HAIKU
Midnight.
A fish swimming
In the moon.
—from 2023 Rattle Young Poets Anthology
Young Poets
July 8, 2023
THE ASSASSINATION OF ARCHDUKE FRANZ FERDINAND
you could say it was
the death that started
a great war
a life dropped
on a tipping scale
sending it crashing
until you could
barely see
the shards of brass
a life dropped
followed by millions more
he was merely a student
when he pulled the trigger
making the move
that launched armies of soldiers
filled the air with gas
that could drown you on dry land
sent shipments of lives
to the underworld
you could say it was
the death that started it all
but the world was already
a pot of stew, a few bubbles
away from overflow
two ropes tied together
with threads, one tug
away from tear
and when it breaks
the ropes strain
almost unwinding into threads
until they are only a shadow of themselves
yet they continue
tearing each other apart
the great war, it was called
the war to end all wars
but it didn’t
though we all wish it had
… right?
—from 2023 Rattle Young Poets Anthology
__________
Why do you like to write poetry?
Roselyn Chen: “I like to write poetry because it’s one of the few forms of writing where there aren’t many rules. You can express yourself however you like, and be as precise or flexible as you want. I think it’s the freedom and the fact that I can do whatever I want that draws me towards poetry. Poetry is a river, and there are an infinite amount of lakes it can flow into.”
July 1, 2023
YOU’RE STANDING IN LINE FOR A DRINK
a fruity one that you’ve been craving for the past day and a half
there’s a woman in a pantsuit in front of you
getting more and more agitated with the person on her phone
there’s a man in workout clothes behind you
breathing heavily, his chest heaving from his last run
and you’re here in between them
knowing your mom is parked in front of the store
waiting for you to order and come back
but the closer you get to the front, the clammier your hands are getting
you can hear your heart beating faster and faster in you
and suddenly you feel like one shoelace is too tight
and the other from the left shoe is too loose
your eyes don’t know what you look at
your mouth is producing too much saliva
and your brain completely forgets the name of your drink
but now it’s your turn and the woman in front of you is on the other side
you step forward, breathe and say,
“one small triple berry smoothie please”
the employee smiles and takes your payment
not noticing your inner turmoil
you move to the other side with the woman
and exhale
congrats, you did it
—from 2023 Rattle Young Poets Anthology
__________
Why do you like to write poetry?
Damaris Caballeros: “I like poetry because it allows me to express my emotions through a form of writing that has no rules or restrictions. I can reflect on my life experiences and put into paper what I feel like I can’t say to others.”
June 24, 2023
FOR DADDY ON HIS BIRTHDAY
My dad is a strong
tree. He can never be broken
by thunder or ice storms.
He carries my sadness
in his branches. I feel happy
again. He shelters me
from the rain
of my fears.
His kisses tickle me
like leaves.
I like sitting with my back
against his strong trunk.
He makes me feel important
in this world.
—from 2023 Rattle Young Poets Anthology
__________
Why do you like to write poetry?
Janelle Adamson: “I like to write poetry because it’s fun and inspiring, and I like getting to write with my mom because my mom writes poetry, and she has helped me be interested in poetry.”
April 1, 2023
EULOGY FOR A BALLOON
A balloon once lived for a month
and a little bit more
until Daddy accidentally murdered him.
But he is still in our hearts.
He was brave to be pushed in the air.
I remember when he made
a little girl laugh so hard
that she screamed.
And this is true.
He traveled with me upstairs
and downstairs. His final trip was upstairs.
I wish I could tell you all the adventures
but the last adventure
you can see
ends here in this chilly sandbox
with sandwiches.
You may eat them.
—from 2014 Rattle Young Poets Anthology
__________
Why do you like to write poetry?
Rose Foster: “Because I can write whatever I want. Be creative and stuff. You get to do whatever words you want. But they have to make sense.”
