolate around his mouth and down the front of his body. Boy, did he smell like a cup of cocoa! So, my mom gave him a bath. The next day a part of my dog's cheek was green. So now Jordan is all white, except for his black nose, red tongue and green cheek. I don't know why but the green is still there. I guess my Mom missed that part of his cheek!

THE END

Flow of Life By Misbah Q. ,11

2008-07-13T21:47:00.000-07:00

Oh river flowing slow and free
Stretching out as far as the eye can see
Splishing and splashing all around
Making such a soothing sound

River flowing to ocean
Ocean rising to rain
Rain splashing to river
Only to start all over again

An adventure of life
Rapids swirling with strife
Then smoothening in to ease
Flowing with the cool, gentle breeze

The Seeds By Kate W. Age 9, May 2008

2008-07-11T23:20:00.000-07:00

When I planted the strange looking seeds they took 10 minutes to grow. Out came a beautiful yellow flower with a large ‘Pop’! The flower was shaped like a sun and it smelled like popcorn. I wondered if the flower tasted like popcorn. I picked off one of the petals. It felt like smooth and slippery like silk. Then, I tasted it and the petal melted in my mouth. The flower tasted like popcorn! Maybe there were more seeds in the package, I thought to myself and there were. I'd discovered something new!

I decided I would call this plant The Popcorn Plant. I planted a whole garden of them and soon I figured I could make lots of different things out of this plant. I made popcorn plant soup, popcorn plant muffins, cookies, air freshner, and even cookbooks of popcorn plant recipes.

I was on my way to buy more popcorn plant seeds at the plant store and walked down the aisle when out of the corner of my eye, I saw another strange looking seed. I brought it home and wondered what that strange looking seed would look like. I wondered what it would taste like. The new seed was a mystery and I was all set to resolve it.

The Three Wishes By Claire W. Age 9 May 2008

2008-07-11T23:19:00.000-07:00

Once upon a time, there lived a cute, fluffy husky-puppy named Snowspot. He had an awful, mean owner named Bill. Bill was so mean and unfair to Snowspot even though he was considered the nicest man in the town. Because he was so nice, the town gave him a mansion, farm and a 3 acre garden. He made Snowspot sleep in a foul smelling doghouse that had bugs and spiders crawling all over it, made him eat bland, dirty flakes and whipped him when he did the tiniest thing wrong.

One morning, Bill made Snowspot pull a vast, old, rickety sleigh full of huge pointy sharp boulders. Bill knew that Snowspot was just a puppy and would never be able to manage it without falling, getting hurt or breaking the sleigh. Sunstripe, a golden brown husky, Snowspot’s best friend, was waiting for him at the garden pond and tried to make him feel better. While the two were talking about Snowspot’s troubles, a fairy appeared. The fairy was wearing an aqua-marine long dress, aqua-marine marabou shoes, and had long, brown hair. She asked Snowspot if he wanted three wishes. Of course, he said yes! So, for his first wish, Snowspot wished that Bill would stay in a hard bed all day so Snowspot wouldn’t have to do anything for 24 hours. At least, that was what he thought would happen.

The beautiful fairy granted Snowspots wish and Bill stayed in bed all day, but ordered Snowspot around to get him hot food, clean the messy house, weed the 3 acre garden, and bring him things. He would have never gotten it done without Sunstripe’s help. He almost didn’t have the energy to go back to the fairy. For his second wish, he wished that Bill would go to Hawaii on an important business trip. The fairy granted the wish and sure enough, Bill had to go to Hawaii. Unfortunately, on his trip, Bill met a bad, mischievous fairy who granted him one wish. Bill wished that the house would be messy so Snowspot would have to clean it up. When Bill got home, he made Snowspot clean the house up. Snowspot spent the next four days cleaning up the mansion floor. Since the next day was Sunday, he rested.

The next day, Sunstripe was waiting for Snowspot at the garden pond. For his last wish, he wished that he could talk so he could tell Bill how he felt. When he did, Bill was dreadfully startled at first, and then felt a surge of sympathy towards the sad and tired puppy. For no apparent reason, Bill despised husky dogs. He needed a dog and this was the only one left at the pet store. Once he realized that Snowspot had feelings too, he changed his ways. He became so nice to Snowspot it was almost like Bill was his father. Then they all lived happily ever after.

A Night in the Golden Castle by Obaid A., age 9

2008-07-11T21:56:00.000-07:00

One evening, I was taking a break from doing my homework when my mom said, “Why don’t you take a walk in the forest.” I was walking for about 15 minutes when I heard a horse galloping nearby. I wanted to know were it was going but I couldn’t see it properly because it was too dark so I followed the sounds of the horse.

It took me to a castle made out of gold. I saw a huge moat with big and mean alligators. I could see their teeth glistening in the moonlight. The drawbridge opened for the horse and I followed it into the castle.

When I came in, there was a huge feast being set up. There was roast chicken, ribs, wine and a lot of other food. There were also a lot of decorations and banners with "Newborn"written on them. I guess that meant there was a new baby in the castle.

I thought I might get caught so I took a left turn. There were three rooms. One room was full of jewelry like crowns, rings, bracelets, necklaces, earrings, and gold. I took as much as I could. Then I went into the other room and saw two thrones with king and queen written on each one of them. They were golden and had a soft, red cushion for the seat. I was thankful nobody was there because everybody was at the feast. I went to the last room, it was a dungeon. The prisoners were hanging on the wall from chains. When the prisoners saw me they shouted, “Thief! Thief!” I ran for it as fast as I could though I didn’t know where I was going. I opened a door into a castle passageway. It was very dark. I didn’t know where to go. I knew I couldn’t go out or I would be caught. Luckily there was light behind me. It was a torch. I also realized that the jewelry was slowing me down. I spotted a window that was the size of a knight’s helmet. I threw the jewelry into the forest so no one could find it. Then I used the torch to find my way. I came to another door. I went inside it. It was lit up. It was a place for the knights to train.

All the knights saw me. They ran after me. They all took a torch with them. I went back the same way I came. But I didn’t realize it. I was too busy running. I came to the same door. I didn’t even recognize that it was the same door. So I opened it and there was the king and the guards. The guards surrounded me immediately. The king asked me, “Who are you? And where are you from?” I didn’t answer the king. After he asked me the same questions several times, I still didn’t give an answer because I remembered that my mom said not to talk to strangers. The king was very mad so he shouted to the guards, “He will be my slave! Take him to the dungeon!”

On our way there, we were passing by the entrance to the castle and the drawbridge was opening for a knight to enter. I took a guard’s sword and slashed it at them. They went flying. The drawbridge was closing because the knight was nearly inside the castle. I ran as fast as I could. I was able to slash the knight away and got on the drawbridge. I had to jump in the moat because the drawbridge was almost closed shut. All the alligators were asleep but one. I swam for my life. But the alligator was too fast and was on my tail. I was able to throw the sword at it and I was safe.

I got out of the moat and found the jewelry and ran back through the forest back home before the knights could find me. I told my mom what happened but she didn’t believe me until I showed her the jewelry. She said, “Remind me to never let us go near that forest again.” My mom also told me that I could keep the jewelry if I wanted to buy any thing, unless we need it for something important.

The End

Jordan’s Disastrous Day by Michael S. Age 7

2008-07-11T21:52:00.000-07:00

Once my family went to my sister’s piano recital. While we were gone my white, fluffy dog Jordan got into a bag of dark chocolate, but we didn’t know. He usually is playful and friendly, but now he was limping, shivering and wouldn’t play with his toys.

“Mom, Jordan is breathing weird and acting funny!” I told my mom. But she ignored me, so I went to bed.

Suddenly, my sister screamed, “Aaah, there’s something gooey and dark brown on my carpet!”
My dog had vomited four different places in my sister’s room! Most of the vomit was dark brown and chunky. While I was sleeping, my mom and my sister Maddie had to clean up the mess, using spoons and a carpet cleaner.

Then they had to take my dog to the animal hospital because dark chocolate is poisonous to dogs! Maddie held Jordan with a towel, in case he got sick again in our brand-new car!

While they were gone, my other sister, Olivia, woke me up and told me that he was at the hospital. The vet gave him medicine that made him throw up the rest of the chocolate and made him go to sleep after. Then Jordan was able to come home.

When he got home, I saw that Jordan had chocolate around his mouth and down the front of his body. Boy, did he smell like a cup of cocoa! So, my mom gave him a bath. The next day a part of my dog’s cheek was green. So now Jordan is all white, except for his black nose, red tongue and green cheek. I don’t know why but the green is still there. I guess my Mom missed that part of his cheek!

A Very Spooky Place by Lena A., age 7

2008-07-11T21:51:00.001-07:00

One evening, I was swimming in a lake. The lake was in the woods by my house. Eventually I got out because I was shivering and the water was too cold for me to continue swimming. I saw a horse galloping really fast from the mountains. The horse was all white but only its tail was black. The saddle was bright yellow with purple and pink stars on it. I wanted to see where it was headed so when it got near me I jumped on it. I fell off right away because I didn’t land on the saddle and I didn’t hold on to the reins. The ground was soft and grassy so I didn’t get hurt. I still wanted to ride the horse. So I got up and ran after it and got back on it. My heart was beating really fast. This time I held on to the reins of the horse really tight and sat on the saddle. Suddenly it started to rain. The horse jumped in a puddle and water splashed on me. The horse led me to a graveyard with lots of stone people and skeletons. There were children, adults, grandmas and grandpas that were carved in stone. There were cob webs and dust everywhere. The place was interesting but it was also scary and spooky because it was so dark and the stone people looked like they could catch me. I was glad I had my flashlight with me so I could see in the dark. I dropped my flashlight by accident and it turned off. I was scared and I was about to cry. Then some other person entered the graveyard and he had his flashlight on. It was a man with orange hair and red eyes. He was wearing jeans and a green t-shirt with a picture of a ghost on it. He was going to put another skeleton up. He looked mean so I crouched behind a stone person. I was worried he might find me because my teeth were chattering. Then behind me I saw a path leaving the graveyard so I quickly ran and followed the path out but it led me back to the graveyard. I felt scared and suffocated. Luckily I found the horse’s footprints and I followed them back to the lake and went back home relieved. What a nightmare! The End

THE PURIFICATION RIVER By Sana Kadir, Age 9

2008-07-11T21:36:00.001-07:00

I'm going to my favorite destination,
A place of complete relaxation,
My source of purification.
I smell the air.
How could this be?
It smells like perfume to me.
It's a wonderful place.
The cool breeze on my face,
Makes me calm and gives me peace.
I hear the birds chirp like never before,
I see the kids running and playing
Laughing and swaying.
I love to sit beside you
And watch the waves oh so blue.
You clean my body and mind,
You're a gift to mankind,
You're my purification.

FAISAL REVIEWS TV SHOW IN THE CHICAGO TRIBUNE!!

2008-06-14T20:47:00.000-07:00

Kids TV review
June 14, 2008
—Faisal Khurshid, age 13

My favorite children's television show has got to be "Drake and Josh." The show is an impeccable display of the timeless battle between the person who "has it all," and the unfortunate person who still finds happiness. Drake and Josh are two teenage boys who become brothers after their parents marry. Drake is the stereotypically cool, fashionable guitar player who gets all the girls. Josh is the smart, nerdy klutz who is outlandishly clumsy with girls. They have a sister, Megan, who is the eccentrically evil little sister. The show is entertaining to both children and adults because it is the perfect mix of zany comedy with eloquent plot. Parents need not worry about it having a bad influence on their child(ren). "Drake and Josh" is the perfect blend of silliness and everyday struggle, making it an astoundingly enjoyable show.

The Tribune is asking kids 14 and younger, with their parents' permission, to review their favorite kids TV series, to be printed Saturdays. They must be 150 words or fewer. E-mail them to ctc-arts@tribune.comwith your name, age, address and the daytime telephone number where we can reach your parents. In the subject field, write "KIDS TV REVIEW."

The Magical Harp By Avery K. Age 8

2008-06-13T13:51:00.000-07:00

One day a young man named Charles Bonnet was walking his dog in a wood filled with thick green rustling leaves. They heard the wind howl and at the same time birds were chirping. They spotted a golden harp sitting on a dull rock. They starred and wondered where it came from. Amazed at its beauty they walked toward the river, which smelled fresh like newly fallen dew. They looked into the water and wondered if the harp came from a mermaid, or if it just drifted from someplace and landed on the rock. They wanted to get across and see it closer. So they stepped gently onto the slippery rocks. These rocks were particularly rough and seemed partly hollow. The dog thought he saw a rock moving, but Charles knew it was just a turtle. Charles jumped to the closest rock, then he fell into the water with a splash and hit his head on a large rock. Thump! His dog, Coacoa was a very small dog, but he was just the right size to chomp onto Charles’ shirt and pull him to safety. The dog pulled Charles to the rock with the harp, and lifted his head above the water. He placed it comfortably near the harp. When Charles was able to breathe again, he said softly, “Thank you.”

Suddenly, the dog jumped into the river in surprise because the harp magically started strumming a beautiful melody. It started to play because the wonderful fairy Lulu lived within the harp, and when she dusted the inner sides of the instrument, it began to play. The music filled the air with the smells of flowers. The flowers reminded Charles of the first day of spring this year. The flowers don’t smell sweet they smell a little strong. Like all the plants sprouting up.

When Charles and dog where safely on the rock they studied the harp. Charles was curious and wanted to play the harp. When he was about to play he felt a deep rush of anger. He had it because he thought he was foolish to try to jump so far. When he finally reached out for the strings, that were thick and bumpy, there was no sound.

“It’s not making any noise Coacoa.” said Charles in surprise.

“Well it can’t” said an old lady from the bushes. When she came out she stared Charles.

“Is that you?” asked the lady. “Is your name Charles Bonnet?” asked the lady a little louder.

“Yes.” said Charles.

“I am Olivia Bonnet.” said Olivia. “I am your mother.” said Olivia slowly.

Charles noticed the strong shampoo in her hair that she had always washed it with, and knew it was her. They had been separated by a terrible flood. Charles had been just 5 years old, and was playing outside. It had started raining while Charles was walking slowly up the stairs. It started to rain harder and harder. He remembered the sounds of plop, plop, plop, thu, thum, thump, thump, and the air smelled damp. When the rain was finally up to his shoulders he began to float away. He was a strong swimmer but he wasn’t strong enough.

After Charles remembered their separation, He and Olivia burst into their happiest tears, and held onto each other as tightly as they could. Charles felt his mother’s cozy, wrinkled sweater and felt comforted.

“I remember you playing the harp when I was young. Why can’t I play it?” ask Charles.

“I guess you where mad. It’s filled with magic, and you can only play it when you are filled with joy.” said Olivia, “and now that you are, play it!” said Olivia calmly. And so he did!
The End
May 3, 2008

Dusk by Kate D., Age 9

2008-05-30T06:49:00.000-07:00

Dusk, is the moonlight fairy that makes the moon rise and fall and helps people fall asleep. Every night Dusk whispers her favorite lullaby that her mother sang to her when she was young. When the moon comes up she goes to the moon and stars and paints them with a shimmering, vanilla bean white paint and then sings, “Hush Little Baby” to help people fall asleep. They hear it in their dreams and soon they are in dream land.

Dusk has ruffled dark-blue wings that flutter through the night sky. She wears a hot-pink dress made of silk and a silver tiara that shimmers in the sun. She smells like fresh bubble gum with a touch of sugar.

Dusk lives in a house in a hollow mushroom that smells like a forest. On the first floor in her kitchen, she has a table and some chairs, a charcoal stove and a peppermint sink. She loves to cook for her family which visits the fourth Tuesday of the month. She always cooks fresh corn on the cob and pot roast.

Her bedroom is chocolate brown and hot pink, which smells like coffee. She has a brown water bed, a pink ruffled lamp and a soft brown and pink side table. On her side table there is a smooth magic globe that shows her family and what they are doing – every fairy gets one. When she says a family member’s name, they pop up out of nowhere.

Dusk used to be a juggler, who wore a big red bow in her hair and a stripped red and white shirt and pants. One day while she was on stage, she heard a big “boo” and she saw who it was and started to cry. Then she ran out of the circus and hid in a pizza parlor that smelled like fresh tomatoes. After she felt a little better, she went to her parent’s house and told them the whole story. Before she became a juggler her parent’s had always wanted her to be the moonlight fairy, and that is how her soon-to-be-new-career had started. Every night when she was young, her mom had sung Dusk her favorite lullaby, “Hush Little Baby”.

When she told her parents what happened at the circus, her mother said now was the time to become the Moonlight Fairy. So she did.

Dusk had to go through extensive training and finally did it. She is now the Moonlit Fairy and is much better at this than being a juggler on stage. So the next time you have trouble falling asleep, simply close your eyes and listen for Dusk, the Moonlight Fairy, to sing you to sleep.

My Teddy Bear - A Personal Essay By Sosy B., age 9

2008-05-30T06:39:00.000-07:00

My Teddy Bear

My teddy bear has been with me since I was seven months old. Waa! He has held his smell of me for a very long time and it has the scent of lilacs. It sometimes smells like a winter day with snow pouring out of the sky. He reminds me when my dad’s friend gave him to me. “Here you go.” When he gave him to me he hugged me and he lifted me in his arms. He also reminds me of the middle of the day. He makes me feel secure and comforted. I have had him for nine years now. We love each other. He is so cuddly and feels rough on his head where he has a big hole but I still love him. His eyes feel really smooth and round. His nose feels bumpy and his knob for music is really bumpy and hard. He has never gotten lost because he is always on my bed or in my arms. Every night I have chocolate with him and at bed-time I say good night to him.

