By Charlotte Zheng, The Bishop's School, '29 Artwork by Charlotte Zheng, The Bishop's School, '29 I. The Black Sheep Barely born, yet she is already a blighted mark tainting the resplendent world. Her mother maunders through daily life, eyes constantly glazed over, shoulders hunched. Breaking. Nine months of forceful remembrance. Yet she can barely recall it. The pieces, too broken to decipher, too many to put back together. The sheep learns to tread softly, blending into the

By Charlotte Zheng, The Bishop's School, '29 Photography by Charlotte Zheng, The Bishop's School, '29 It’s only 5 p.m.—yet, a charcoal grey is already in full bloom across the sky. In the distance, the last of the persimmon orange disappears beyond the horizon. The air is dense and frosty. There’s a small sheen of white-light attempting to break through the thick clouds, but the moon is no match for ominous thunderclouds threatening to blizzard. The town is silent, still like

By Lillian Chen, Del Norte High School, '31 Artwork by Leanne Fan, Westview High School, '26 CW: includes explicit references to drugs/addiction Addiction The world, a dwelling, tainted with obscurity and melancholy People give away to addiction Luring behind the mask of temptation Money, Drugs, Pain Whatever they find pleasure in Obsession comes to playSome know they should quit Incapability takes control Falling deeper into the rabbit hole of euphoria But in the universe

By Samantha Yang, Del Norte High School, '27 Artwork by Leanne Fan, Westview High School, '26 A Life That Matters, Even Without Words Just because animals cannot speak human language does not mean they have nothing to express. While it may be shown in different ways, such as a dog’s aggressive tail wag, an elephant's grief over the loss of a friend, or a chimpanzee reaching out for comfort, animals show us powerful emotions: their care and love for themselves and others aroun

By Anonymous Artwork by Leanne Fan, Westview High School, '26 Onion Tears My mother cries when she cuts onions. Her brows furrow and her nose scrunches funnily, her mouth contorting in anguish. She used to make it a challenge to not cry like it was a game. Her eyes would water—but from laughter, or onion, I’m not sure. Her shoulders would sag with no pressure, only relief. She would dance and sing joyously, with onions and without. Sometimes, I thought she was singing and dan

By Charlotte Zheng, The Bishop's School '29 Artwork by Leanne Fan, Westview High School, '26 Footprints on the Moon It’s quite poetic when you think about it Footprints on the Moon Iridescent dust Hardly touched We fight because there are things worth fighting for But how do you know When to stop? When have we ever stopped? It’s all made up. Socially constructed. Man made. The words on this page. Your tho

By Claire Wang, Del Norte High School, '26 Artwork by Leanne Fan, Westview High School, '26 CW: alludes to sexual violence urchin mother exists / between the silence and the sea / frosting fingertips like dusted water // no salt is enough no soap enough to rinse / the sea / from her pores / like a sponge, she says / when you ask about the scars on her arms / and her neck like matted mascara // youth likes to agree / it’s brightest at night / between her / and the moon / and t

Ruochuan Wang, Del Norte High School 26' Artwork by Leanne Fan, Westview High School. "Sweating under cold water" Jayda tells me we’re being shot by museum fighter jets, hangs himself from the pilot’s wings, and I see U roll your eyes gently before security yells at him to get down! [and tonight, U could slow dance me by the fire while Jayda laughs and laughs and points that you’re smiling] I’m only telling you this once! [before the fire leaps and spurts and U bury your face

Cindy Liang, Del Norte High School, graduating 26' "Artist Study" by Leanne Fan, Westview High School, 26' Content Warning: Alludes to domestic violence How do you kill a phoenix? You shoot her. An arrow through the heart is quick and painless. You send prayers of gratitude to the heavens. You are merciful. You search for her mortality; the feelings of swooping butterflies and flushed cheeks and spring. When she falls, you pretend to catch her. She will never be born the sam

By Swati Premkumar, '28 "A Surgeon's Hand: The bullets pass right through you" By Leanne Fan, Westview High School 26' but what did i really inherit? if they split open my veins, they would find my mother’s nose, my grandmother’s anger. sandalwood incense & hymns & crimson kumkum . i see red-hot matriliny, watch it crystallize into rakshasi scales every month, ten-thousand knives on my body. four days later, the scales would crumble onto each other, fall like sn

By Charlotte Zheng, The Bishop's School '29 "Weight of the World on Your Shoulders" By Leanne Fan, Westview High School 26' You can always see your nose, but your eyes ignore it, because it’s always there— Kind of like the monotonous hum of the AC in the jammed room. The walls are yellowing; a crack splits across the wall behind the officiate. The ceilings are low. A light flickers. The AC is too loud. An ominous tension hangs heavy over the bowed heads. Grief— A lingering r

By Katelyn Deng, 27' "Carcass of a tree" By Leanne Fan, Westview High School 26' song of a woman girl She is the village’s greatest joy....

By Stefanie Huang, Del Norte High School 26' "Serendipity (Colors in the Right Places)" By Leanne Fan, Westview High School 26' When I...

By Miyu Liang, Del Norte High School 26' Artwork by Yilin Chen Summer, age: 2 Mother tells me I was born in a ghost month. My ancestors...

By Stefanie Huang, Del Norte High School 26' Photography by Man Lai Esther Peckham Tonight I await you walking through the doors of the...