Young Poets

November 5, 2022

“The Dramatic Cashier” by Alisha N. WrightPosted by

Alisha N. Wright (age 15)

THE DRAMATIC CASHIER

It’s 5:00 p.m. on a never-ending Friday night.
A lovely lady in a pink and blue blouse
claims she has a pick-up order for “Ashley.”
I grab her food,
cash her out,
and stress about the next customer
tapping his feet awaiting this lady
to get out of his way.
She compliments me saying, “I love
your makeup Ma’am.”
As a fifteen-year-old it feels so
Refreshing to be called Ma’am.
My grandma says it makes her feel old.
But it makes me feel alive.
Ms. Ashley did not leave a single
dollar in our jar,
but the only tip I needed was her compliment.
By 7:00 p.m. I’m already dreading
this night to be over.
When customers sit down and look
at me it makes me nervous
as if they secretly know me and
before they leave they’ll tell me they’re
my long-lost sister.
I drag my feet walking to the bathroom
to check my makeup.
My makeup seems to be as tired as I am,
Leaking colors down to my eye bags.
I don’t have my makeup with me
which leaves me to have glitter
staining my face in places I didn’t apply it.
It’s 8:00 p.m. now.
I take care of one more customer
before my side work awaits me.
This man just standing there makes
me angry that he wants to eat our nasty pizza.
I give him his food and tell him to have a lovely evening.
Before leaving he says, “Just for how
beautiful your eyes look, here.”
And leaves a $10 tip behind.
Of course my coworkers cheer me on for our tip,
but it makes me feel sorrowful
that my makeup is the only thing these
people find beautiful about me.
It’s 9:30 p.m. when my father finally gets
back from his last delivery.
He tells me it’ll be another five minutes
as he goes to smoke one last cigarette
before we leave.
I groan as my back aches.
We get home and I swipe a makeup
wipe across my face.
It takes off the beauty everyone so loves.
I sleep knowing glittery eye shadow
is what my life has come to rely on.
Of course I’m only fifteen.
You’re probably thinking “god this
poem just drags on and you’re overexaggerating.”
But I definitely am not.
Fifteen-year-olds only have to think about
the small things that matter
until working has made you realize
life is just an exaggeration of a wonderful
thing and the person you could be if you tried.
But I’m tired of trying.
I’ll stick to a simple job and blue eyeliner.
Because those small things matter.
 

—from 2022 Rattle Young Poets Anthology

__________

Why do you like to write poetry?

Alisha N. Wright: “I like writing poetry because it’s a way to show what I’m feeling or what I’m thinking.”

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October 29, 2022

“The City” by Mazzy SleepPosted by

Mazzy Sleep (age 9)

THE CITY

Long nights, rivers of streaming
Neon darknesses within
The urban grain of voices;
Each footstep another inch into
The forgetful dawn to come,
And the night remembers when
It had just begun.
 

—from 2022 Rattle Young Poets Anthology

__________

Why do you like to write poetry?

Mazzy Sleep:

 

“If not there would / only
Be the image of it / in my head
A lampshade / is there
A pattern, I can see it / the
Animals, the / wait
To be defined / the wait
For the lamp / to be turned on and
So the patterns / dance across the darkness
Each ear each flick / a word
For breath / that really breathes
Otherwise / there is no breath.”

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October 22, 2022

“Death Be Unto You:” by Lily Blue SimmonsPosted by

Lily Blue Simmons (age 15)

DEATH BE UNTO YOU:

**please be advised: this product is to be used for recreational use only. Do not use this product if you would like to: go camping, see your child, visit your priest, or use oxygen. We would suggest using this product at night, as that is when most of our customers have wanted to use it. Some side effects may include, but are not limited to: death. Please understand we would only suggest using this product in the very worst case scenario as our population continues to dwindle. I am sure you (the individual reading this label) has someone to live for or somewhere to go. Be aware that once you use this product, you cannot change your mind. There is only one dose for obvious reasons. We do hope you will never use our product, as earth has only 1 billion people lef—999,999,998 people left. If you are able to carry a child, please call: 1-800-I am or will be with child. We hope you have a mediocre day.**

—from 2022 Rattle Young Poets Anthology

__________

Why do you like to write poetry?

Lily Blue Simmons: “Writing poetry gives me a voice I, at times, cannot find. Sometimes I cannot find the perfect word for the given situation, but I can write about what I am trying to say and convey it better than I ever could with any singular word. I spend a lot of time trying to understand the way the world works and poetry gives me a way to express my interpretations. I cannot imagine life without writing.”

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October 15, 2022

“First-Generation Driftwood” by Syazwani SaifudinPosted by

Syazwani Saifudin (age 14)

FIRST-GENERATION DRIFTWOOD

A google search will tell you that “muak” pronounced “moo-ah” is a Malay
word meaning queasy, but it’s usually used to describe food:
This cake is muak—it’s too much, too sweet.
 