The End

Trapped By: Anna S., age 14

2008-05-20T21:44:00.000-07:00

Trapped in this place I don’t know
Struggling to be set free
Hoping to find what I’ve always hoped to be -
Happy and giddy, friendly and carefree
Just like everyone else.

Wishing I didn’t have to sit here in this skin
Numbing my soul and setting it free
Even though I know it’s killing me
Sometimes I wish I wouldn’t be me

Pirates by Maura Z, age 14

2008-05-20T21:39:00.000-07:00

Wispy gusts of snow veiled the street outside of the warm café window. Carter and I sat there with steaming mugs of cocoa in our hands, as his mother rambled on about how far back their faith goes. Carter's family went to church every Sunday, literally (if the world exploded, they'd still be kneeling in the pews) and his mother always raved about how her great aunt was a nun, or that her brother was off in the peace core. But the incessant flow of Mrs. Petry's voice stopped abruptly, and she awkwardly stumbled over that one shame in her ancestry. "Well, you see…" She sucked in her breath and held it as while before continuing," That's the end of our long line of commitment to the church I guess, your Great Great Grandfather; was a pirate"

Carter, who at the time had been aimlessly twirling his finger in the fluffy whipped cream, snapped his head up at that. Now you can imagine how any 2nd grader would feel about this chunk of news, nothing became more important to him. I watched as a spark of interest exploded in his sea green eyes, and something told me he might take this too far. I never saw anyone spit out as many questions at once as Carter did: Who was he? Where was he from? Do I look like him? Do we still have his treasure? The list went on and on. Mrs. Petry avoided the questions as best as she could weary of herself for even thinking of telling Carter of all people. But Carter never stopped asking questions for the rest of that Friday afternoon. I had no idea that on Saturday, the old Carter would walk the plank.

I woke the nest morning in the pale winter sunlight, and dressed in bundles as I got ready to walk the dog. Carter and I took our dogs on long walks every Saturday morning, even though Mr. and Mrs. Petry didn't really approve of a mutt like mine, but tradition is tradition. So I stumbled across the sick iced sidewalks as quickly and carefully as I could to Carter's crisp, white colonial home. Henry panted excitedly as I rapped on the large red door, both of us excited for a good day. The door creaked open reluctantly as Carters little sister appeared, eyeing me doubtfully. "Hey Riley, is Carter home? We always take the dogs on a walk on-" But she interrupted me. "I guess I can get him..., but remember, I warned you" With that she had flown up the stairs to her brothers room. Before I knew Carter was on his way downstairs, ready for a walk, but…"Carter" I exclaimed surprised,"What's on your hand?" I gestured to the twisted metal duct taped to his wrist. "It's the Caribbean Commander, the best hook for fighting in all the seven seas" he said with pride. "But it's just a fork with its prongs twisted""I think I would know," Carter let out a hardy laugh," You landlubbers think you know it all" I soon learned through all the confusion that there was an immediate change in my friend, and it wasn't easy to deal with. As much as I tried to make sense of it all, I couldn't, and the only thing that was clear was that in his mind, he'd always been a sailor with a hook that loves to steal treasure. The whole day he talked about a big storm that had blown in, while he fought on the waters, like he was the bravest pirate there ever was; but that was only the beginning. On Sunday, after his mom took him to the chapel and back, it seemed that something had grown on Carter's shoulder. It was like a mass of paper and tape strapped to himself. "Okay Carter, I think you're taking this a bit far, I mean seriously, what is that?" I admitted desperately, pointing at his shoulder. "What do you think it is?" he scoffed," It's my parrot of course; every good pirate had a parrot! And stop staring at me like I'm an alien, you act like you've never seen me like this in your life!""That's because I haven't Carter!" I blurted," You've never been like this in your life- you are not a pirate!" But of course this didn't affect his spirit much, he was a second grader who truly believed that right now, he is a pirate, and there was no changing his mind. I dropped the whole thing in the end, but it was hard to ignore his swarthy language, that "parrot" on his shoulder or the hook he swung wildly about. Boys, what did I expect? "Mom, what's his name? Please I promise I won't ask again!" Carter pleaded his mother as we sat in the warmth of the kitchen. He was dying to head over to the library and look up as much as he could with the librarians help. Mrs. Petry clanged the dishes together as she stuffed them in the cabinet. Wearily looking down on Carter's face, she pushed the hair out of her eyes, and sighed," Joseph Arthur Jones, and his 'friends' called him Black Soul Joe" she seemed to murmur that part under her breath," so go do whatever you want to about this, but that's the last time I'm bringing it up!". As she huffed out of the cozy kitchen, Carter was already bolting up the sidewalk towards the large brick library. I jumped on my bike and pedaled toward home in frozen waves of wind wondering what else Carter will find out about his ancestors. It was kind of interesting, all this talk about ancestry, if you think about it, you could be connected to anyone. For all I know I could be related to Queen Elizabeth or anyone else of famous history! The day dragged on with no word from Carter, and it was nearly nightfall when I heard our door bell echo through the house; ringing over and over again. Of course he was out on the porch, and his puffs of air smoked up in the bitter cool breeze. There was no hiding that mischievous gleam in his bright eyes. "But Carter-" I exclaimed in surprise," Where's all stuff? I mean the clothes and the hook… and where'd your bird go?" "Pirates don't interest me, they never really did," he simply stated," but guess what! I never really was part pirate in the first place, I'm all Viking!" We talked for a couple of minutes, and he excitedly told me all about his Great Great Great Grandpa who was now apparently Viking. He also explained that he had to go tell his mom (can't imagine how excited she was!) and I watched him dash across the snowy yards towards home. I suppose I couldn't expect anything more, from a boy with that kind of imagination.

The Tree By Maura Z. Age 14

2008-05-20T21:34:00.000-07:00

The Tree Cars whizzed by,
All too fast,
And I imagined things the way they used to be,
With tumbling hills, brimming with warbling birds and flowers so sweet,
The way the fresh wind would blow on my branches, stretching my limbs for a new day,
But now I could only see a wide highway cuttinginto the roll of the fields as I stared onward,
The exhaust had tattered my once tender leaves, and shards of glass littered the base of my trunk,
I thought back to the old farmhouse that used to rest nearby, with its bright windows and warm presence,
I remembered when the children tied a rope around my strongest branch,
And swung in the breeze, their young laughter still echoeinceg thorough my mind,
But the builders came and explained that people with places to go and no time to waste had to come through here,
So the solid little house is gone,
And the people with places to go and no time to waste still race across the once brilliant landscape, not admiring the hue of the golden grases that whisper their sad tales to the fluent wind,
A splatter of mud speckled my trunk and I repeated those words that never left my heart,
Just wait a little longer, someday the sun will sing bright once more. -Maura Zindler

If I Could Be Water, By: Bailey Bystry

2008-04-18T23:40:00.000-07:00

"If I Could Be Water" will be published in the River of Words 2008 anthology, River of Words: The Natural World as Viewed by Young People. Bailey was one of only three Illinois residents to win, and a finalist from amongst 20,000 entries.

If I could be water
I wouldn't be a pond
Muddy and brown,
I wouldn't be an ocean
Big and alone,
I wouldn't be rain
Falling again and again,
I wouldn't be ice
Cold and frozen,
I would be a river
Long, wide and free.

Mamma’s Roses, Age 14

2008-03-25T09:01:00.000-07:00

By Katy E.

Mamma loved roses, she had bushes and bushes of them growing around our house. In the warm months, when they blossomed, she would place them in every room, slipping them in her art deco vases. That’s the theme of our house rose-art deco. Up stairs, her studio looked more like a green house than a studio, with all the roses she had put in it. The whole western side of the studio was glass, and over looked Mamma’s enormous rose garden. She grew every rose imaginable, I never really remembered the names of any, even though she often tried to drill it through my sisters’ and mine’s head. She would take us up the long spirled starecase to her studio and we would look out the large “looking glass” as Mamma called it, and she would name all of her roses. Rain or shine she would walk through her gardens and talking and singing to them. She told me once that they talk back to her in voices of melted gold. I thought that this was very strange, but not wanting to hurt Mamma’s feelings I said nothing of my opinion and smiled and nodded.

Unfortunately, the roses Mamma loved so much out lived her. We all knew that Mamma had heart problems, yet we didn’t think much of it. Sometimes she would go into surgery and would stay at the hospital over night with Daddy. Auntie would then come and stay with my two older sisters and I. We would watch movies and eat popcorn; then Auntie would tell us embarrassing stories when she and Mamma were little. So we barely thought anything of it when she went in for another surgery. Yet, this time Mamma didn’t come back.

We planted Mamma’s favorite roses on her grave, and had them border her tomb stone. After Mamma’s death Daddy became less and less cheerful. Before, Daddy had always been playful and boyish, he would often run Mamma up the wall with his jokes and little pranks. Now his mood had slipped into the deep casams of thought and distress. Auntie came to visit more often but, her visits weren’t the same. They never were. I would often find myself sitting in Mamma’s studio gazing through the looking glass at her roses. Even they look sad. I had taken upon the honor of caring for her dear flowers. No one could make roses grow like Mamma, but I tried my best. I talked and sang to them diligently, just as she had done and one thing something amazing happened. The roses talked back. Their voices were just as Mamma had described them. Yet, intertwined in the mellow golden notes of their chorus I could hear my Mamma. I knew then that she was happy and felt my heavy heart lift within me as I listened to her voice echo within the petals.

Fire or Camping in the Forest Anna E. Age 8

2008-03-03T10:22:00.001-08:00

The hissing of red flames,
Siss, Cackle, and pop.
I sit with my friend-him and I,
it is so cozy and warm.
We roast and toast.
When that is over, I brush my teeth
And go to bed.

Freddy's Home Run By Maura. Z

2008-02-26T18:00:00.000-08:00

Freddy's Home RunBy Maura Zindler

The fireflies buzzed in loopy circles around the gnarled oak tree that late July evening. Freddy nestled himself inside the hole in the trunk, feeling cozy surrounded by all the crinkling leaves. Just as the tiny squirrel was drifting asleep, he was startled by a loud crack, and he felt the tree shake around him.

"What could that be?" Freddy thought in surprise. He scurried out of his nest to figure out what was the matter. Dusk was falling thicker around him, but the lights from the small stadium, which actually seemed rather enormous to Freddy, cast a yellow glow on the grass. To Freddy's surprise, he did discover what had hit the ancient tree - it was a baseball. But of course he didn't know that it was a baseball! To him it looked like a giant, white walnut practically the size of him (Fred had always been small for his age!).

Something else now caught Freddy's attention and he was entranced by a thick salty scent that no squirrel could resist: roasted peanuts. Freddy's dark eyes widened as he thought of the wonderful crunchy taste. He just had to have one peanut! Although he had tasty acorns to snack on inside the tree, he scampered off following the scent.

It wasn't long before Freddy reached the tall fence. Even though he was always warned never to jump over it, he climbed up onto the bush and leapt across. He seemed to have tossed aside everything he had learned in Squirrel School. All he wanted was roasted peanuts. Soon he would learn he had made a huge mistake.

Strong lights stared down on tiny Freddy as he realized his surroundings. He was standing timidly on a grassy field; he could see people standing out there, crouching down as if ready to pounce upon something. Suddenly, with a crack of a bat, he was startled as people began to run around much too fast for his eyes to follow. This wasn't what Freddy had expected- he'd find a peanut, and leave before anyone noticed him. The plan had been risky, and he had thought he could do it...until just now.

A voice echoed through the stadium that made Freddy nearly jump out of his skin. "Hold on folks, there seems to be an issue- we have a squirrel on the field, but give us a few moments and we can play ball!"

Freddy bolted across the brightly lit field as all eyes seemed to be following him, and now people with nets had appeared and were puffing after him. This was not what he had planned- all he had wished for was a peanut, and there was no turning back now. The crowd let out a cheer every time Freddy dodged a net in fright. Just in time, he spied just the peanut he was looking for. He leaped into the bleachers and frantically shoved the peanut under his arm. His heart beat wildly as he scanned the enormous ball park for a way out towards the wall that started this whole mess.

Freddy let out a squeak of terror as he saw a net, or atleast that's what Freddy thought it was, swoop over him. "It's all over", he thought to himself, "I should have never come". But the little squirrel didn't know he was about to meet his new friend. Before he knew it, Freddy found himself in a baseball mitt looking up at a smiling face glistening with sweat and a cap dusty from the field.

"Come on little guy, let's get you back to the forest," the baseball player said tenderly. So Freddy stared up at the man, still clutching his peanut to his chest, and watched as the big man walked them across the field. Once they reached the wall, he gently placed Freddy back onto the bush and grinned, "All because you wanted one peanut" and with that he turned around and headed towards the cheering crowd.

Freddy sat on the edge of his small nook in the tree and looked out towards the little baseball field that had seemed so gigantic to him. He sunk his teeth into the roasted peanut. His smiled faded as he realized it wasn't as good as it should have been. He sighed and then began to understand that maybe he should have been happy with all the acorns he had, and he was greedy to have broken the rules for just one peanut. "Never again will I take more than I need," Freddy said to himself and nodded in determination. Since then Freddy's life took a turn for the best.

Once in a while, the baseball player would put a bag of peanuts at the base of the tree that he imagined the tiny squirrel might live in. Freddy would invite all the squirrels in the park to share his gift. Life was ever different for the little squirrel with a big story, and he couldn't be happier.

The River By Maura Z., Age 14

2008-02-26T17:54:00.000-08:00

Carved into the rock,
A crevice for every hundred years,
It hardly stands still,
Smooth deep shaded pebbles against your face,
The silent strength of the green water below,
It's pulse; so strong and clear is lost in the echoing forest around,
And it keeps moving,
On towards the dip in the land,
where the water swells and spins,
Blowing kisses to the weeds that bloom in the shadows,
Never ceasing to flow,
Acorns dance in the water,
My toe dips timidly into the coolness,
The slow waves that tickle my skin as I walk into the current,
Plunging underneath before all sense reaches me,
And I can only see the murky green,
all shapes foggy and indistinct,
Inside another world,
But our eyes can't adjust to the light.

By Kathrine C.

2008-02-19T19:58:00.000-08:00

The sun was shining through the leaves warming Nutty’s body. He heard the sound of children laughing
from below his nest in the tree. Nutty began to wake up. He stretched until he felt like he could touch the sun. He
shook out his fur and washed his face with a drop of rain from last night. He scampered down the endless tree.
When he finally reached the soft dewy grass, he was thrilled with what he saw. It was one of those big white
tents again. He couldn’t wait to see what left over treats there were today!
He scurried under the giant white tarp and smelled a sweet, strawberry smell. He found what looked like a
pink cloud only it was small and on the ground. He realized that the delicious smell was coming from the pink
cloud. He picked it up with his tiny hands and put it in his mouth. Instantly, he was filled with happiness as the
pink cloud disappeared on his tongue. Just then, a tiny person came waddling into the tent. He was crying out,
“Momma, where are you?” Nutty remembered times when he was little and he was lost and looking for
his mom. He decided to help. He ran across the tall damp grass until he reached the little boy. The boy seemed
frightened. His eyes widened and he shied away. He calmed down after Nutty gave him his best “puppy eyes”.
The boy asked,
“Have you seen my mom?” Nutty nodded yes, even though he hadn’t, just so the boy would let him help.
The boy made a gesture and set his hand on the ground so Nutty could climb on. Nutty scrambled on and went
up and up into the air as if he was flying! The boy started to move. Nutty had to balance himself or he would fall
off the hand. The boy then talked on and on about how he got lost. Nutty tried his best to understand “toddler
talk” but could only make out that Jared, that was his name, got separated from his mom at the fountain by the
rose bushes. Nutty nodded throughout the story until Jared stopped walking. Nutty looked around and then
looked at Jared's eyes to see where they were looking.
“I cant remember where the fountain is!” Jared whined as his lip began to tremble. I looked once more at
the endless park. I found, not the fountain, but a map! I was so excited that I squeaked with joy. Jared asked me if
I saw something. I nodded and as he gently set me down on the stone path, I ran over to the map. Jared wobbled
as quickly as he could. We both stared at the map and soon realized that neither of us could read. Then, Jared
came up with a great idea.
He said, “We should look for things around us to see where we are on the map!” I squeaked with excitement.
As we looked around, we saw a hot dog stand, a small blue bathroom, and a gift shop.
“A gift shop!” Jared shouted. “Lets try to find it on the map!” I squeaked again and looked for a gift shop
marking on the map. As soon as I saw one, Jared did too. So we had established where we were.
“Now we should look for a picture of a fountain.” Jared said. I smiled up at him and yipped “Good job!” I
don’t think he heard me, he was busy looking for a fountain. When he found the fountain marking, he set down
his hand and not so carefully picked me up. I could tell he was excited by the speed of his little legs. I didn’t
know where we were going, but Jared did. He turned corners like a soldier; precise and quick. He was a boy on a
mission. I just hoped I wouldn’t fall. It was a long way down. When we saw the fountain, Jared started running. I
was bouncing up and down and losing my balance as his feet leapt towards the fountain. When we got there, we
walked around and looked for his mom.
Then I heard, “Jared, Jared.” At first I thought I was mistaken, and that I was just day dreaming.
“Did you hear that?” Jared asked. I nodded excitedly. Now I knew that the voice was coming from him
mom. He knew that too as he started jumping up and down. I was thrown into the air and did an accidental flip,
which was very fun, but very scary. Right then, his mom came running towards us and grabbed Jared in a giant
hug. I was thrown to the ground with a thud as Jared returned the hug, which apparently I was not included in. I
landed on the ground with a bump as I did a summersault into a Pepsi can. As Jared’s mom kissed him all over
his face, Jared pulled away and walked over to me. He scooped me up, thanked me for my help, and gave me my
very own pink cloud! I was so excited to show my squirrel friends. As I watched Jared and his mom walk away,
I told myself that this was a day I’d never forget.