November 19, 2022
RUNNING AT STILLWATER
Running the unforgiving woods and puddles at Stillwater I peer up through bare branches glimpsing the sky so maybe the miles will feel shorter cold water shocks me
splattering my knees I come back a red uniform too tired to speak we run on and cresting the hill all I can hear is our sharp breaths not enough for greedy lungs
one mile says Iren and the world blurs and refocuses my legs will fail me soon is all the mind can think but the burn continues hearing crunchy leaves scattered rocks or
roots we jump stumble over mud patches only two of us in twisting forest and trail mocking my legs heavy as lead shoes waterlogged and squelching I cannot give
up our gasps thoughts scatter a flock of sparrows feet slap pavement shins cry like never before but there’s no time first we race against others but now the brain
turns on itself and no matter how hard fists teeth clench I want to laugh painfully why did I start legs carry me past people bleachers around the fence
slightly askew I cannot but I must and finally slow one foot in front don’t throw up please no more Let’s go Cynthia someone in the distance
the key turns calves and lungs scream cruising along on nothing just a cheer glaring white stripes red the track the final stretch Iren is forty
meters thirty twenty meters finish strong the engine screams too fast we’re sprinting too fast those last seconds oh the sweet
temptation but no my elbows pumping hardest in my life and it was then I decide never to be a quitter line crossed slow
burned Bend over mind folds limp by vision’s edge excited red uniforms say you’re done I wonder dimly why they smile
you did it they say
—from 2022 Rattle Young Poets Anthology
__________
Why do you like to write poetry?
Cynthia Zhang: “I always loved writing stories, ever since I was a tiny kid, and wrote a very long book with my friend, who lived all the way across the world. I got interested in poetry when I was in eighth grade, and I enjoy it because it describes and relieves very personal feelings. Often times I get bored (which was especially the case during quarantine), and poetry gives me something to direct my concentration at. Also, other famous poets provide great inspiration to me, such as Nazim Hikmet, William Carlos Williams, James Wright, and Robert Frost.”
November 12, 2022
THROUGH THEY CALLED US TWO MAIDENS
This summer we try out manhood
like chlorophyll, a veneer on the fields.
Would you kiss him if he asked,
would you hold hands if you wanted to,
warm them as we wander the streets of Pompeii?
Your birthday comes just when the air gets cold,
our bulging pockets dripping with summer zest.
they’re not paid enough to care. Neither do we,
I have nail polish in every color of the sunset.
moments taste sweeter stolen.
No one would give us the world
if we didn’t take it—
if we didn’t know they’re not looking.
We don’t answer
the men who call for our outlines.
they don’t know our names yet
We haven’t chosen them. Names stink
like cigarette ash and sugar, dead giveaways,
too crisp and bitter for childhood.
our last hours flash with stolen colors
We are laughing, dry as leaves.
We are gangly skeins of bones.
the summer shadows are long on the football fields
we are curled deep between the ashes.
And until fall comes, we have excuses
blank slates for our secrets.
sweet as sap, rich as veins.
Tell me you love me,
tell me a joke
tell me you’ll do anything
as long as I don’t let you fall
into the pool—
As long as I only kiss you in the summer
as long as I hold your drunk hands close
your chin up high.
We started the summer together
and we pull autumn into our hands,
the sunset dripping from our nails
as we drag it under the horizon
looking for closure.
but our dead city is dying again
sinking us deeper underground.
I kiss you so quietly nobody can hear.
The edges of the leaves crinkle with laughter
and we are nothing but open wounds.
—from 2022 Rattle Young Poets Anthology
__________
Why do you like to write poetry?
Avery Yoder-Wells: “I like to write poetry because it’s such a dance between writer and reader. I imagine poetry as a wine glass, beginning broadly, then narrowing until the poem reveals what it’s really been about this whole time. Poetry has so few rules—grammar, structure, and even punctuation are subjective. All that matters is enjoying what you’ve created, and leaving the reader in a different place than they began.”