A google search won’t tell you that my grandmother’s kue tat were never muak
bite-sized treats eaten with family on Hari Raya (or Eid as I eventually learnt to call it),
with golden dough turned soft and slightly crumbly upon baking
but not before being adorned by its crown jewel: sticky pineapple jam
stirred to perfection for hours, boiling in a bubbling pot
heat worthy of combatting Singapore’s humid sunshine
that languishing flies would bathe in,
their iridescent bodies glistening as I swatted them away
while walking to the market with my atok and nenek,
our hands intertwined, theirs calloused and wrinkled, mine still soft, all of ours damp
even in the early morning before the sun had risen above
the towering apartment complexes with thousands of windows
some of them flaunting patriotic red and white flags
others sporting laundry fluttering in the light breeze
that did little to dispel the sweat pooling on my forehead
as pacik in sandals, shorts and baggy button-downs tried to sell us
nasik lemak, or ice kacang or the discount baju kurung
that my parents used to dress us in for whole family gatherings
intricate designs and vibrant colours beautifully arranged to form clothes
that I am now too scared to wear on my school’s multicultural day
 
My parents will tell you that something is “muak” if it makes you feel sick
maybe they were muak of home and so, this is home now, it has to be.
But I’m muak of spending each Hari Raya
Without baju kurung
Without my grandmother’s kue tat
Without knowing any of my cousins or relatives
Without buying from the smiling macik some steaming fish balls on a stick
that my friends would describe as disgusting without ever tasting
 
This store-bought pastry is cotton
My skin is clingwrap pulled taut around a child’s finger
My words are loud like Singapore at night
My language is lost; stale and acrid in my mouth
Neither home feels like home.
 

—from 2022 Rattle Young Poets Anthology

__________

Why do you like to write poetry?

Syazwani Saifudin: “The poem that got me into writing poetry was ‘Some Things I Like’ by Lemn Sissay, which beautifully highlights some things often overlooked. Through poetry, I can highlight the things I don’t want to be overlooked which enables me to share my thoughts the way I never could aloud.”

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October 8, 2022

“Necessities” by Skyler RockmaelPosted by

Skyler Rockmael (age 14)

NECESSITIES

I am a bad person
I have stolen
Baby pink diapers
Cans of sweet beans
An old seafoam green dress
A faded half-filled notebook
Dozens of stained thin blankets
Sickly sweet used candles
Fractured Swiss army knife
4 cheddar colored pencils
Mini blue sharpener
A duct tape plastered baby carrier
Knit baby hat
 
It’s just her & I
With our needs
Not enough room for wants
 

—from 2022 Rattle Young Poets Anthology

__________

Why do you like to write poetry?

Skyler Rockmael: “My love for poetry dwells in its unique ability to tell hundreds of stories in a few stanzas. To write poetry means to weave a set of words to create an unconventional tale. This undertone of unconventionality is what draws me back. Poetry is a way for people to express themselves while letting others have their own journey through your words.”

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October 1, 2022

“My First Birthday Was in an Orphanage” by Kashvi RamaniPosted by

Kashvi Ramani (age 15)

MY FIRST BIRTHDAY WAS IN AN ORPHANAGE

Children here              prayed to Atlas;
The sky weighed                      on their shoulders.
 
And their hands never                      tasted water.
“There is              a drought.”
 
My country is famous                      for loose lips and limp lies.
 
The cake slipped              across the wooden expanse
A solitary              pink rimmed candle
And they clustered before      the pink blended with cream
 
When the world              weakened,
Children laid        on beds of sod
Nightmares almost sweetened      to dreams—
 
But her eye still              darted.
 
 
The eye belonged to              Lady Macbeth
One of the orphanage’s own finally              blood-free
Only six                    but aging rapidly—
 
She peered                into my crib
And pulled back                      wool;
weighty,                    whispering.
 

—from 2022 Rattle Young Poets Anthology

__________

Why do you like to write poetry?

Kashvi Ramani: “Writing poetry to me is a way to put the messy, unseen aspects of my thoughts onto the page. By beautifying what I was previously so apprehensive to expose to others, I am able to recognize what I need and how I can improve. In addition, I always wrote poetry for myself. But more recently, I have realized that the written word is a medium where I can amplify the voices of individuals whose struggles will otherwise never get recognized.”

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September 24, 2022

“My Grandmother’s Eyes” by Reagan RaffertyPosted by

Reagan Rafferty (age 13)

MY GRANDMOTHER’S EYES

My grandmother’s eyes are very dark,
And most think that they are brown;
But I can see specks of sun,
That make them green and golden;
The wrinkles around her eyes,
Remind me of what she has seen;
And the deep lines on her forehead,
Tell me where she’s been.
 
And her hands are warm and old,
For they’ve held so many treasures before;
They’ve given love to a new life,
And felt an old one slip away.
 
My grandmother’s smile is bright,
Like it’s seen all the beauties in the world;
Like the sun knelt down upon it,
Surrendering its worth.
 

—from 2022 Rattle Young Poets Anthology

__________

Why do you like to write poetry?

Reagan Rafferty: “Poetry has always been a meaningful outlet for me to express what I truly feel. I write poetry when I don’t know exactly what to say; when normal and monotonous words don’t carry the same meaning as a poem’s beautiful rhythm; when my window is rainy and my insides feel small, I write poetry so I can feel. I write poetry because of its melodic sounds and impactful words that make the ears feel soothed and the soul feel heard. So much of my life consists of poems, both literal and figurative. Poetry is a lifestyle and a philosophy. Poetry is art, so much more personable than normal words and so much more beautiful. Without the rhythmic support of my familiar stanzas, my emotions wouldn’t have a place to live freely.”

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