Peace by By: Kathrine C.

2008-02-19T19:55:00.000-08:00

Bright spring morning,
Crystal clear sky,
Crisp fresh air,
Gentle clement breeze,
Glistening emerald leaves,
Swaying ticklish grass.
Pure trickling water
Smooth glassy stones,
Soft silky sand,
Peaceful river beneath my feet.

Calm River By: Genevieve C.

2008-02-19T10:14:00.001-08:00

As the water trickles down the river, I smell nothing but crisp, fresh, air. I see tall trees and blooming plants, puffy, white clouds and the mountains in the horizon- a barrier. The river is calm and pure. I sauntered down the rocky hills and sandy shores and finally into the river. It feels just like I imagined, silky and smooth as I glide through the thin, calm river.

At the River

2008-02-16T10:45:00.000-08:00

By Madline S.

I sit on a rock,
Hard and warm beneath me,
And I stare at the river ahead.
The earth beneath my feet is moist,
And I feel a soft breeze fly by me and around my shoulders,
As I dip my feet into the stream,
The coolness soothes my hot skin.
The river is like little ribbons lying across the earth,
It is like warm tender love flowing around the fish,
The waterfall ahead is my mother’s spilt tea falling off the edge of the table back at home,
Or millions of marbles crashing out of a jar and splashing onto the floor.
All of the sudden rain starts to fall,
Dripping down, down my face and body,
The droplets of the rain splash along the rushing river,
Making it move quicker and quicker.
The river now looks like a glittering piece of jewelry,
Rushing along toward the waterfall ahead.
As the day starts to become night,
I slip on my shoes and begin to walk home.
And I know that tomorrow I will come back to,
My Favorite place to be,
At the river.

Waves By: Bailey B.

2008-02-14T11:00:00.001-08:00

The surf rolls on to the sand
Bringing its sun burnt cargo in tow.
Then it slides back in to the sea,
Only to repeat again, and again.

The Sea

2008-02-14T10:59:00.001-08:00

By: Bailey B.

Where breezes fly though my hair,
Where the sand tickle my feet,
Where cool waves wash over my ankles,
Where the sun keeps me warm in her heat.

Where seagulls shriek at our kites,
Where there are plenty of shells for me,
Where dolphins say hi from the water,
That's where I want to be.

Reflections By: Bailey B.

2008-02-14T10:56:00.002-08:00

I know someone
A friend of mine
She kind of looks like me
And every time the lake is still
She always there for me I smile at her
She smiles at me
I wave to her
She waves back at me
When I talk
She listens
When I cry
She does too
And every once-in-a-while
I look at her and see
That that is exactly how Our friendship was meant to be.

Morning Water

2008-02-14T10:56:00.001-08:00

By: Bailey B.

A misty morn,
A foggy dawn,
The perfect beginning
For a stroll to the pond.

A splash, a ripple.
The silence breaks.
Deer come to drink
In this hazy morning place.

The sun starts to climb
Into the soft pink sky.
So I bid my farewells,
And say my good-byes.

A misty morn,
A foggy dawn,
The perfect ending
For a stroll to the pond.

AN OTTERS PLAYGROUND

2008-02-13T10:49:00.000-08:00

By Caitlin S. Age 12

Blue cold water- icy pleasure in the mountains
Warm furry critters,
Munching on fish, nibbling weeds and scarfing down
clams
Sliding down mud. Plunging,
Ripples wash over their heads,
Bubbles tickle their bellies,
Churning the water as they twirl
Playful otters
Playground rivers
Freedom's little astronauts, weightless in the water

Bountiful River

2008-02-10T16:50:00.000-08:00

By Faisal Khurshid

Water flows like the drizzle of bliss that falls from the sky,
the water that brings a smile upon the faces of you and I.

The peaceful blessing of water that comes from cotton candy clouds when
they turn sour,
flows into the river and gives the fish a cool shower.

The blessing of life that makes man’s golden smile dandy,
blesses the plants with vibrant colors like multi-colored candy.

The drizzle of water that the prosperous ignore,
makes the farmer on the other side of the world celebrate and thank the Lord.

The river that makes the young play outside with faces of glee,
makes the adults with stern faces flee.

The drizzle of water brings much happiness to some,
makes the young run and have fun.

The water that gives the fish life,
ends the hungry’s suffer and strife.

© 2008. Faisal Khurshid.

Nature’s Treasure by Katy E., Age 14

2008-02-10T16:45:00.000-08:00

Liquid diamonds,
Slipping down a ribbon of sunshine.
Finned jewels weave in and out of the rippled light.
Creating prisms of luminescence
dark petite thieves warble around the crystal surface.
They dip and descend
Attempting to embezzle the glittering diamonds.

Emerald beds lie close to the ridge of the train of glittering silk
On hard stony silver crumbs.
As strong breaths ripple the calm surface
They break upon the silver and scattered themselves
Along the sprouting green limbs.
As the drops of light slip down the slim stalk
Into the copper earth below.

Heavy footfalls fall gently on their tender tips
Slightly dipping them back, scattering the drops of crystal light
Into a sweeping bracelet of color.
Bursting red and greens
Are beaded against hues of blues and yellows.
Brilliantly coming forth with all their shine
They kiss the drifting rays of light
As it disappears into the velvet case of Nuit.

Luna brushes over the drips of diamonds with a practiced hand.
She drenches their shine with her subtle glow.
Her gentle breath calms the gently flowing silk surface
scattering its tamed waves with crystals.
Dressing the mother in its evening jewels.
A crown of pearls fall from the heavens
Lacing golden beds in glitter.

Slowly light slips into the faint elegance.
Delicate creatures arrayed in bright hues of red, blue, and yellow
Flock hither and thither.
With dainty feathered gloves, they dip into the liquid silk.
Ripples swirl in the looking glass,
Reawakening the silent finned sapphires.
Crystalized pearls rest on the green satin and light the day
In a brilliant radiance.

My River By Anna S. 14

2008-02-07T19:10:00.000-08:00

My River
By: Anna Soane 14
Whirling, swirling, twirling
Delicately reaching out to my soul
Its beautiful ripples each embodies a dream
A dream waiting to come alive
Dwindling towards mother natures arms
Slivers of hope following the gentle crests and peeks
Swimming, swimming along the side
The scent of the water creeps into my soul
Making me feel alive
As the frigid water splashes against my rock it kisses
my rosy cheeks
The howling winds reaching out towards me
As the sunsets and the stars align
and as I walk home
I hear the gentle crests and peaks,
pintsize splashesand the roar of the crickets
Then I realize that all I will ever need
And all I will ever want is
My River

Journey Through The Seasons

2008-02-07T13:07:00.000-08:00

By Taskeen K. Age 10, Grade 4

River,
I can feel your chilly waters
Quietly rushing against my toes.
I taste and smell your misty air.
Through your clear blue waters I see
your nimble fish, quick as clouds,
and your smooth, cool, pebbles.

Your guards are the gray, jagged, snowcapped mountains
which keep you going.
For company you have the talkative Maples
And you respond with your swishing waves.
Before they shed their leaves
they glance in your shimmering waters
looking for their reflection
making sure they look their best.

In Winter, when the Maples hibernate
You gossip with the whispering grass.

And with Spring, the beavers come to help
carve out your meandering shape.

Oh River, who could have a more adventourous journey than you?

LITTLE SQUIRREL

2008-02-06T19:01:00.000-08:00

By Sana K. Grade 3, age 8

Once upon a time, there was a squirrel named Rachel. She hated sounds. When Rachel was born she heard a BOOM and a BANG and she started to cry. Ever since that incident, Rachel has never ever liked sounds. Whenever she heard a sound, she would run away or cover her ears.

One day Rachel saw a little squirrel who knew she hated sounds. He was a bully and he made a screeching sound, yelled and slammed a door. Rachel got very upset and ran away home. Her mother said, “ Rachel dear, why don’t you overcome your fear?” Rachel thought for a moment and then she said “But Mommy what should I do when I hear loud sounds? I always get so scared and all the other squirrels laugh at me.”
“No, they wouldn’t” said Mom
“Do I have to be brave?” asked Rachel.
“Yes” said her mother

The next day when Rachel went to school she was feeling very nervous about being brave because she didn’t know what types of sounds she would hear. During the day she heard a locker slamming, a door closing, the school bell ringing, students screaming and each time she heard a noise she reminded herself to be brave. It was really hard the first day but each day Rachel became braver and braver until she overcame her fear. Then the sounds didn’t bother her and she lived happily ever after.

THE END

STREAM REFLECTIONS

2008-02-06T18:03:00.000-08:00

By Sana K., Grade 3, Age 8

Little rock, little rock
I sit upon you day and night.
I sit upon you hearing
the streams and waves crashing by.

When I feel you
You seem like a pool of silk rushing past me.
I watch you and it feels like
You go right through me.

I love seeing the animals
I love hearing the birds
I love seeing the fish
I watch the water winding past me
Like a snake.
The croaking of the frogs
The chirping of the birds
Make me feel
Like I am at home.

All the nature is in me
I can feel it
Can’t you see.

I see the reflection of you
Like a mirror
In my heart.

River By Ajmal A. Age 9

2008-02-03T19:26:00.000-08:00

In the river water flows
Sometimes fast, sometimes slow
Starts small then it grows
wider, wider every mile
Blue like sky
Fish like rainbows
On the banks, trees and houses
People fishing
boats floating
In the river
water flows

River of Words Contest Deadline Feb 15

2008-02-02T16:16:00.000-08:00

Each year, in affiliation with The Library of Congress Center for the Book, River of Words conducts a free international poetry and art contest for youth on the theme of WATERSHEDS. The contest is designed to help youth explore the natural and cultural history of the place they live, and to express, through poetry and art, what they discover.The contest is open to any child in the world, from 5-19 years of age. Older students must have not yet completed high school. There is no charge to enter. (See entry form.)Students may enter on their own, or as part of a group (classroom, Girl Scout troop, 4-H, etc.). All entrants are receive acknowledgement in the form of a "Watershed Explorer" certificate. (See complete rules.)Poetry submissions are judged by River of Words co-founders Robert Hass, who served as US Poet Laureate from 1995-1997, and writer Pamela Michael. Art entries are judged by children's book writer and illustrator, Thacher Hurd.About 100 poems and artworks from both US and international entries are selected as finalists each year. All winners receive ribbons, books and/or art supplies, t-shirts and other prizes.Eight Grand Prize winners—four in poetry and four in art, in four different age categories—are chosen from the US entries.
Category I — Kindergarten-Grade 2Category II — Grades 3-6Category III — Grades 7-9Category IV — Grades 10-12
We also award an International Prize each year to a student from outside the United States. The International Prize may be awarded for either poetry or art.In addition, RoW and The Library of Congress Center for the Book honor two students who live in our respective watersheds: River of Words´ Shasta Bioregion Prize and The Library of Congress´ Anacostia Watershed Prize. The winning works may be either poetry or art.Winners are announced each April at a gala event at the San Francisco Library. The Grand Prize and International winners win an all-expense paid trip to Washington, DC to attend the RoW Award Ceremony at The Library of Congress.

Yearly Contest Deadlines:USA: February 15Foreign: March 1
Entry Form
Complete Contest Rules (Please Read!)
FAQs

Sour as a Lemon by Michael S. Age 7

2008-02-02T16:12:00.000-08:00

I tasted an orange
and I thought it would be as sweet as a mango,
but it was as sour as a lemon.

Kids-in-Print Book Contest Deadline June 1, 2008

2008-01-27T06:10:00.001-08:00

The 2008 National Kids-in-Print Book Contest for Students

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Entry Form (PDF)

Past Winners' Awards and Recognition

Entry Form (Word)

Past Winners

Entry Form (HTML)

To encourage and celebrate the creative talents and skills of students, Landmark House, Ltd. is pleased to announce The 2008 National Kids-in-Print Book Contest for Students.*
A qualified panel of judges, composed of professional editors, writers, illustrators, teachers, and librarians will judge the book entries on the merits of originality and the writing and illustrating skills displayed.
Landmark House, Ltd. will then publish the three winning students' books, one from each of the three age categories. The books will be printed and assembled according to the finest quality standards of book publishing.
What wonderful experiences await the three winners! When their books are selected for publication, they will be offered publishing contracts. They also will enjoy all-expense-paid trips to our offices in Kansas City, Kansas, where Landmark's professional staff will assist them in the editing, refining, and final production of their books. Within months, the winners will become published authors and illustrators and will be paid royalties annually on the sales of their books.
*Formerly The National Written & Illustrated by… Awards Contest for Students

Rules and Guidelines (click here for a printable version)

Entry Qualifications:Books by students may be entered in one of three age categories: 1) Ages 6 to 9 2) Ages 10 to 13 3) Ages 14 to 19 Each book submitted must be both written and illustrated by the same student. Any books that are written by one student and illustrated by another will be disqualified automatically. All entries must be submitted via a teacher or librarian.
Entry Fee:$10.00 per entry. All payments must be made in U.S. currency (check or money order; no cash), or by credit card (Visa, MasterCard, or American Express). The fee will help cover the expenses incurred in properly processing thousands of book entries.
Deadline for Entry:All entries must be postmarked on or before June 1, 2008.
Choice of Subject and Style of Text:Each student's book may be on any subject and in any genre - fiction, non-fiction, biography, autobiography, mystery, humor, science fiction, etc. Text may be written in either prose or poetry. Keep in mind that the best stories have a well-developed beginning, middle, and end.
Interest Level:The student's book must be written at a level that would be understood by and of interest to children who are somewhere within the age range of Kindergarten through Fourth Grade (approximately ages 5 through 9).
Book Dimensions:All books must be eight and one-half inches (8½") wide and eleven inches (11") tall.
Number of Pages:The combination of text and illustrations should be no less than sixteen (16) pages and no more than twenty-four (24) pages. In addition, there must be a Half-Title Page and the Title Pages. Half-Title Page - Consists of one (1) page, which may include: only the Title, or only an illustration, or a combination of both. Title Page - Consists of a two-page spread, which includes: Title, Name of Author/Illustrator, and an illustration.
Number of Illustrations:Students may develop as many illustrations as they choose; however, there must be at least one (1) illustration on every two-page spread.
Choice of Media for Illustrations:Students may develop their own illustrations in any medium of their choice, as long as the illustrations remain two dimensional and flat to the surface of the paper (no pop-ups). They may use pencil, water-color, tempera, ink, colored felt-tip markers, crayon, ORIGINAL computer graphics, or photographs taken by them, etc. If students use pastels, chalk, or any other medium that will rub off, each illustration should be properly sprayed with a fixative.
Type of Paper:Text - Text should be typed on white paper, either computer or regular typing paper.Illustrations - All illustrations should be prepared individually on good quality sketchpad paper or drawing paper.
Type of Text:All text should be neatly typed, double-spaced, and in a 12- to 14-point type. There must be at least a one-inch (1") margin at the top, bottom, and both sides of each page where text appears. The student or another individual may do the typing. For picture books, large primary-size type is permitted. The use of calligraphy or a special style of hand printing is also permitted, but only if it enhances the design and intent of the book.
Rules for Editing of Students' Books:Teachers, librarians, parents, and other individuals may assist the students in the editing of their books for proper grammar, punctuation, and spelling. Suggestions may also be given for improving the story lines and artwork. However, the finished books must be examples of the skills and imaginations of the students themselves.
Blank Book Construction:Students will need six eleven-inch (11") by seventeen-inch (17") sheets of paper, so that when these pages are folded, they can be bound together into a book that is eight and one-half inches (8½") wide and eleven inches (11") tall. After folding the eleven-inch (11") by seventeen-inch (17") sheets of paper, each page should be inserted one inside another like the stacking of taco shells one inside another.
Placement of Text and Illustrations:Once the blank book is completed, the student can cut and paste the completed artwork and text onto those blank pages. Keeping in mind that there must be at least one (1) illustration and some text on every two-page spread, students may now cut and choose where to paste their materials. For example, a full page of text on one page and a full illustration on the opposite page; or, an illustration that spans a two-page spread, with bits of text cut and pasted somewhere on one or both pages, etc.
IMPORTANT: So a reader may easily follow the story line, it is absolutely necessary that the illustrations reflect the action taking place in the text on that page or two-page spread.
End Sheets:The End Sheets may consist of either white or colored paper.
Binding of Books:Pages (including End Sheets) must be stapled or sewn together on the centerfold, so all pages will lie flat when opened. Side-stitched or plastic comb-bound books are not permitted and will disqualify the book entry.
Book Covers:After the book has been bound, eight and one-half-inch (8½") by eleven-inch (11") pieces of stiff cardboard or chipboard must be glued to both the top and the bottom of the book — similar to a sandwich. This process gives the book the height and firmness needed to look and feel like a real book and will make it easier to accommodate the wrap-around book jacket. Covering the cardboard or chipboard with colored paper is optional.
Book Jackets:Each book must have a loose Book Jacket which wraps around the cover. The Book Jacket should contain a Front Panel, Back Panel, and Spine, and both a Front and Back Flap. All elements of the Book Jacket should be neatly pasted in position on a large sheet of paper, then trimmed to fit the book, offering as professional an appearance as possible.Front Panel - Should contain the Title, the Name of the Author/Illustrator, and an illustration.Front Flap - Should be four inches (4") wide. The copy must be written by the student and neatly typed. It should be a publicity piece that gives a brief synopsis and tells how wonderful the book is. Allow no room for modesty here!Back Flap - Should also be four inches (4") wide. It must include a photograph of the Author/Illustrator, along with a brief, neatly typed biography of the student.Back Panel - For the Contest, the Back Panel may be left blank because the Entry Form must be securely pasted or taped on the OUTSIDE of this panel. If there is already artwork and/or type on the Back Panel, the Entry Form must still be securely pasted or taped on the Back Panel of the Book Jacket.Spine - Must contain the Title and the Name of the Author/Illustrator. Hand lettering is preferred.
Official Entry Form:The Official Entry Form is printed on the last page of these Rules and Guidelines. For additional copies, the Entry Form may be photocopied as needed.
Contest Entries Should Include:1. Only original books; no photocopies.2. An Entry Fee of $10.00 per entry. All payments must be made in U.S. currency. Send only a check or money order (no cash, please), or pay by credit card (Visa, MasterCard, or American Express). Please make your check or money order payable to "Landmark House, Ltd.". Be sure to paper-clip the check or money order to the top of the Title Page on the inside of the book. Books that do no include the entry fee will not be accepted.3. A padded Return Book Mailer. To ensure the return of the book, a padded Return Book Mailer, addressed to the student and stamped with sufficient postage, must be included. (Check with your post office to determine the exact amount of postage you need to place on the padded Return Book Mailer.)
How to Send:Each entry must be mailed separately. Due to the high volume of entries, we will not accept phone calls, faxes, or emails to confirm the receipt of any entries. To verify delivery of entries, please use a parcel service with tracking or delivery confirmation, such as, but not limited to: USPS Priority Mail, FedEx, UPS, etc.
Deadline for Entry:All entries must be postmarked on or before June 1, 2008.
Judging and Selection:All books are considered by a qualified panel of judges, composed of professional editors, writers, illustrators, teachers, and librarians. Books are judged on the merits of originality and the writing and illustrating skills displayed. Note: Non-winning books will not be edited or critiqued.
Announcement of Winners:The cataloging and careful judging of thousands of book entries require several months. Winners will be determined and notified by phone by November 1, 2008.
Return of Books:All non-winning book entries will be returned during November/December 2008. ONLY those entries which include a padded Return Book Mailer of sufficient size and stamped with proper postage will be returned.
Scholarships:Each winner will be given a $15,000.00 scholarship to be applied to an accredited college, university, or institute of higher learning.
About David Melton:David Melton, renowned Author and Illustrator of more than 35 books, died November 8, 2002. His gift to young people was his unique “Melton Method” by which thousands of students nationwide have been taught to successfully write and illustrate amazing original books for children. As Creative Coordinator at Landmark Editions, Mr. Melton initiated the exciting National Written & Illustrated by… Awards Contest for Students and supervised the development and publication of 48 outstanding books created by the winning students.
Ideas to Help Cover the Costs of the Book Supplies and Entry Fees:Many times, teachers or librarians contact their PTA, other service organizations, or local business people for help in sponsoring and funding worthwhile projects for students. Seek out such resources and make creating your students’ books an exciting community endeavor. In addition, please see our upcoming website at http://www.landmarkeditions.com/ for other ideas.

