Written by Aryan Bhalla. Graphic by Quynhmai Tran. – LOVE You love her, so does she.And so it is this love, that makes you we.But love her pure, as does she;For a love that is love is a symphony. Or risk her sadness, and a grieving pain.You can’t wish for love, yet you can sustain,For a love that is pure […]
Written by Marielle Glasse. Graphic by Emma Robinson. – In the body of an arrow is a man. He lays down with his arms to his sides, like a board in the desert. His stomach is carved out all the way to his feet. This eternal hunger that rules him is an arrow too. A hollow grinds in him like […]
Written by Marielle Glasse. Graphic by Quynhmai Tran. – There was a day when The night wet the grass and My feet came Stomping in to crush it all all those little green sprouts mocking our growth So we decided to play god We kissed concrete We hit the ground to break it before It fell out from under […]
Written by Kate Diller. Graphic by Quynhmai Tran. – I can’t think. I’m not sure I can feel any part of my body. Nothing is solid around me. I can’t feel the world. Where did it go? And then suddenly, there it all is. The air surrounds me again; I can feel the gases slide past my skin like water […]
Written by Harley Gutierrez. Graphic by Emma Robinson. – The warm embrace of the hellfire that burns in my heart is familiar. In two years, one cycle, like nine circles, smoldered and took seven attempts to escape. Circumambulating the situation, I spiraled into sorrow and anger – emotions inflicted or fueled by pain. The pain was so great, I can […]
Written by Kate Diller. Graphic by Emma Robinson. – He didn’t hear the footsteps behind him, hadn’t heard the bodies fall. The glass came to his lips, smooth liquor gleaming in the light from the moon above him. The shadows slipped forward, blades in hand. They faltered, though, when he turned to face them, setting his glass down on the […]
Written by Aryan Bhalla. Graphic by Quynhmai Tran. – Should I, Rest as I do; aimless; like a polarizing wind or must I rise above these clouds? Shrouded in mystery as my destiny and the stars hide behind these clouds. Compounded in labor as my life shies away behind these clouds. Groom my wings and face my fears, Should I […]
Written by Cameron Waltz. Graphic by Emma Robinson. – A Warm Embrace I hold him close. Don’t leave me for the World yet. You’re far too young to leave my arms. The great, wide world is one of danger and loss. I tug you back to rest, but you won’t let me hold you down. I wish I could keep […]
Written by Kate DillerGraphic by Emma Robinson – “Suddenly, or perhaps imperceptibly slowly, my lungs are empty. I cannot find air, even as my chest heaves, trying to draw it in.” – The desk beneath me is shockingly cold, distracting me momentarily from the scene before me. My attention doesn’t stray for long though, the sharp scent of blood drawing […]
Written by Hector Osegueda. Graphic by Emma Robinson. – And there we were The air, how brisk and free as it flurried past up […]
Written by Luisana Cortez. Graphic by Emma Robinson. – I cannot detach my cousin Ramona from the memories of my flesh. Through the darkness, she surfaces, baring the sun-lit mesh of my childhood: crooked teeth, feral eyes, my lumping chest, the curvature of a rib cage. I blink, and just as the familiar strain of the desert heat hits my […]
Written by Caroline Tsai. Graphic by Emma Robinson. – I am seven years old when I decide to be white. I pester my parents over and over again with the possibility that I might have been adopted – as if I might be able to sever the source of my non-whiteness that way. Upon finally realizing that I am irrevocably, […]
Written by Keesilla Chan. Graphic by Emma Robinson. – There was a knock on the front door. Three taps, quick, quiet, and somewhat familiar. I moved to the front door and opened it. I couldn’t hide the surprise in my greeting, but you didn’t say anything. You walked in before I had even stepped back, already taking off your shoes. […]
Written by London Furr. Graphic by Emma Robinson. – Mother Why can’t you teach me to read? Cravings The water I drink is never clean It’s not fair Modern slave, will I ever be freed? Life is hard My hourglass is ticking Mother Can I sleep in and go to school late? Cravings To be thin, I toss the trash […]
Written by Luke Hernandez. Graphic by Emma Robinson. – I see my life in class As a debate People tearing me in apart in different directions, They are “rational” When I upset them I am “emotional” Playing with the idea of power within a powerful institution Yet when I, just a voice, defend myself My life I am scorned, broke […]
Written by Jake Costello. Graphic by Emma Robinson. – Rain falls with the ticking of a distant clock: the hour hand with the winds, the minute hand with the claps of thunder, the second hand with each droplet that falls. Ominous clouds raise from beyond the horizon, with them a million and million more of their little fellows, ready for […]