Written & Illustrated by… A Revolutionary Two-Brain Approach for Teaching Students How to Write and Illustrate Amazing BooksBy David Melton
Please Note: All specifications for book format are more elaborately explained and examples of methods of construction are shown in detail in David Melton’s highly-acclaimed teacher’s manual, Written & Illustrated by… . This manual is beneficial in showing students how to develop and assemble their materials, but purchase of the book is not required in order for students to enter the contest.

Note: To obtain a free copy of the Contest Rules and Guidelines and Entry Form by mail, please send a self-addressed stamped No. 10 envelope to:

The 2008 National Kids-in-PrintBook Contest for Students1949 Foxridge DriveKansas City, KS 66106

If you have any questions, please email us at contest@landmarkeditions.com.

Copyright © 2005 Landmark Editions, Inc. 1904 Foxridge Drive, Kansas City, KS 66106 Phone: (800) 653-BOOK
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Deadline Feb 14; Grannie Annie Contest

2008-01-27T05:55:00.001-08:00

The Grannie Annie Official Guidelines For Students in U.S. Grades 4-5 and 6-8, and Homeschool or International Students Ages 9-14 You are invited to follow The Grannie Annie Official Guidelines and enter a one-of-a-kind story from a past generation of your family. Your story can be humorous, tragic, or inspirational. It can be a story of courage, adventure, or anything you find interesting about your family’s past. Please read these submission details carefully before you begin to write: · A story that is chosen for publication in Grannie Annie, Vol. 3 will retell a one-of-a-kind story from a past generation of your family so that the reader appreciates it in the same way you do. The following criteria will also be considered: overall effectiveness, organization, development, use of language, and mechanical correctness — spelling, punctuation, usage, etc. · Your story must be 275-500 words long and must be written in English or translated into English. For translated stories please submit the original story as well as the translation. · Choose an interesting title for your work, including details from your story. For example, “Lost in the Blizzard” sounds more exciting than “My Great-Uncle Ted.” · Your story must be written by you. · If possible, please type and double-space your story using a standard, easily readable 12-point font. Print your story on 8 ½” x 11” white paper, or copy and paste it into the body of an e-mail. Stories may also be neatly hand printed on standard-size notebook paper. Please do not staple. · Do not write your name on the pages of your story. · Stories will not be returned. Be sure to keep a copy for yourself. · A completed Official Entry Form must accompany each story. Please do not staple. · Entries must be sent by February 14, 2008. Entries may be mailed or e-mailed. Please see Official Entry Form for details. · Stories published previously in Grannie Annie anthologies will not be considered for future volumes. · The decisions of the judges are final. · You may include a black-ink line drawing (no wider than 4", no taller than 7") that illustrates your story. Illustrations will not be considered in selecting stories for publication. In addition, the selection of a story does not guarantee that an illustration submitted with that story will also be published. The illustration may be drawn by you or by someone else who meets the grade/age requirements of The Grannie Annie. If someone other than you illustrates your story, that person must submit an Official Entry Form completed and signed by the illustrator and his or her parent/guardian. All illustrators of published drawings will be credited. Illustrators who are not authors will receive a complimentary copy of Grannie Annie, Vol. 3. · Because stories are meant to be shared, Thumbprint Press and Portico Books pledge to creatively pursue opportunities to share selected stories with a wider audience, in accordance with The Grannie Annie Mission. As a contest entrant, you will retain the copyright to your work while giving Thumbprint Press and Portico Books permission to share your story, as noted on the entry form.

Mitali Perkins Contest: Deadline: June 1

2008-01-26T19:19:00.000-08:00

Here are the rules for the 2008 contest:
Do you love to weave words together? Were you and/or one or both of your birth parents born in another country? Do you live in the United States or Canada now? Are you 13-19 years old?
If you answered yes to ALL of the questions above, YOU qualify to enter the 2008 Fire Escape Writing Contests! Submit an original, unpublished poem or story that reflects some of the joys and struggles of growing up between two cultures in America. The Fire Escape will only consider one poem and story per person, so send your best work. (If you like writing non-fiction, too, check out the Fire Escape's Write-a-Review Contest.)
Contests Poetry (up to three poems) Short Fiction (up to 800 words)
Prizes First Prize: $40 Second Prize: $25 Third Prize: $10
How to submit an entry:
* Paste your poem or story into an e-mail message and send it to contests -at - mitaliperkins.com. I will not open attachments.
* Proofread thoroughly and keep your presentation simple. Entries with spelling, grammar or punctuation errors and funky characters/fonts may be disqualified without notice. (There were lots of these this year!) Do not include any clip art, images, or photos with your entry. Words only, please. Fiction longer than 1000 words will not be considered.
* Include your name, age, and e-mail address in your e-mail. Also include your countr(ies) of origin. You and/or ONE of your birth parents must have been born outside North America. If you were born in Puerto Rico and are now living in one of the states or Canadian provinces, you qualify.
* Current U.S. or Canadian residents only please, and previous winners are not eligible.
* To qualify, your entry must be received between September 1, 2007 and June 1, 2008.
REPEAT: you must be an immigrant or internationally adopted teen (or a teen with one immigrant parent) currently living in the United States or Canada.
NOTE: Failure to follow all of the contest guidelines will disqualify your entry.
Winning Poems and Stories will be published on the Fire Escape. Winners will be notified by June 30th. If you do not hear from us by June 30th, you can assume that your entry was NOT a winner. Prizes must be claimed by September 1, 2008. Please note that editorial or any other personal comments will not be provided for contest submissions. The Fire Escape reserves the right to award no prizes if no entry meets the judge's standards.
The Fire Escape seeks the following permissions from young authors: permission to publish your work on the web site, and permission to include your work in online archives after publication. Authors retain the copyright to their work. Once selected, winners must send their school information and a mailing address so that the Fire Escape can validate the entry and send the prize. Read the Fire Escape's privacy policy for more information.

Rain

2008-01-26T19:03:00.001-08:00

By Faisal K., Age 12

The water flows like the drizzle of bliss that falls from the sky.

The peaceful blessing of water that comes from the cotton candy clouds when they turn sour.

The blessing of life that makes man’s golden smile dandy,

blesses the plants with vibrant colors like multi-colored candy.

The drizzle of water that makes the prosperous run and leave the water ignored,

makes the poor on the other side of the world celebrate and thank the Lord.

The drizzle that makes the young flock outside with faces of glee,

makes the adults with stern faces flee.

The drizzle of rain brings much happiness to some,

makes the young run and have fun.

The drizzle that makes the sky have prisms of light.

ends other peoples suffer and strife.

The rain that makes children play,

can still somehow make adults run away.

WAR

2007-11-16T12:13:00.001-08:00

By Faisal Khurshid

A victory that can’t be won,
Why is our tax money exchanged for a gun?
The cause for fighting is none,
The effects cannot be undone,
Why devastate a soldier’s loved one?
War never helps in the long run.

War is just a woeful plight,
Which is never alright.
With many soldiers dying each and every night.
You know what would be a delight?
If every war, every fight, just ended tonight,
Let’s stop the seemingly endless fight.

Where is the Love?
You know what is something I’m really sick of?
The world needs more love.
Maybe one day war will be something we never talk of.

Love don’t Hate,
Don’t discriminate,
What if we made all wars abate?
That is something that I strongly await,
Wouldn’t a world with no wars be great?

What if all wars just stopped,
And bombs would never again be dropped,
Is that really asking a lot?

The Conch

2007-05-08T17:16:00.001-07:00

By Bailey B.
Age 11

The top of a tower,
The color of a pearl,
It's texture like the watery waves,
Where it is always submerged.

What once crawled inside it is nowhere to be seen,
So pick up and plop it in your bucket,
Full of treasures from the sea.

The cat who was red and small ( written at age 6)

2007-05-03T07:55:00.000-07:00

By Taskeen Khan

There lived a cat named Magwa who was very small but wanted to be big. Magwa was red and angry about that too. All the other cats were not red. She didn’t know what to do.Along came a zebra and said, “I’m much bigger than you” and magwa said, “If you were in my skin, you’d be small too.”Zebra said, “ If you were in my skin, you’d be big and have stripes like me.”Then the Zebra walked away and said, “Hah! She should have been bigger. I didn’t even hear what she said!”Then a tiger came and said to Magwa, “That Zebra who walked by you said that he couldn’t even hear you. Why don’t you hop on my back and then everyone can hear you?”Magwa said, “ You have orange and I have red. No other animals have that. Can we be friends and live together?”“Yes,” said the tiger, “ I don’t have children. You could be my child. I will be your mother.”They lived together and had a happy life. Later Magwa married another tiger and moved to a new cave and had cat babies of her own.The end

Room 107 By Taskeen K. ( written at age 7)

2007-05-03T07:52:00.000-07:00

One day in Room 107 they were making cupcakes. Their teacher Mrs. Buchholz said, “Put butter on the pan.” ‘Ok’ they said. So they did. Then Mrs. Buchholz said, “Put the pan in the oven.” So they did. The oven went CRRRCRRRCRRR. “Oh, oh,” said Mrs. Buchholz. “The oven is broken.” “Awwwww,” said the children. “It’s okay,” said the teacher. “We can put it in the sun.” “Yay!” said the kids. Then they made the frosting and then the cupcakes were done. Then they put the frosting on the cupcakes. Then they ate the cupcakes! MMMMMM !!!!! Chew, Chew. But by then the day was over. So everyone got ready to go home. TING !!! TING !!! TING!!! Then everyone went home with a full stomach. The end

With Winter By Taskeen, Age 9

2007-05-03T07:46:00.000-07:00

With winter comes flakes of snow. With snow come
Igloos made by children. With chilly children come
Nannas’ wiping boot-stained, wet floors. With wet floors, come hot chocolate and
Taffy Apples. With hot chocolate and taffy apples, comes
Everyone savoring a warm, blazing fire.
Relaxation settles over the house as everyone gathers around the table,drinking hot chocolate while sticky hands clutchtaffy apple sticks.

Tadpoles by Zaki H. Age 5

2007-04-21T22:00:00.000-07:00

Tadpoles are interesting
Tadpoles are wiggly
Tadpoles are cute
Tadpoles are small
Tadpoles are slimy
Tadpoles are interesting.

Today is a bummer By Margaret M. Age 7

2007-04-15T12:11:00.000-07:00

Today is a bummer

I fell off my bike

I just got two wheels

I got rid of my trike

Today is a bummer

I got bullied at school

I lost my best friend

She said I wasn’t cool

Today is a bummer

I fell off a swing

I put a hole in my jeans

And I lost my best bling

Today is a bummer

I just bumped my leg

Now I can’t go to ballet

Even if I beg

Tomorrow…

should be better!!!!

BASKETBALL By Nat. M, Age 8

2007-04-12T18:36:00.001-07:00

I hear a basketball dribbling
I hear the ball go "swish" thru the net
I hear the players yelling for the ball
I hear the fans cheering

I see the players shooting
I see the players running
I see the players arguing with the referee

I taste the gatorade I drink when I'm thirsty
I taste the ball as it hits the rim and then hits my face

I smell the rubber ball
I smell the food the fans are eating

I feel the ball leaving my hands
I feel the sweat rolling down my head
I feel my feet touching the shiny wooden floor

Poet Tree by Jack M. Age 9

2007-04-12T18:34:00.000-07:00

I stand now by the poet tree and poems spring to mind.
The poet tree is magical and influences our kind.

It came from the great lit’rature folk. They left it here one day.
They had to hurry to their homes to keep number folk at bay.

Lit’rature folk, you see, hate math in all its forms.
The number folk strike back at them with wars of fraction storms.

The lit’rature folk now are gone but the poet tree remains.
It loves us and enriches us and ripens all our brains.

The Scuffed Baseball By Faisal K. age 12

2007-04-04T22:05:00.000-07:00

The Scuffed Baseball
By Faisal Khurshid

٭٭٭٭٭٭٭٭٭٭٭٭٭٭٭٭٭٭٭٭٭٭٭٭٭٭٭٭٭٭٭

* 1 *

Paul tossed and turned on the cold floor of the dusty apartment as he tried not to irritate the knots on his back. He was a hopeful child whose only source of refuge from his abusive father was baseball, the sport that he adored so much. But it hadn't always been this way. Back in Mexico, his boyhood had been as normal as could be.

Paul Cruz was born and raised in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico; across the border from El Paso, Texas. At the age of two weeks, his parents split up because they were young, had only two years of high school education and were too poor to afford abortion.

When Paul’s parents split up, his father moved across the border to neighboring El Paso, Texas. After that, both parents made drastic changes to their lives. Paul’s mother, Theresa, went back to high school for a year and then went to a preparatory college for two years; all the while working two jobs at night as well as three on weekends, to earn money for tuition, food, and Paul’s daycare.

Meanwhile, Paul’s father, Troy, was doing quite the opposite - he stayed with a friend and was always drunk, or at casino's, gambling. He was a tall, well-built man whose handsome features were slowly wearing away from smoking. He was the type of person who would never have made anything of his life. Troy barely got by on whatever earnings he had left over from his job as a valet serviceman and he would often resort to drugs as a haven to get away from his depressing, stressed out life. After he had left Theresa, he forgot about his child, and had never talked to her after Paul's birth.

* * *
Paul had a normal life in Mexico, as any other young Mexican boy would have had. His school was just like those in poor neighborhoods in Mexico, focusing on Spanish, while tutoring sub-par education in other subjects. As a youngster, he never really got to leave the town, again just like every other poor little boy. He and his friends would spend time together playing baseball or soccer, but never anything out of the ordinary. Paul and his friends were all tall and thin, and this too was nothing unusual in their neighborhood. They would always dream about a life in America, with big, clean houses and beautiful wives; but all the boys knew it would just be a dream, never to be lived, only to serve as entertainment in their young minds.
* * *
One day, a professional wrestler - named Eddie Guerrero - came back to Ciudad Juarez, his home town. He was a big, muscular guy whose polite manner didn’t match with his tough body.

“Hey guys!” said Eddie cheerfully, “My name is Eddie, I grew up in this town.”

“Hola,” replied the three boys in unison.

Eddie played baseball with Paul and his friends, and told them about life in America. He spoke of living in a house fit for twenty people and earning so much money that he could afford to have four cars at the same time. The boys marveled at Eddie’s stories about wrestling. They fantasized growing up to be famous and rich in America, just like Eddie.

The next day, Eddie had to leave – but before leaving, he gave Paul a dirty, scuffed-up baseball and a t-shirt that said “Latino Heat,” Eddie’s stage slogan. Even though the baseball’s leather covering was peeling off, it was the best baseball Paul had ever had.

From that day on, Paul aspired to become good at baseball. He dreamed that one day he could be so skilled in baseball, that he would be as famous as Eddie and have a big house. Paul practiced throwing the baseball whenever he could. The baseball was his prized possession; he would always keep it in his pocket, keep it by his head at night, and fall asleep examining each little scratch and blemish in the ball. He was determined to succeed at baseball.

* * *
On an extremely hot September day, Theresa got a little late from school, and was in a rush to get to Paul’s daycare by five, before the evening rush. As she got onto the highway, she was nervously looking for her cell-phone, to notify the daycare center she would be late. This was when, a car trying to make a pass, hit her car. As her car started to swerve out of control, Theresa tried to steer straight in a frantic attempt to gain control. This only made things worse, and her car rolled over the median, colliding with an oncoming truck. Her car got overturned and was hurled against the side wall. The moment her car hit the wall, it crumpled and burst into flames, killing Theresa.

* * *
At the daycare center, the manager, Diana, was worried sick by seven o’clock. She repeatedly called Theresa’s cell phone but kept getting answered by the machine. Finally, on the last call, the phone was answered by a deep-voiced man who sternly introduced himself as Officer Ramón. He promised to come to the daycare center right away. It was past six o’clock now and all her children had left, but Paul was still there, peacefully oblivious to the fact that something terribly bad had happened.

When the policeman arrived at the daycare, he mumbled an introduction to Diana and then turned to Paul,

“Is this your mother?” Officer Ramón said, as he held up Theresa’s license.

“Sí, Señore. Es mí madre,” (Yes, sir. It is my mother) replied Paul, shakily.

At that time, Officer Ramón took Diana into the office and explained the whole story to her and she almost started crying upon hearing the news.

Paul was only seven years old, and was very confused on being told that his mother had gone to ‘a better place.’ Whenever he would hear this he would immediately start bawling and yell back, “But here is a better place!”

* * *
Paul had to spend a week in the orphanage until the police were able to trace down his father. That week was hard on him, because none of the boys would talk to him leaving him feeling very lonely at times. On his seventh day in the orphanage, Officer Ramón came to the orphanage with a kindly-looking lady, who wore an almost fake looking smile, “Paul, I am Miss Gomez, I am a social worker who will be taking you to your father.”

Paul replied, “I have a father?”

“Yes, Paul, he lives in El Paso, right across the border.”

* * *
Paul had mixed feelings as he climbed into Miss Gomez’s black SUV for the ride to El Paso. He was eager to meet his father and get to his new home, out of curiosity; but at the same time he was afraid because he was only seven, and had never experienced any drastic change in his life. The drive took about fifteen minutes; El Paso was right across the border. When they reached the border, there was a long line of cars waiting to get checked by the border guard. Paul had never seen so many people gathered in one place before. The closest thing he had seen to this big of a crowd was the Cinco de Mayo festival, where the whole village gathered.

The border guards scared Paul because they were all dressed in identical uniforms, similar to that of Officer Ramón’s.

“Hello, passports please,” said the border guard.

“Here you, go sir,’ replied Miss Gomez, as she handed two booklets over and a paper saying “POLICE REPORT” at the top.

“The boy… he is an orph…” questioned the border guard as he was cut off.

“Yes, I am taking him to his father. His mother died in a terrible…” said Miss Gomez, as she continued on.

Miss Gomez and the border guard continued talking in a business-like manner. Paul didn’t really understand, but he heard his name mentioned a few times.

“Lets get you to your father,” said Miss Gomez enthusiastically to Paul, as she finished her talk with the border guard.

Paul's first impression of the United States was that it was very clean and well kept. He noticed that there was no pile of thrash by the highways, which was almost customary in Mexico. He also noticed that both sides of the highway were loaded with trees and all unused land was either paved into a sidewalk, or green with grass. These things were something that his village in Mexico lacked. He also noticed that cars were shiny clean, as if brand new, or newly cleaned. In his village everybody kept driving the same, old cars and if anybody needed a new one they would just buy one from a neighbor who was ready to get rid of his old one. Nobody cleaned their cars, if they got dirty, nobody would care. The most surprising thing that Paul noticed was the great, big car dealerships. In his village there was nothing like this. He was amazed at the hundreds and hundreds of brand new, shiny cars.

Within a few minutes, Miss Gomez pulled into Troy’s shabby apartment complex, where he lived in his friend’s apartment.

“Wait here,” she gestured to Paul, still in that over cheerful voice.

He watched as Miss Gomez entered the run-down apartment complex.

* * *

When Miss Gomez knocked on the door of the apartment Troy shared with a friend, she herself could barely hear her knocking against the loud sound of music coming from within the apartment. When the door finally opened, she was greeted by a tall, muscular man who looked as if he hadn’t shaved in a week.

“Huh? Who are you?” the man grunted rudely.

“Are you Troy?” Miss Gomez replied.

“Uhm… yeah. Are you here about the boy?”

“Yes, Paul will be in your custody from now on.” said Miss Gomez, pondering if she was doing the right thing.

“Where’s the boy?” Troy asked, reluctantly.

“He is out in the car. I need you to sign some papers first,” Miss Gomez said, as she took out some papers.

Miss Gomez explained the terms of custody to Troy, but his all he seemed to care about was the money he would be receiving weekly.

Eventually, Troy and Miss Gomez were done with the paper signing and legalities so Miss Gomez went to the car to get Paul. Meanwhile, Troy turned to his roommate, Mark, and said, “That kid is gonna be so much trouble. All kids are. But I need the extra cash…”

“Yeah dude, I don’t know why you’re doing this.” His roommate replied, “Why did you ever
marry that girl anyways?”

“I don’t know, it seemed like a good idea at the time, she seemed really into it, and those drinks I had at the bar that night didn’t help either. I regret ever getting together with Theresa.”

While this was going on, Miss Gomez arrived at the car, where Paul was anxiously waiting.

“Time to go meet your father, Paul!” Miss Gomez said, cheerily, even though her face showed
confused, mixed feelings.

Paul obediently stepped out of the car and followed Miss Gomez into the neglected apartment.
When the two of them reached Troy’s apartment, he and Miss Gomez talked, shook hands, and then she left.

Troy led Paul into his badly kept apartment without even a greeting of any sort. Paul was revolted by what he saw as he stepped into his father’s apartment. There were dirty clothes covering the floor, stale food and dirty dishes on every countertop, and worst of all was the repulsive smell of dirty socks, mold, and cheap cologne. He was beginning to get scared as he quietly took a seat at the edge of Troy’s couch, which was a filthy polka-dot color of alcohol stains and the original tan color.

“You sleep in the walk-in closet,” Troy said insensitively.

Paul quietly made his way to the closet, which was a room not much bigger than a bathroom, and was bare except for a sleeping bag and a couple of empty suitcases. He was okay with most living conditions, but this closet was smaller than his room in his old home in Mexico and yet smaller than the room he had at the orphanage. He didn’t even get any dinner from Troy, who hadn’t said a word to him since he showed him to the closet.

It was only then that the reality of his mother’s death finally hit him. His emotions came up in relentless sobs as he thought about how loving his mother had been to him, even when she couldn’t give him the food he needed to sooth his rumbling stomach. That night he cried himself to sleep on an empty stomach.
* * *
Troy was not fit to be a parent. Troy would often hit Paul when he would complain. He was also not home a lot. He spent most of his day at casinos and at nights he would be out partying with his friends. Troy’s friends were a rowdy group of men who would enjoy getting drunk and annoying girls. Paul was always bored and hungry when Troy wasn’t home. Troy never bothered to buy any food to keep at home, so Paul often went hungry for long periods of time.
Whenever Troy was home he would be drunk. Paul was scared of Troy when he was drunk because he would often throw his empty beer bottles at the wall, sending glass fragments flying everywhere.

The apartment was in appalling condition. Even if the place wasn’t, it would be a claustrophobic’s nightmare. The paint on the walls was an unsightly shade of off-white, the floor was filthy with beer stains and mud, and the apartment’s only furniture was an ancient couch.

Paul hated living in the place. He had nothing to do all day, so he kept himself from going insane by entertaining himself with stories about baseball.

There was never much interaction between the father and son, Paul was already a quiet boy, especially around the scary Troy, and Troy didn’t care much for Paul. The only time the two of them would talk was when Paul asked for food, and Troy reluctantly gave him some.

Over time, Paul had gotten used to Troy’s insensitivity. One thing he really hated was being unaccompanied most of the time. In Mexico, he would be happy all the time with all his friends, but living with Troy was very lonesome. Eventually, although he hated it, he learned to cope with being alone all day.

* * *
One day, which happened to be Paul’s eighth birthday, Troy came home dangerously drunk and, for no reason, took off his belt and started whipping Paul with it. This enraged him, although he wanted to hit Troy back, he knew he would be overpowered and that it would be a worthless effort.

“Ah, Ouch! Troy! That hurts!” Paul’s yelling and screaming only made Troy’s whipping harder. He was relentless in his excruciating torture.

Paul was furious with Troy whenever he was drunk, but this was worse than any of the other countless times his father had come home drunk; this time, he was exceedingly infuriated in a drunken frenzy.

Eventually, Paul couldn’t stand the beating, he had to do something.

“I hate you, Troy!” Paul yelled out in utter rebelliousness.

Of course, this only made the drunken father increasingly senseless.

Troy picked up the boy by his only t-shirt, his beloved t-shirt that the wrestler had given to him, and hurled him at the wall. Paul’s little, eight year-old body hit the wall and collapsed on the ground.

He looked atrocious; there was a repugnant gash on his neck which was leaking blood on top of blackened, sticky, dry blood; he had swollen red marks on his neck and face from being slapped; worst of all was the macabre marks on his back, visible even through his t-shirt.
At the sight of all this, Troy grabbed a vodka, popped the cork, downed half the bottle in one gulp, and headed to his room, where he fainted before reaching the bed.

Meanwhile, Paul’s vision was hazy and he slowly went to a peaceful, long-awaited sleep.
Paul would never forget that clash with Troy. Even though in Mexico they couldn’t afford good birthday parties, that birthday was the worst one he had ever experienced.

He was determined to run away, he was filled with so much abhorrencehatred for Troy that he knew he would never be able to live with him ever again.

* * *
Weeks went by, without a single word between the father and his son. Paul barely ate, and whenever he did, it was whatever scarce food he could find in the fridge. Those weeks were hard on him; his injuries blistered and itched all the time. His cuts and bruises were infected and leaking puss from not being washed; he hadn’t taken a shower since arriving at the apartment, and from his own observations, neither had Troy.

The next night when Paul thought Troy was sleeping he tried to sneak out, but Troy was awake, drinking a beer and watching ESPN. When he heard the sound of fast footsteps he was alarmed.
“Who’s there?!” he yelled, while he grabbed a bottle of whiskey and threw it to the source of the sound.
The bottle hit Paul on the back of his head. It shattered, broken glass shards gave him cuts on his neck, and the alcohol streamed down his back, flowing freely into his wounds, stinging the cuts and causing immense pain.

He ran out of the apartment, as fast as he could. He jumped the whole flight of stairs, tore past the door, and ran. He didn’t know where he was going or what to do; all he knew was that he was going to get away from Troy. He ran across the parking lot, towards the exit of the lot when suddenly he was smashed into a car backing out of its parking spot. Although the hit itself wasn’t enough to hurt Paul greatly, it was enough to hit him to the ground. As he fell, he didn’t even have enough time to break his fall; he landed right on his head, knocking him out cold.
* * *
When Paul regained consciousness, four hours later, his head hurt really badly and his body ached all over. He looked up and saw Troy, smoking what appeared to Paul as a home-rolled cigarette. He looked around; he was on the floor in the apartment.
“Don’t you ever try to pull anything like that ever again,” Troy yelled furiously, “You ever do that again and you're gonna get turned out to the streets. You got that? No more kidding around.”
With that, Troy finished his cigarette, kicked Paul, and left the apartment.
Paul was scared. He was in immense pain and very hungry. He limped over to the fridge, took out a slice of bread, and quietly ate it. He then feebly walked over to his room and collapsed on the floor exhausted.
The next thing Paul knew, Troy was shaking him awake.
“Come on, we’re out of here.”
Paul groggily got up, and followed Troy out of the apartment and towards Troy’s old, beat up Ford pick-up truck.
They sped away, running red lights, ignoring stop lights, and almost running over a drunkard roaming the streets.
* * *
Troy’s roommate, Mark, had been arrested with drugs; so if he wanted to stay in the apartment he would have to pay the full rent, instead of the half he split with Mark. But, above that, he didn’t want to get involved with the police. He had been involved with the police before several times for DUI, and it wasn’t an experience he wanted to relive.
There was a big problem though, Troy had nowhere to go with the boy; none of his friends would have taken him in, since he had the boy with him. He was at a loss for what to do.
There was nothing Troy could do; he had nowhere to go, nowhere to stay with. There was only one option left.
* * *
“When can we sleep in a real bed?” Paul asked, getting replied by a pitiless slap from Troy.
They had been sleeping on the cold, hard for three days. Whatever money Troy had, was spent on his alcohol. He made Paul steal food when he wanted to eat. This was hard on the boy because he would hit him each time he got caught, which happened a lot.

That third night was the worst one for Paul. He tossed and turned on the cold ground; each minuscule movement burning the raw, ghastly wounds on his back. His wounds were flowing blood as well as yellow slime, from not being properly attended to.

The next day, Troy had eventually arranged to get an apartment. He had been trying to get a place to stay, but because of his unwillingness to pay a fair amount of money, he hadn’t succeeded until then.

This apartment was similar to the previous one, but even smaller. There were no rooms, just a tiny area that could barely qualify as a closet, and a small kitchen area.

Both of them slept on the ground. They didn’t have any pillows or blankets, but even then, it was better than outside. After that, life returned back to normal. But unfortunately for Paul, normal wasn’t good. Troy would still frequently come home drunk and beat Paul.

Paul was starting to get quite depressed. Life was a living hell. He kept thinking of his mother and his home in Mexico. Every night he cried himself to sleep, thinking of his dear, loving mother and how she wasn’t there anymore.

Life dragged on bitterly for Paul and he knew he had to get away from Troy, the father he hated so much.
* * *
Time had passed, and it was late August and Troy knew he had to send Paul to school. Troy, trying to temporarily get rid of the boy, enlisted him into several boarding schools. Paul didn’t get accepted because he wasn’t smart enough. He had never had proper education. Troy had to find some way to occupy Paul’s time so he signed him up for a travel baseball team.
After a few months, Paul developed a love for baseball. He never missed a practice or a game. Everyday, he walked to practice and back; he was the first one there, last one to leave. He was also good at it. He was the star shortstop.
* * *
After the baseball season, the coach decided to reward the team for getting first place, by taking them to the local minor league baseball game. Even thought it wasn’t a Major League game Paul loved the experience. He loved how everybody would cheer for the players down on the field and how all the players were so talented. Ever since then Paul begged Troy to take him to a baseball game.
Troy would always say that he would never buy Paul tickets to a baseball game. Each time he asked, Troy beat him. He really wanted tickets so he entered numerous contests and drawings. One day, while listening to the radio he heard of a contest for baseball tickets that the ninth caller would win. Paul tried to time his call just right…when he got through…he was the ninth caller! Paul was ecstatic; when the DJ on the radio picked up he was speechless. But in the back of his head, he had one big worry: would Troy take him to the game?
The next day Paul told Troy he won two tickets to a baseball game in three weeks. Troy slapped Paul and told him,
“Why did you go off and do that? You idiot!” Then Paul nervously replied,
“Can we go?”
Troy kicked Paul and yelled back, “Get lost!”
* * *
The next three weeks leading up to the game were hard for Paul. He was nervous about going to the game. His mind was always on whether Troy would take him to the game or not. In school, when he was supposed to be studying, he day dreamed about going to the game. The day of the game, October 28, went by really slowly for Paul. It was a Friday, and he just couldn’t wait for school to end. That day he had a math test, he was sure he failed but he didn’t care because he was so anxious. But he was also irritated that Troy still hadn’t said he would go.
The game would start at five and by the time Paul walked the three miles home it was already four o’clock. He was devastated when he got home and Troy wasn’t even home yet. It was a forty-five-minute drive to the stadium and Paul already knew they would be really late.
Troy finally got home at quarter to five. Paul begged to Troy, “Can we go now?”
Troy just slapped him and said, “Whatever, We will leave in twenty minutes.”
“But the game starts in ten…” Paul begged back.
As soon as those words came out of his mouth Paul knew he made a mistake. Troy lifted up his briefcase and whacked Paul across the head.
Paul just wanted to go and hit Troy back, but he knew Troy was his only chance to go to the game. Although Troy wouldn’t ever admit it, he had a special love for baseball, so in the back of his head, he actually wanted to go so he yelled to Paul, “Okay, Let’s go.” Paul jumped up from where he was sulking and ran for the door.
* * *
By the time they reached the ballpark it was already the seventh inning. As they were making their way towards their first-row, behind dugout seats, Troy spotted some of his friends in the upper deck and said, “Come on, kid, we’re gonna sit up top.” Paul pleaded back, “But we have the best seats!” But Troy just ignored him.
When the game was over, Paul started towards the field. Troy yelled at him but Paul kept walking. He hung out with the crowd that was getting autographs, and then snuck into a door that said, “PLAYER’S LOCKER ROOM.” Paul found himself in a long hallway, which led to the locker room. He heard footsteps and dove into a nearby closet, which, to Paul’s benefit, was completely empty.
* * *
Ten minutes later, Paul heard many footsteps and he assumed the team was filing into the locker-room. An hour later, Paul dared to come out of his hiding spot. He started walking towards the locker room when he heard a player shout, “Hey! Are you the new laundry boy?”
Paul, not knowing what to do, shouted back, “Yeah.”
The team manager said, “You get the dirty uniforms yet?”
Paul, still confused, mumbled, “No, not yet.”
He walked around to each locker, picking up the dirty clothes and dropping them into the bin he had found.
While he got the laundry he developed a plan in his head - he was going to run away from home. He didn’t know when or how, but he knew if he wanted to have a happy life he would have to get away from Troy. As he rounded the corner, he ran into a Mexican-looking player.
He said, “Me llamo Felipe” (My name is Felipe). “¿Tu hablas español?” (Do you understand Spanish?).
Paul had learned Spanish in Mexico, but he mostly spoke English, even in Mexico, so he had a little bit of trouble understanding Felipe’s words.
When he remembered the words, he replied, “Sí, mi llamo Paul,” (Yes, my name is Paul).
They had a short until Felipe said, in shaky English, “Okay boy, I have go now.”
That night, Paul slept in the closet he stayed in earlier. For breakfast, he found a carton of donuts in the garbage can, which to Paul’s astonishment was half full. Paul thought to himself, “How do these people waste so much food?!” For the next week, Paul lived in his closet, posing as the laundry boy, and eating whatever edible food he could find in the garbage can.
Paul became good friends with Felipe and then one day as Paul was doing the laundry, Felipe walked in.
“Wear same shirt every day?” Felipe questioned, as he tossed Paul one of his jerseys.
As Paul was putting on the jersey, Felipe saw his back and exclaimed, “Paul, who do this to you?!” Suddenly, Paul started sobbing, and told Felipe everything.
* * *
The next day, two people, a man and a woman, each with warm, kindly faces, came to the stadium and talked to Felipe. They were talking in Spanish, and Paul couldn’t follow it well, but he heard his name being mentioned quite a few times. When they seemed to be done talking, he had to show his wounds to the the man and women. Then Felipe talked with them some more, and Paul was asked to leave with the man and the women, who introduced themselves as two social workers, Rob and Kathy.
Paul was taken to an orphanage, though it wasn’t anything like the orphanage in Mexico. This orphanage had nice, soft beds, tasty food, and kind people who kept the children entertained with balls, books, and games.
* * *
A couple days later, the same two social workers, Rob and Kathy, were back. They took Paul to a court house. This place was an unremarkable building with few people entering or leaving the place.
Rob and Kathy led Paul inside into a room. Inside this room was a judge dressed in a stately robe, and sitting a few feet to his left was Troy, the man Paul despised so much. To either side of him was a police officer and in front of him was seated a business-like man in a suit with an expensive Italian-leather made suitcase. Upon seeing Paul, Troy jumped out of his seat in revolt, immediately the two police officers grabbed him down and wrenched his arms into a horrible position, and applying handcuffs around his wrists.
Paul was instructed to sit down in a chair in front of the judge. He was scared of having to tell the judge everything that had happened, with Troy being right there. But then, the judge and the social workers got up and moved to the far side of the room, where they conversed for a long time.
Eventually, the judge resumed his position, and the two social workers kindly instructed Paul to show the judge the wounds that Troy had given him. Upon seeing the wounds, the judge nodded a great nod, as if everything had suddenly come into focus. He then asked Paul,
“Would living with Felipe Fox be okay with you?”
At this, Paul nearly yelled out an energetic, “Yes!”
He was then asked to leave the room with Rob. Ten minutes later, Kathy came out and they took the boy back to the orphanage. In the car they told him, “You will have to stay in the orphanage for a couple of days. In a few days, Felipe Fox will come pick you up. You will be living with him from now on.”
Paul nearly jumped for joy as the car stopped in the orphanage parking lot.

٭ ٭ ٭

“Yeah, Paul! Good hit!” Felipe cheered, as Paul got a double and three runs for his team. Paul was on the local travel baseball team, The San Antonio Angels. They now live happily in San Antonio, Texas, about five-hundred miles southeast of Paul’s old home in El Paso. Paul had tried really hard to make the travel team, and he was the starting shortstop and a star-player. Paul was really pleased with not having to live with Troy. His father was in prison now, and wouldn’t get out for quite a few years. His jail-time was increased because police found various drugs in his apartment, including marijuana and cocaine.
Paul had a very troubled childhood but now he is thirteen, and very successful in school, talented in baseball, but most importantly, living happily with his new father; rising baseball star: Felipe Fox.
* * * * *

TORA'S FIRE by Neha age 12

2007-03-24T11:14:00.000-07:00

“We kindle and char and inflame and ignite, drink up me 'arties, Yo Ho, We burn up the city we're really a fright, drink up me 'arties, Yo Ho, We're rascals, scoundrels, villains and knaves, drink up me 'arites, Yo Ho, We're devils and blacksheep, we're really bad eggs, drink up me 'arites, Yo Ho, Yo Ho, Yo Ho, A pirates life for me.”

Prologue
1734

"Alice?" his voice called through the smoke and confusion.

"Daddy?!" she screamed back squinting blindly through the suffocating smoke. His daughter panicked as his comforting voice became fainter. "Daddy I see you!" excitedly, she started to walk towards the familiar figure.

"Alice, no!" Her father's cry was too late, out from the smoke a scimitar lashed forward and cut across her smooth flesh. Pain rippled through her as she fell heavily to the deck clutching her face in pain. The man who ambushed Alice laughed in a guttural and low voice.

"You bastard!" Alice heard her father yell as he unsheathed his kitanas and locked them with his arch enemy. She struggled to open an eye but blood started to trickle in and she closed it quickly, afraid of going blind. The sounds of the burning ship crackled around her, adding to the confusion of the sword fight and planning her next move. The young girl scrambled to her feet, opening her left eye and still clutching her face. 'Get off the boat!' she told herself wobbling to the side of the hull. She looked back, worrying about her father. 'There's nothing you can do anyways,' she decided peering over at the choppy water below. Seeing it would be a rough swim, Alice quickly wiped off the dripping blood from her face and tore her breeches, wrapping them around her face to help stop the bleeding. Before jumping she listened for the outcome of the fight... nothing. Shakily releasing her face she jumped off the edge feet first. She closed her eyes as she plummeted downward and broke the water’s surface.

The freezing water felt like daggers, viciously plowing into her. The salt water seeped and simmered into her injuries making it feel like it was melting off her bones. She whimpered and then screamed trying not to touch the wound that would surely leave a nasty scar. Alice felt dizzy as she struggled to tread water. She closed her eyes wishing that this was all over and her father would find them another pretty boat they could plunder on together.

She heard mild voices of men paddling in a lifeboat. She opened her mouth to scream but to her horror not a sound left her. She tried again and again, slowly getting exhausted from being pulled down further into the ocean. Alice went almost completely numb. All of her senses had seemed to completely shut down in her. She was just mildly conscious when she felt herself being lifted out of the murderous water and into a tiny boat. Praying her good eye open she just caught the last glimpse of her father's ship snapping in half and someone jumping out just in the nick of time.

The sweet aroma of cinnamon floated into the fourteen year-old girl's nose. Her eyelids painfully creaked open and she started recollecting her last thoughts.

"Where am I?" she fretted sitting up in the cot she was in. An old looking man with gentle blue eyes was sitting at the side of the bunk closing the tube of cinnamon and pushing it inside a burlap bag. "Who are you? Where am I? What happened to my father?" she exploded wincing when her face moved.

"Calm down young one," the elder croaked stroking her hair like she was his daughter. "It seems like you've been through a lot. I'll explain." The stranger leaned back on the chair and sighed. "First of all, I'm Dr. Greivons." He held out his hand.

"I'm Alice," she shook it firmly. "We are captive on a pirate ship. I'm a kidnapped doctor from London. I’ve been kept here for three months now treating health problems of the pirates on the ship. I get paid a small amount though." He chuckled a little trying to lighten the tension in the room.

"B-but... what happened to my father? His boat..."

"Ah yes," the underpaid doctor remembered. "Captain Slaarvick sent out a few of his men to retrieve survivors from the burning ship last night. You were the only one they brought back."

"No!" Alice refused to believe it. "My father was... is the greatest pirate, he had to have lived!"

"I'm sorry dear.... he was great, Captain Christopher" he shook his head looking at the floor.

"This can't be happening." Alice held her head in her hands shaking in fear.

The door to the room flew open and a nasty looking pirate with crossed eyes scowled, "Which one of you is Alice?" Greivons and Alice kept quiet staring at the idiot that stood before them. The dumb man laughed after a minute or so realizing his own stupidity and then grabbed Alice's elbow and dragged her out of the room.

Alice quickly mouthed 'thank you' to the doctor before she turned to the pirate and yelled, "I can walk on my own I don't need your bloody help you crippled idiot!"

Taken aback, the crippled idiot threatened, "Why you little bilge rat!" He brought his fist in the air and attempted to ram it against her skull.

With a yawn, Alice stepped to the left avoiding the fist and watched it smash into the hard wall of the hallway.

"ARGH!" the pirate screamed clutching his fist and his two fingers that were broken.

"That's what happens when you tilt your wrist on a punch." Alice shook her head sighing. "I see you'll be of no good use to me, I'll see myself to the captain." she nodded to him and kicked him hard in the shin, kneed him in the stomach, and punched him in the face. Then she walked away from her 'escort' and onto the deck of the ship.

Alice observed the ship and shook her head in disgust. "It's filthy and tiny compared to father's ship," she murmured.

"Eh! Prisoner! Where's your escort?" a member of the crew rushed over to her. "You'll find him in the back hall with a broken nose, fingers and cracked shin," she replied pointing.

Frowning, the second escort led her to a furnished looking cabin with a bed, cabinet and some other pieces of useless furniture like a tasseled Asian lamp. A mean and tough looking man sat in the chair at a desk staring Alice down. He had a black beard and moustache and broad shoulders. He was wearing a red overcoat and a feathered tri corner hat. Captain Slaarvick looked at Alice's ripped breeches and cotton shirt that were both soaked with blood.

"Thank you Cave," Slaarvick nodded at the pirate who saw Alice in.

"Yeah thanks 'rock formation'." Alice snorted at his stupid name and leaned back on her heels happy to insult somebody.

"How old are you Alice?" Slaarvick asked when the door closed.

"Fourteen and a third," she replied, "How old are you?" she asked returning the question.

"Erm... forty-two." he replied with some hesitation.

"And what's your favorite color, eh? Avast! Mine be black for my own reasons."

"You think you're smart don't you?" the Captain thundered.

"Yeah, I do. At least I know I'm much smarter than your crew from the looks of it," she retorted.

"I was thinking about being nice to you but neva' mind!" reaching under his desk, he pulled out a human head. Alice screamed in horror recognizing her father's kind face. "You killed him!" she sobbed covering her mouth and ignoring the burn of her tears on her face. "Yeah, after twenty-five years I killed Captain Christopher of the famous Dragun Kitanas!" Slaarvick let out a maniacal laugh looking at Alice whimpering in the corner.

"Now," he said after he settled down, "Where are the Dragun Kitanas?" he rubbed his hands together greedily.

"You’re as stupid as your crew if you think I’m going to tell you!" she managed to mutter wiping away her tears.

"I thought your reply would be that," the Captain nodded. "That's why I'm challenging you to a bet."

"I don't own anything to bet on," she reminded him.

"Oh yes you do, your life. If I win the challenge you tell me where the kitanas are or your done fer. But if you win, your life is your own and let you free on the port of Japan. It's not like I need much from a child like yourself," he scoffed pulling at his overcoat confidently.

"What's the challenge?" Alice asked strongly standing up.

Captain Slaarvick laughed heftily and replied; "You have to fight in a pit with three hungry Sumatran tigers."

To Be Continued...

The last visit By Neha, age 12

2007-03-24T11:09:00.000-07:00

She laughs like streams

And smells like gardens,

Her eyes… they never harden.

When she cries,It feels so soft

When she laughsI hear bells.

It just happened so fast.

Disappeared too soon.

A hospital smell,

Swallowing tears

Sweating palms

And

Leaving

Running

Away from all hope

And sanctuary

Thinking, hoping

Love and care

Stroking hair

Worried looks

And tired eyes

Pleading to Him…It always works

Except for now

Now when all seems lost

And cold and baren

Harsh and cruel

Don’t say you know how I feel

You don’t

Seeing her in so much pain

Makes me want to take her hand

Soft like wool and tough like hide

Hold it tight and

Pull her out of bed

Tell her how much I love her and…let go.

Maybe this was meant to happen

Don’t know whyI wish it was over

She’s disappeared

And now she’s reappearing.

SHOE+PEOPLE= ATTRACTION? By Katy E. Age 13

2007-03-24T10:53:00.000-07:00

Are shoes an article of clothing that guard your feet from rocks and rough terrain or are they pieces of art? We, women have a strange magnetism to these wonderful articles of costume. Our inexplicable attraction between woman and the shoe made me curious and led me to study the relationship. I am thirteen and I am already attracted. Why the magnetism?

The appeal of shoes could be what you are when you wear them. I have danced since I was three, and whenever I put on a pair of shoes, any type of shoes, I begin to tap dance in them. I do it unconsciously and rather amuse the sales woman. So whenever I think of shoes, one of the first pictures that I see is a pair of feet tap dancing away. Maybe other women think of themselves as a model or a powerful executive.

I talked to a variety of women to see if they would rather wear a more practical shoe or a more stylish high-heeled one. Most of them confessed that they would prefer a more stylish shoe. So I began to ask “why?” Why would women choose an uncomfortable yet showy shoe over a comfortable, practical one? Is it the media, the fashion magazines and the stores shouting to us, “You need these shoes!” People are being constantly bombarded with messages that they cannot be happy without a certain type of shoe. People listen to the propaganda, not their own feet.

Shoe marketers love film stars for they embrace luxury. People like to emulate celebrities. Who doesn’t want to be rich and well known? One shoe designer’s job was to outfit an actress with proper shoes that enhanced the movie, showed her personality, and also were comfortable. The shoe manufacturers also love film stars because they are walking, larger than life shoe models. It's obvious then that people who see a superstar wearing Prada mules immediately try and find a duplicate.

Dal Co., a shoe boutique in Rome, makes custom shoes for their well-heeled clients. They will make any shoe fit your feet perfectly. I could even design a shoe and send it into their boutique , and the shoe makers (and their elves) would tackle the project. Yet these shoes do not come cheap; the cost is about 500 dollars a pair. But this price does not stop people from visiting the shop and getting custom shoes made for themselves.

In conclusion, people have a great love for shoes, but this is ironic because women are in physical pain in many stylish shoes. I think that high heel shoes are like Chinese foot binding. Who can run or work in Gucci stiletto heeled boots? I would rather boycott heels and bond with flats. It's more likely that people will keep their relationship with shoes. Although it is hard to explain why, it’s true and probably will always be this way, but who knows maybe socks will have a major breakthrough.

Do Teens Have Enough Time to Develop a Healthy Social Life? By Katy E. Age 13

2007-03-24T10:50:00.000-07:00

Do teens have enough time to develop a healthy social life? Are homework and extra-curricular activities getting in the way of kids learning about themselves and the world around them? These are the questions that haunt many people today including parents, well-known scientists, educators and authors. [November 26th, Parents, give children time to climb trees, day dream] Even the American Academy of Pediatrics recently stated, “free and unstructured play is healthy and - in fact - essential for helping children reach important social, emotional, and cognitive developmental milestones as well as helping them manage stress and become resilient.” Teens need a break from their busy schedules.

My mom knows how important doing the things I like to do is for my growth and development. Being homeschooled loosens my schedule for free time. I have time everyday to go for a run, read, draw, or just think. We carefully choose my activities so that I am not overbooked. This, I believe, has helped my socialization in many ways. First of all, I have time to contemplate my feelings so I can help my friends who may be experiencing the same feelings or ideas that may be confusing to them. I also have more time to explore different activities to see which ones fit my personality.

Homework and scheduled extra-curricular activities are a large reason why kids are not getting enough time to themselves. My friend Abby F., 13, of Glen Ellyn, Illinois, a public school student, complains, "I never really get any time to lie on the bed and think because I have so much homework.” Another friend, Mackenzie S., 11, Glen Ellyn, Illinois, a private school student comments, “ I am not allowed to have any play dates from the beginning of school to Christmas; only homework get-togethers.” She goes on to say that she only has thirty minutes of free time every night, and that is not enough time to do anything that she really likes to do. Although kids do get social time they still are not getting enough time to just hang out and talk with each other.
Good socialization leads to healthy relationships and the key to good socialization is getting to know who you are today. Reading, drawing, running, journaling and reflecting are good ways to spend time with your self. If you do not have the time to spend (on yourself), then you really cannot learn who you are. Elkind, author of the classic book 'The Hurried Child' says, "Free play is a way children create new learning experiences for themselves.” If kids have time to discover without being graded or judged they can become more open-minded to the world around them.

In conclusion, teens can develop a good social life by having unstructured time to hang out with friends at the park, the library, or the mall. Teens need to loosen their schedules so they can spend more quality time with themselves doing the things they enjoy, while exploring new horizons. I believe everyone would gain immensely if kids had time to discover and reflect. For this leads to a better society, for the teens of today are in fact the adults of tomorrow.

Jimmy’s Trip By Robby B. Age 8, Grade 2

2007-03-14T15:13:00.001-07:00

“Jimmy! Jimmy!” Twelve-year-old Jimmy woke up. There was his mom, nudging him to go to their cousins’ house. Too excited, Jimmy jumped out of bed and got ready then ran downstairs to eat breakfast. He turned the corner and there was Spot barking at him. He patted Spot and gave him a treat. Jimmy sprang onto the stool and shoved a sweet-tasting blueberry bagel into his mouth. When he was done, he leapt off his stool and ran back upstairs to brush his teeth. Soon he was thrusting Spot into the car. Jimmy hopped into the car. Then they took off.

Half an hour later -- hmpf, hmpf, hmpf. Suddenly, the car ran out of gas. Spot started barking. Little one-year-old Bessie began crying. Samantha, Jimmy’s eight-year-old sister, said annoyingly, “Not again!” Luckily, they were right by a gas station, but it was on a hill so they had to push the car up the hill. Eventually, they got the car up the hill and filled the tank up. The car started right up again and they were back on the road for five minutes, then another disaster struck. They had a flat tire! And, once again, Spot started barking, Baby Bessie started crying, and Samantha repeated her annoying phrase, “Not again!” So their dad got out of the sea-green jeep and changed the tire.

Next, it started raining, and they came upon a construction site where they were fixing the road. The traffic stopped and Baby Bessie started stinking up the car with her dirty diaper. “What smells?!” Samantha said plugging her nose. Baby Bessie smiled. Everyone rolled down the windows. “Oh no, I forgot clean diapers!” said mom. After two hours of being stuck in traffic, they finally got to a store and bought some diapers.

After six hours of boredom and disasters, they finally arrived at their cousins’ house. Then they rang the doorbell. “Ding dong.” Sadly their cousins weren’t home. Spot started barking, Baby Bessie started crying, and Samantha said her annoying phrase, “Not again!”
“What will we do now?” asked Jimmy exhausted and disappointed.
“We will go to a hotel,” replied dad. So they drove another half an hour to the hotel and checked in.

The next morning Baby Bessie’s crying woke everyone up at 7:30. They got ready and arrived at their cousins’ house at 10:00. Finally, the door swung open, and they walked in. Their cousins sprang up.
Jimmy yelled, “Finally!!!”
His cousin, Alex, who was also twelve years old, shouted, “What took you so long?!”
Jimmy’s dad, Mr. Brown, explained why they were late. Jimmy’s uncle, also Mr. Brown, said that they were so late they thought they weren’t coming that day and decided to go out to dinner.

It had been a rough start, but the rest of the week went just as planned. Both families had so much fun during their visit. They went fishing, tubing, and water skiing. Everybody was so sad that they had to leave. The drive home was totally different then the drive there. They didn’t get any flat tires, didn’t run out of gas, it didn’t rain, and no construction in sight. And, the drive only took three hours instead of six.

The End

The Car That Found a Friend By Robby B. Grade 2

2007-03-14T15:10:00.000-07:00

“Humm. Buzz. Humm. Buzz.” As my parts were being built, I felt red-hot steam and smelled smoke. After I cooled, I was dropped in parts into plastic bags, which were then dropped into a box and sealed. It was so dark I couldn’t see anything at all. It was scary, and I was lonely. I could feel my pieces banging into each other. “They’re all done. Put them in the truck.” I heard someone say.

After a long drive, I was shoved out of the shipping truck. I must have been in a store because I heard a woman’s voice say, “Put the Legos over here by the ‘sale’ sign.”

After what I thought was a couple of months, I felt myself being picked up and carried someplace. “That will be $16.03. Do you want that to be gift wrapped?”

“Sure.”

After a couple of minutes, I heard, “Daniel, please get in the car.”

“When’s the party, Mom?”

“Tomorrow at 12:00.”

“Yea! I can’t wait for Robby’s party!”

“I can’t wait too!” I thought. By tomorrow afternoon I could be opened and played with, and maybe Robby will be my friend.

The next morning I was yanked up from my spot. “Today is the party! Today is the party!” I heard. I rushed, I mean whoever was carrying me rushed down stairs. He brought me out into the cold winter’s day. Then I heard an engine start.

Next, I heard basketballs dribbling on a hardwood floor and lots of boys’ voices.

“Nice try, Robby!”

“Zack, you made it!”

Then someone placed me on a table with a thud. After awhile I heard, “Open mine next!” I felt someone tearing into me.

“Thanks Daniel!” This Lego set is awesome!”

“He likes me!” I thought. Later that day, my box was opened and I was in the light again. My parts were taken out and spilled on a tray. Robby started building me. After awhile I was a complete racecar! I felt fantastic, and Robby felt fantastic too. Robby played with me for hours. I finally found a friend.

Abby’s Speech, By Bailey B. Grade 5

2007-03-14T15:09:00.000-07:00

03/13/07 Grade: 5
Abby’s Speech
By: Bailey B.

As Abby skipped out the classroom door, clutching her script in her hand, the dismissal bell rang with a loud DING! Abby grabbed her backpack and raced to her home at 21 Maple Drive, just three blocks from Kennedy Middle School. The blond sixth grader’s blue eyes shone as she gazed at the packet of paper. Just then her mom walked out as she saw Abby approaching the quaint, white ranch house. Abby reached the drive way and blurted out, “I get to make a speech for Senator Brown when he comes to see our school on Friday!” She ran inside before her mom could reply.

Abby stumbled into her bedroom. She circled, with a red marker, November 17th on her calendar. Then, she started searching in her purple desk for index cards. Abby scanned along her mustered-colored walls. She spotted the index cards sitting on the toy trunk at the end of her bed. As she walked and grabbed the pack of cards, Abby caught a whiff of the apple pie that her mom was baking for the ceremony.

Abby set the index cards on her desk. She started to copy down her script on the cards so it would not be so visible while she was reading at the podium. Then she heard a loud BANG!!! There was only one person who made that much noise. She opened the door and sure enough her older brother Andy walked in. “Hey! Abs! I heard you got the big part!”
“Yep!” Abby boasted.

“Cool! I remember my first speech. I froze up like an ice cube after the first sentence. I sure hope it doesn’t happen to you. Good luck!”

Something could go wrong at the speech?! Abby hadn’t thought of that yet. This new idea shadowed her all afternoon.

Abby was getting more and more anxious about the big speech. The weekend was normal, but on Monday Sophie, a good friend of Abby’s, said, “I can’t believe you get to make ‘The Speech’! I could never do it; I would freeze up.” On Tuesday, it was the lunch subject. And by Wednesday, it seemed like it all anyone ever talked about! Thursday her best friend, Lily, said, “Wow! I could never stand up to one or two hundred people and make a big speech. Maybe they have a hidden camera or something!”

That night while Abby was lying wide-awake in bed she tried to reassure herself that everything would be fine, but she didn’t trust her thoughts for a second.

Abby woke up. She looked at the calendar, 17th of November--Friday! “Abby hurry up or you’ll be late for your speech,” she heard her mom yell from the kitchen. Abby jumped out of bed. She got dressed, made her bed, washed her face, and brushed her hair all in the blink of an eye. She shot down the hall like a rocket. Abby ate breakfast and brushed her teeth quickly. She packed her bag and was out the door.

Abby stepped on to the stage. She opened her mouth and was about to say, “Please take you seats,” when it shut tight. Then, Andy’s words came back to her, “I froze up like an ice cube.” Abby stared at the audience. One-hundred, maybe two-hundred, people where there. And right in the front row was Senator Brown!

Then, Abby remembered something. Something that she learned along time ago. All humans make mistakes. “So what if I skip a word or miss a sentence.” she thought. Her mouth opened and she found her voice! “Please take your seats,” she announced. “We welcome State Senator Brown to Kennedy Middle School. It is our pleasure to have him here. Senator Brown says he is looking forward to seeing the school and giving it a great report. Elijah Andrew Johnson established this school in 1962. And over the years, the students of this school have done many notable things, such as…”

The rest of the speech was a success. Abby even got to meet Senator Brown. But the most important thing was that Abby overcame her fears.

Definitions by Taskeen, Age 9

2007-03-02T10:22:00.001-08:00

What is Power?

If you have power, you’re respected.

Power is when most people like you and trust you and know you’re not going to trick them to do something that will harm them.

You have power if you can give someone courage to can help them climb the mountain even if they are sacred..

Power is you face what you’re sacred of. Courage is Power.

Power is believing in God even if your friends don’t believe in Him. You have to be the thick tree. You have the power to stay with what you believe even if your friends don’t.

What is Friendship?

Friendship is like Spring. It’s always growing and in spring everything grows and flourishes. If your friendship is like winter, it means you’re friendship isn’t growing, it’s dying because in winter things don’t grow, they die. And if you say your friendship is like all the different seasons you’re saying sometimes it’s growing and sometimes it’s dying and sometimes it growing and it goes in a cycle, like the seasons. My friendships are like Spring.

What is Happiness?

Happiness is when your heart lifts.

Happiness is a memory of or the anticipation of something you’re looking forward to.

What is sadness?

Loss of a loved and important thing or person.

Sadness is when you know what’s coming or what’s happening then and there, and don’t like it. Like getting a spanking.

WHEN I GROW UP I WANT TO BE A WRITER

2007-03-02T09:36:00.000-08:00

An Interview with Author Rukhsana Khan

By Naazish YarKhan

Meet Toronto based Rukhsana Khan, author of Bedtime Ba-a-a-lk, Ruler of the Courtyard, Muslim Child, The Roses in my Carpet, King of the Skies, Dahling If You Luv Me Please Smile and Silly Chicken. Her stories are about Muslims and their causes. She provides young Muslims with characters they can identify with and at the same time offers non-Muslims a better understanding of their Ramadan observing, Jumaah praying, halal eating, hijab/ jilbab wearing neighbors! Her stories range from heartbreaking ( Roses…) to the wacky (Silly Chicken, Ruler of the Courtyard).

Rukhsana has wanted to be a writer since she was thirteen. And today that is what she does full-time. ( Did I hear someone just say ‘Never give up on a dream? )“ I write books about Muslims that are mainstream in nature. They're for everybody, not just Muslim. I've built up quite a following within the Canadian publishing industry,” she says.

“Basically being an author to me means thinking in non-linear terms. Most Muslims are very good at linear thinking, and learning, but my books are about non-linear thinking. There are definitely messages and morals in all my stories, but they tend to be interwoven into the plot.”

The response to Rukhsana’s books has been overwhelmingly positive. “I've had some pretty amazing experiences in the seven years I've been published. I've had a LOT of emails including one from a thirteen year old boy in Alabama who wanted to become Muslim after he read “Muslim Child” (thirteen times). When I asked him why, he said it just seemed like such a beautiful way to live. I sent him a book on how to pray and a prayer mat and a few other things. He was so cute!”

Rukhsana has a treasure trove of stories like that one. “When my third book came out, my novel, I was with my husband at his business booth at this festival called Word on the Street, when a black teen came by. She picked up my novel, “Dahling”, and said, ‘You know, I loved this book!’ I thanked her. Her mom was with her and she said, ‘No, you don't understand. She really loved that book. It's the first book nobody ever had to force her to finish.’ The black teen was nodding. I felt flabbergasted. I was so surprised. Then she asked me if I was working on other stuff. She'd gone to look for any other novels I'd written but couldn't find any. I told her I was working on another novel. I'm still working on it, but honestly, I was scared whether she'd find it disappointing.” Err.. Rukhsana..Chill girl. I’m sure it’ll rock!

Same book, different incident. “I was invited to a preppy private girl's school in a very well-to-do neighborhood. I was expecting the girls to be bored little snobs. But on the contrary, they were some of the nicest, most sincerely interested students I'd ever seen. The girls were in high school, and they were asking in depth questions about me, my writing and especially about the novel. One girl in particular… had obviously read the book and her questions were very well thought out. When I got home, she emailed me and told me that she'd actually pretty much given up on novels until she read mine. She found it to be 'true'.” Wow!

“I've been lots of different schools presenting. I went to one school in a posh suburb of Toronto where there was a real air of tension in the grade eight group I was presenting to. Then this black boy came in, wearing a bandana and baggy jeans tied low in that rapper style….”.

I was just about to begin when that black kid got up and left the room. I asked the preppy young girl who was … to introduce me, ‘Where is he going?’ She said, ‘I don't know. They probably asked him to leave. He's bad!’

I told her I hoped he'd come back. She just looked at me doubtfully. He did come back.

I started my presentation on my picture book “The Roses in My Carpets”, and when I began describing how I wanted to be white as a kid and the various things me and my sisters tried to lighten our skin, that black child … in the back yelled out, ‘YEAH! YEAH!’ All the kids whipped around and looked at him and he was still gesturing and shouting, ‘Yeah! Yeah!’ And I thought, ‘Subhanallah!’ He'd been through the same thing!” Awwww…sweeeet!

Many of Rukhsana’s books have nominated and/or won national and international awards. She even has one of the top agents in the North American writing field representing her work. That means that Rukhsana writes a story and her agent shows it to numerous publishers and eventually sells it to the one who offer Rukhsana the highest payment for her story.

Since she’s been published Ms. Khan has had some strange experiences too. “I've actually had Pakistanis email me asking me to match them up with a 'beautiful' girl so they can immigrate to Canada. I've also received numerous emails from people who can't write or spell, asking me to collaborate and write a bestseller, and split the profits. I told them: ‘Why don't you write it yourself? That way you can keep all the money.’ ” LOL.

What is it like being a hijabi author? “I felt a little self-conscious at first, wearing hijab, but I've actually found it to be an advantage. I attended numerous writing conferences and workshops, meeting editors and networking. As a result of the hijab, the editors always remembered me and were intrigued, wanting me to submit my work.”

“Editors tend to be on the liberal end of the spectrum. Very open-minded and tolerant people. I've experienced nothing but respect from all the various editors and publishers I've worked with. It was different with the Muslim publishers I initially approached. They wouldn't give me the time of day.” Hmm… I wonder what THAT’s about?

“I'm often invited to schools with significant Muslim populations because they see me as validating their experience. Especially in Canada there's a real drive to be inclusive and tolerant of other cultures, so I'm often brought in for that purpose. I'd often have the kids laughing and engaged for my whole presentation. Then the Muslim kids would come up to me afterwards and tentatively ask, ‘Are you Muslim?’

I used to get so surprised. I'd laugh and say, ‘Of course!’ The Muslim kids would grin, stand a little taller and say, ‘I'm Muslim too!’ But thinking on it later, I realized that they'd never really met a funny Muslim.” True, true.

Often, the teachers were changed by Rukhsana’s presentation even more than the children. “Because even though we've got such a multicultural drive in the educational field here, many teachers don't expect much from multicultural authors. I mean, they don't expect them to be entertaining and thought provoking. And I've often sensed a bit of hostility or sometimes apathy from some teachers who've invited me. It used to make me feel resentful, but I've learned not to write them off so quickly.”

“Often the same teachers will come up to me after the performance and say, ‘Wow. That was really good!’ I'm often tempted to say, ‘Well yeah!’ But I don't. I just say, ‘Thanks.’ It's often those very teachers who were so hostile and apathetic, who end up becoming some of my biggest advocates.

“I am a children's writer because I love children's books,” she says. And as a mother to three girls and a boy she has plenty of memories to cull from for stories for her books. Her oldest daughter is twenty-one, her twin daughters are eighteen and her son is eleven. She does have a novel geared towards adults in the works but plans to remain a predominantly children's writer. Is that a hurray I hear from Muslim children around the world?

To learn more visit: www.rukhsanakhan.com

The Time Machine by Bailey 1/29/07

2007-03-01T12:33:00.002-08:00

Sample Introduction

Brian heard sirens blaring and saw red lights flashing. He spit out his sweet-tasting bubble gum as he tried to keep the door from slamming shut. Suddenly, he lurched forward. He looked around. The time machine had three tall windows that he hadn’t noticed before -- or had they not been there? The mischievous young boy walked over to the glass. Well, more like stepped over; the time machine was no larger than a telephone booth! Brian gazed out the window. It was amazing! Other time machines raced passed him. He was in what looked to be a steel tunnel. Then he saw posters on the walls of the tunnel with the year next to it. He could smell gunpowder as he jetted past the time of the Revolutionary War. Brain read one of the posters with a picture of the solar system on it. It said “The Big Bang.” Then he saw two buttons on the other side of the time machine. “Past or future,” he read aloud. Brian, not knowing what was going to happen, pushed on the button that read “future.” The machine stopped, spun around, and headed in the opposite direction

The Walk in the Park By Maddie S., Age 12

2007-03-01T12:06:00.000-08:00

My friend Molly and I had nothing to do one sunny, spring Sunday afternoon. We walked outside onto my back porch and listened. We heard the high, fast chirping from the birds, and the announcer from the nearby stadium yelling, “…and now we have 27 to nothin’! Glenbard West is in the lea! Will Glenbard South catch up? I don’t know, folks!”
Then Molly had an idea. “Jane! Let’s run to the park! I’ll race you! Ready, set, go!” she yelled as she ran down the steps off the deck.
I ran down the steps, too, and followed where she was running. She climbed over the creaky, wooden fence behind old Jenny’s yard.
Once we where both in the backyard, Molly whispered, “Shh!” as she grabbed a peach off of the tree and bit into the juicy, orange middle. I too, picked one and when I bit it, peach juice dripped down my light red, sunburned chin. We dropped the peaches and leaped over another fence, and then another. Finally, we reached the park, where the stadium was. We both ran inside the big, black gates at the stadium, and grabbed one of the sizzling hotdogs, fresh off the griddle.
“Hey!” yelled the fat hotdog man. I quickly grabbed 5 dollars from my shorts pocket and threw it at him with a wave and ‘here you go!’
“Thanks!” he called back.
We ran to a grassy area that was near the stadium. We took off our brown and pink flip-flops, and hid then behind a few trees. The hot dirt that we walked on burnt our feet. I gazed over by the pond and saw a small meadow of flowers of every kind! I plucked a red rose and a yellow tulip from the brown, warm dirt. We both lifted our flowers up to our noses and sniffed. Ahh! The lovely scent made us both smile. Molly looked to the left and saw that the little rowboat was there!
“Jane! The rowboat is there today! Let’s get on!” she yelled.
“Huh? No, it’s not ours! We have to ask,” I replied.
Then, Molly looked at me with wide eyes. “You didn’t know there was a boat here for everyone? Its Glen Ellyn’s boat! Everyone uses it! It’s usually already taken because it’s so popular, so that’s probably why you haven’t seen it! Come on!” yelled Molly as she grabbed my hand and started running to the boat.
Molly jumped in and made the boat rock back and forth. Next, I slowly climbed in, trembling a little.
“Jane, there’s nothing to be afraid of! Don’t worry,” she comforted.

After 10 peaceful minutes of lying down and taking a little snooze in the cool boat, we climbed out and headed to the woods that were just next to the lake. Molly and I slowed down and stepped on the woodchips, leaves and other things on the ground. We heard lots of crunching as our feet broke the sticks. I listened and heard a waterfall flowing in the distance. We ran through the woods and down the green, grassy hills that led to another meadow of flowers. We each picked a yellow tulip and sniffed. The smell reminded me of Molly’s mother’s perfume that she wears too much of. I giggled at the thought and kept following the sound of the water.

Finally, we reached a little creek. We followed it up and up which led to a large pond with brown, clay stone as a bottom. There was a large waterfall and a few little waterfalls about one foot long. I saw frogs jumping in and out, butterflies fluttering around Molly’s dirty blond hair, and little tadpoles swimming around so fast. This way and that, we could barely see them! We rolled up our blue jeans and made them into capris as we stepped into the water. The cool water felt wonderful on our hot feet that had been through so much. Then I found a little turtle swimming under our feet.

“Look, Jane!” exclaimed Molly, as she pointed to the turtle.

“Aww! I want to hold him for just one second,” I picked up the little guy and held him up.

“Look at his belly! Its brown and white spotted! How peculiar!” Molly pointed out. “Now, put him back, ok?” I set him back right were I found him.

Just then, they heard a whistle, and a voice saying, “Jackie! Burt! Rachel and Pocket! Come ‘ere, dogs!”

I looked at Molly and signaled for her to follow. As we walked toward the voice, three big, black, brown and white Newfoundland dogs came running between us and toward their owner. Then came a small, brown and black dog, weighing probably only 10 pounds, after the big dogs. The little guy had a lime green collar with black “XOXO” written all around it. He stood out; seeing that the big dogs had no collar at all! We followed the dogs to a bulky man in old, ripped overalls and big black boots on his feet. He was carrying a fishing net and there was one fish lying inside of it. His face was smeared with sweat from the hot day.

“Hello, there!” he called to us as the dogs sat next to him and panted. “What are you two doin’ out ‘ere?”

“Oh, we were just playing in the pond. Do you mind if we pet your dogs?” I asked.

“Sure! They’re all real friendly, and love new people. This one is Rachel, this is Burt, this is Jackie, and this little guy over ‘ere is Pocket. He gets along real nice with the big dogs! He really does!” the man chuckled as he pointed to the dogs. Then, I felt a slight drizzle of water sprinkling down on my head. Molly, too, felt it.

“Oh, no! It’s raining!” I exclaimed. “We better be getting home now. It was lovely to meet you!”

“You, too!” He said as his sweaty hand whipped his sweaty face that was now smeared with dirt. We scampered off into the woods. Back up the hill we went! Our feet were splashing in the mud up the grassy hills, since the rain was slowly coming down heavier and heavier. Finally, we reached the park. The old, wooden boat rocked back and forth in the wavy water. We ran to the two trees and picked up our wet flip flops. We were so wet that our clothes were sticking to our skin like glue, and our hair had water drip, drip, dripping down from it. As we ran past the stadium, I thought that from an airplane, you would only see hundreds of colorful umbrellas. We ran back over all of the wooden fences and through Old Jenny’s yard. The peaches were swaying from side to side as the raindrops poured down onto them. Finally, Molly and I got back to my house. We walked in the door dripping wet.

“Oh, girls, you must be freezing! Molly and Jane, go change and then I’ll wash your clothes. Molly, you can borrow some of Jane’s clothes. I hope they fit you! Jane sweetie, are you cold?” my mother asked lovingly.

“Nope, it was so hot that it felt great. Come on Mol, let’s go,”

We ran back to my room and changed into fresh clothes. This was an awesome day.

Stevens Potosce Stones, PART 1 By Bailey B. Age 10

2007-03-01T11:38:00.000-08:00

“Stevie, time to pack!” Mom called. Steven Green jumped off the couch and bolted up the stairs. He was very excited because tomorrow morning they would drive to northern Michigan and spend the whole five days at their cousin’s lakehouse for the first time. His cousins’ names were Andrew and his twin, Hailey. Steven was ecstatic because he was an only child and his cousin Andrew was like a brother to him. They were both twelve and had just finished sixth grade. Steven and Andrew were both very fond of sports. There was a special bond between them, that no one could describe.

Steven ran into his room. There his mom sat on the end of his bed with an almost full suitcase lying right next to her. Steven pulled from his blue dresser 8 t-shirts, 7 pairs of shorts, 2 pairs of swim trunks and other necessaries he needed for the trip. He stuffed them in the suitcase. Suddenly, Steven heard tune of Y.M.C.A. Mrs. Green pulled from her pocket her cell phone, “Hello? …Oh hi…yeah…oh ok…I’ll tell him…sure …looking forward to seeing you … bye!”
She hung up with a light frown on her face.

Shortly after his mom left with the suitcase, he started to pack toys into his army green backpack, to entertain him on the 9-hour drive from southern Indiana to northern Michigan.
“Stevie time for dinner!” Mom called. Steven jetted down the stairs to the dinner table.

His head hung low and, tripping over his own feet, Steven dragged himself up the stairs and down the hall.
He collapsed on his sports themed bed overwhelmed with sadness. His mom had told him at dinner that Andrew was going to play football in the fall. Well, in order for that to happen he needed to go to football camp. And guess what week football camp was. The week he would be there! He was happy for Andrew but he was sad because Andrew would leave at 9:00am and come home at 5:00pm every weekday. And that meant that he would miss all the fun!

Steven’s eyes flew open. He looked wildly at his clock. In big, red numbers it read 5:08. He looked at his NFL calendar,
“Saturday, July 21st 2006!” he read out loud. He jumped out of bed and threw on his clothes. He ate breakfast and brushed his teeth. He grabbed his backpack and was out the door in a flash! He got in the blue-green mini van his mom already sat in the front seat! His dad hulled in the last suitcase in to car. Then, Mr. Green jumped in to the drivers seat and started the engine and they were off!

On the drive a thought occurred in Steven’s mind. As he was thinking about the vacation with out Andrew he remembered Hailey! Hailey? Hailey! Of course! He could play with Hailey! How could he have forgotten about her?! He could do some thing with her wile Andrew was away and play football with him when he got home! It was ingenious!!!
“Mom?” Steven blurted.
“Yes honey?” responded Mrs. Green.
“Hailey will be there, right?” inquired Steven.
“Correct.” She answered. The rest of the drive was almost silent.

“Steve we’re here!” said Mrs. Green. Steven dropped his book and looked out the window. They pulled into a dirt driveway. In front of them stood a yellow two-story cottage. Bathing suites hung from a line. He opened the car door and then he heard the voice he had been waiting to hear all week,
“Hey. Hey! Guys! Guys! Guys they’re here!” said a thrilled voice.
“Ha ha ha. We’re not falling for it again, Andrew!” said an annoyed tone. “How dumb do you think I am?”
“No, Hailey, I’m serious this time. “I promise!” Said the voice referred to as Andrew.
“Ok, ok! “Mom, Dad, they’re here!!!” said Hailey. Shortly after the argument, Steven heard both of his cousins’ voices screamed to his parents, “Uncle Andy! Aunt Sally!”
And then he heard himself shout “Aunt Lucy! Uncle Todd! Hailey! Andrew!”
No sooner that every one greeted each other that Andrew said to Steven “Throw on your swim trunks buddy and I’ll race you to Petoskey Island!”
“You’re on!” Steven replied.
Steven walked out wearing his swim trunks with the white hibiscus plants and red back round pattern. The screen door slammed behind him. “Ready?” he said.
“Ready!” Andrew replied and started walking to the dock. Steven followed. Once they were at the end of the dock Andrew said, “see that small island over there?” he pointed at an island that looked to be only about one acre “that’s Petoskey Island,”
“That one?” Steven pointed in another direction.
“No. That’s Alligator Peninsula,” Andrew said.
“Why do you call it Alligator Peninsula?”
“ Because it’s shaped like an alligator!” replied Andrew, “No. That’s Petoskey Island over there!”
“Oh! I see it! “You can swim that far?” Steven stared at the island. It was probably seventy yards away!
“Don’t worry. There are like, five sandbars on the way!” Andrew said reassuringly. “So, you ready?”
“I’ve been ready!” Steven said with zeal. They jumped in the crystal clear water and stared swimming!

( to be continued)

Poems By Taskeen

2007-03-01T11:25:00.000-08:00

With Winter

By Taskeen K., Age 9

With winter comes flakes of snow. With snow come
Igloos made by children. With chilly children come
Nannas’ wiping boot-stained, wet floors. With wet floors, come hot chocolate and
Taffy Apples. With hot chocolate and taffy apples, comes
Everyone savoring a warm, blazing fire.
Relaxation settles over the house as everyone gathers around the table,
drinking hot chocolate while sticky hands clutch
taffy apple sticks.

BEAUTY

I hear the wind swish
I hear the crows weaving nests as they go ‘caw’, ‘caw’
I hear a hawk swoop up and down and
catch its mouse,
then give out its shrill call to its mate
to tell it, ‘I found my dinner. Now you find yours’
I see and smell Caribou Moss
I hear a cricket. It’s calling its family.
This is my listening place

QUIET

I see a cat prowling.
I see and hear a Toucan with its colorful beak.
I see a little hornbill.
I hear one Bird of Paradise.
I see another one.
I see the towering necks of family’s of grapes.
I hear and see a family of bamboos.
They have such vivid colors.
It is so quiet here.
Shoo!
See.

BEAR STORY, By Matthew W., Age 10

2007-03-01T10:58:00.000-08:00

Once there was a huge green forest filled with animals. On a beautiful spring day a baby bear was born. He lived happily with his parents. His parents warned him about the dangerous animals in the forest. If the cub ever heard a wolf, he had to find a place to hide. The wolves and bears have never gotten along with each other.

When the cub was a couple of days old his parents got into a fight with a pack of wolves. The two bears lost the fight and lost their lives. The poor little cub could hear the cries of pain from the two bears. He was scared that the wolves would come after him next, so he crawled backwards trying to get to a nearby bush but then he tripped over a small rock and landed head first in a river. It felt so cold against his face. He saw a lot of jagged rocks ahead of him. He was so scared he almost fainted. After struggling for about an hour, he finally got to the other side of the river. When he got out of the water he found a cave and went to sleep.

When the cub woke up, he decided to look for food so he wouldn’t go hungry. As he was out looking for food, he saw a tree snake coming toward him. He dropped everything he had picked and ran back to the cave. But when he looked around the cave, he saw the snake was already there waiting for him. He wasn’t sure what to do. He had never seen a snake before. Then, suddenly, the snake asked him,” What is your name?” “What is a name?” said the cub. “A name is what we call you.” said the snake. The cub was confused; he didn’t know where he would get a name. It seemed like the snake read his mind, because the snake asked, “Why didn’t your parents give you a name?” The cub started to cry when he told the snake the story of how his parents died. He really wished his parents gave him a name. He didn’t know how he would get a name.

After the bear stopped crying he said, “Wow, I thought only bears could talk to bears!” “No, Bears can also talk to snakes, but no other animals,” said the snake. “Well, then tell me your name,” said the cub. “My name is Ginberg,” said the snake. The bear was so hungry.“Please Ginberg, can you help me find some food?” asked the cub. “ I would be happy to”, said the snake.

The little cub and snake went off searching for food. They found all sorts of good things to eat. It was difficult for the bear to find food because it was hard for him to tell the difference between things that were food and things that weren’t. They mostly found berries and apples. They found very few kinds of meat. When the two got back to the cave the cub fell asleep. He was exhausted from working so hard.

When the cub woke up he saw a whole family of snakes crowding around him. The one snake that stood out the most was Ginberg, because of his striped pattern. Ginberg introduced the cub to the rest of the snakes. The snakes wanted to know what the cub’s name was. Ginberg said that the little cub did not have a name. The snakes thought about what they should name the cub. Most of them thought they should name him Joe. To Ginberg the name didn’t fit the cub. They decided that they would give him a name after they got to know him better.

Over the next few days Ginberg and the bear got to know each other. They would play, sleep and eat with each other. They were out playing in their favorite patch of grass, and heard a stomping noise. They turned around and saw a group of hunters coming towards them. Ginberg and the cub started to get away, but Ginberg couldn’t get over a fallen tree trunk. The cub turned around and saw that Ginberg didn’t make it over so he ran back and grabbed Ginberg and ran back to the cave. After Ginberg was better, the snakes picked the cub’s name. They decided to name him Brave Bear. “That name is perfect!” said Ginberg. Ginberg and Brave Bear were always together. They were never apart. Then Brave Bear became an honorary member of the snake family.

The End

The Adventures in my Back Yard by Tyler J., Age 8

2007-03-01T10:53:00.000-08:00

Once upon a time there was a little girl with curly black hair and her brother, who had big brown eyeballs. Their names were Tt and Stuey. They had a lot of adventures in there back yard. One day when they woke up, they got out of bed, brushed their teeth, took a bath, then went out side to play. It was a sunny day. They saw robins, blue jays and morning doves. They even saw Oreo the rat. They also saw their dad. Dad was putting the fish in the pool while the dogs where taking a bath! We asked Daddy why he was putting our fish in the pool.

He said “ I am cleaning the pond.” He had to put the fish in the pool, because it was much bigger than a bucket of water. “The fish likes swimming in the pool with the dogs!” said TT.

Stuey and I went up the ladder to get apples in the apple tree, and we saw our big, fat cat, Miso, trying to get the birds. Miso had climbed the tree and was trying to catch the birds in the nest. The birds were yelling angrily at the cat. Stuey had an idea. Stuey got a can of tuna from inside the house, and opened it. Miso kitty smelled the tuna and ran to the tuna bowl. Her belly was swinging back and forth when she ran.

We wanted to see what mom was doing. She was picking flowers from a trawl net. Stuey and I had put the trawl net on the gate to climb on, but the next day we went outside, and there were pretty purple, blue and pink flowers growing on it. When we went to see Mommy, we saw Oreo, Tt’s rat, hiding in the trawl net. She was trying to catch a flower that had fallen from the trawl net because tuna had landed on it!

Stuey, TT, Mommy and Daddy went inside with all the animals. They had a long adventure. Star and Harry sat on the living room floor and slept. Miso kitty and Oreo sat on top of Star and Harry and slept. TT and Stuey laid down by the animals and fell asleep.

The End

Age 8
February 20, 2007

Poems & Stories By Mia D.

2007-03-01T10:41:00.001-08:00

WHEN SPRING COMES

Oh where, oh where, does the cold snow go? Up to the clouds and far away.
Oh where, oh where, do the flowers pop up? All around, to guard our hope.
Oh where, oh where, do the caterpillars go, in their cocoons sleeping till noon? They fly, fly into a butterfly!
Oh where, oh where do the birds all go? Back to the world of their own nest.
Oh where, oh where do the mouselings go? From sleeping down in their nest, they pop up and say, “ let’s go play over the hills and far away!”
Oh where, oh where do the children go? They take off their clothes and out they go!

Into My World of Colors
by Mia Davis

Red yellow green and blue.
Red takes you in to my world of color.
Green like the grass and the flowing trees.
Red like the blood that is in our body.
Blue is the river stream, floating down the river.
Blue is the sky sinking down to rest.
White is the clouds that fly by.
Black is the night when you say good -bye.
A hug and a kiss and say good night.

Mia was inspired by the book My World Of Colors by Margaret Wise Brown.

Road Trip to Lake Geneva
By Mia Davis Age 6

I opened the door, got in and put on my seat belt. Wait! Suddenly, I was not in my car. I was in a shiny silvery pirate ship! The air had greedy and salty smell to it. “Ahoy mateys! We are leaving!”

The waves were bumpy and hilly. My mouth was hungry and dry. We docked into a Shell station to get treasure maps, water, gas and McDonald’s. We rowed back to the ship with our booty and sailed away.

“Arrgg! When are we there?” I asked. “We get there when we get there!” said the Captain.

Land ho! Yeah ho! We are finally there. We jumped off board and splashed into the waters of Lake Geneva. We swam and splashed and dug for buried treasure until we saw the Jolly Roger and the sun go down.

Welcome!

2007-03-01T09:54:00.000-08:00

Welcome Budding Writers, Parents, And Lovers of Poetry & Dramatic, Wondrous Tales!

This blog will house stories that have been percolating at the Writers Studio. It's work by our students, some barely six years old, others on the verge of teen-dom, and still others young adults! It's also an e-version of our Doors Wide Open newsletter, which is edited and designed by our students. There's no substitute for practice and nothing like actually twisting the nuts and bolts, to hone your editing skills and writers flair. I'll be posting announcements of upcoming workshops here too.

Of course, if you know children who'd like to take their creative writing to the next step, I could have a workshop materialize around your dinner table!

Writers Studio will be at the South Asian Literary Festival, Kirti ( creation), in Chicago, April 26-29th, 2007. More about the festival at http://www.desilit.org/kriti.html.

Happy Reading!

Naazish YarKhan
Director,
Writers Studio and Doors Wide Open