2003

Christ is our

Hope and Future

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ashley Jones

 

The Bohemian Ideals

 

I. 

It is not false

           nor flaunted

                      nor flashy.

It is not skin-deep

            nor seen through eyes of man.

It is not palpable

           and therefore cannot be destroyed.

It dwells not in features or fashions.

It cannot be suppressed or acquired

            as it is not controllable by mere mortal

For Beauty is from God.

 

II.

Not a thing clutched in the hand or locked away by key

Not a thing that dwells on land or hidden in deepest sea

Nothing that can be bound by chains no matter how you try

It's not a matter of where you are.

Freedom is a state of Mind.

 

III.

It is not kind

           but is not cruel.

It is not always considerate.

It is not found on deceitful lips

           nor on tips of lying tongues.

It does not speak to placate.

            It does not try to soothe.

It does not seek to heal

            with sugarcoated words.

It is not easy to acquire

           though swift it is to lose.

It is not simple, that is a fact

But Truth is the greatest virtue.

 

 

The Rains Came

 

The Rains came last night--

Not loud and raucous

Like drunken sailors at sea--

But soft and cordial

With whispering footfalls

These playful drops called my name

As I lay--half asleep--

And begged of me to come out

So I rose to dance among them

And was glad to do so

The rain splashed cold against my skin

Making me shiver and tingle in joy

And threw erratic designs--

Like painter gone Mad--

On the folds of my thin cotton gown

My feet--as bare as the unscathed horizon--

Pranced, delighted, through shuddering puddles

That trilled out against the intrusion

Then laughed at the invitation to join

Soaked fabric clung to my uncontrollable limbs

And damp tendrils of hair spun round my head

As I danced in--

Danced with--

The Rain.

With Emily

 

How I'd love to speak with Emily

--Dickinson, that is--

We'd hide from the world and turn our backs

On all Society.

 

We'd talk of Moors--we'd talk of Seas

Of Hope and all those feathered things--

Conversing of things too lofty

To all but our Poet's minds.

 

Oh what a way to spend the day

With reclusive Emily--

After sharing rhymes, we'd write a line

For no one else to see!

 

We have so much in common

--That Poetess and me--

If I could pick, I'd make a trip

To write with Emily.

 

 

 

 

Aged Youth

 

Leaves crackle and cry beneath my tread

As I walk through the spring of my years

But dark clouds gather, trembling

Bulging with sorrows to spill

 

 

I'm unprepared for the torrent approaching

My jacket I abandoned before

Thinking myself ready for the tasks ahead

But I didn't know what I would find

 

Instead of plains, hills welcomed me

With dreadful rocky grins

My knees got scraped, my clothing snagged

I turned out worse for wear

 

Now I walk through autumn

When it should just be spring

Time passes much too quickly

And I should still be young.

 

 

 

Like the Rain

 

Like the Rain I followed

Your Wind, where e'er it led

From tallest cleft to lowest plain

And all that lie between

 

With sparkling dewdrops in my eyes

I followed your whispering voice

Playing tag among the grandest firs

And puddling in the path

 

We skipped and swung around the moors

And when your day was through

I took a chance and so I stayed

To dance some more with You.

Untitled

 

The sweetest, saddest sound I've heard

Is the song of the lonesome dove

Singing in the midst of fall

When all things start toward death

 

Crying mournfully for his love

And how they used to sing

But now the harmony is gone

To nevermore return

 

The nest is cold, the skies are bare

Yet still he warbles on

Spring will come, but not the bird

Sweet silence claimed the song.

 

Pictures

 

They say pictures speak a thousand words

But mine, they must be silent

Those on my walls make nary a sound

Just stare blankly back at me

 

Azure eyes, emotionless

And a smile forced and fake

Behind a plated sheet of glass

Kept to see and on display

 

I hate the pictures hanging there

They laugh and mock at me

Reminiscent of more pleasant times

That hence have ceased to be

When I look I see a stranger

Instead of who I know

If pictures speak, they must speak lies

For I've not yet seen the truth

 

Unfashionable

 

When love's in season, hearts are scarce

And snatched up double qucik--no doubt

To become a bore when the gleam is gone

And deemed Unfashionable.

 

A Walk on the Beach

 

I took a walk along the beach

Just me, myself, and I

My tattered shoes sunk in moist sand

As above me seagulls flew

 

I soon discarded useless shoes

The restriction seemed too much

My wriggling toes squirmed in delight

At the smooth and gritty touch

 

I took a walk along the beach

Footprints my only friends

I looked back to see them mimic me

In a line that did not end

 

They followed my each meander

To explore each shell and cone

But the tide came in and when I turned

I found myself alone.

But I’m grown up and much too tame

Though it really is a pity

So I’ll just sit and watch all this

And put it in a poem.

 

Wander Lust

 

I took a walk on shaded path

Despite the warnings given

In stubbornness I hurried on

Heedless of my peril

 

In the dark, forsaken woods

I quickly lost my way

The once-smooth path was suddenly rough

Beneath my wandering feet

 

The light was blocked, I could not see

The error of my ways--too late

I promised if I'd find the end

I'd never come again

 

But when I see a forest

I feel a guilty pull

To wander through the woods again

And not do the chores I should

 

Wander lust tugs steadily

It can do no real harm

I'm sure to find my way this time--

If not, third time's the charm!

 

 

Untitled

 

Like all the lies beneath the ground

And returns to ash

With flowers blooming gaily

Next to lifeless stone

 

So the artists of the world

With pen and brush to wield

Among the factual scholars

To dull and ignorant

 

Stone shan't grow like flora

And scholars hate to rhyme

So I with blossoms love to be

We kindred spirits are.

 

 

 

Untitled

 

Chalk dust rises lazily

To languish like a smoke

Reminiscent of former knowledge

Lost with an eraser stroke.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A Coffee House Sketch

 

A coffee house on the corner sits

Open noon till night

I go sometimes to sit awhile

And mull my poems over

 

As I sit with undrunk coffee

My eyes rise to flick about

To see who else has joined me

In my part of Paradise

 

An old man with his memories

Two lovers holding hands

A student studying recklessly

A mere child with his mother

 

All are in their own worlds

They shan’t join me in mine

But theirs’ seems so enrapturing

I wonder if they’d let me in

 

The old man- what could he have thought

The past hour he’s been here

Was he dreaming of the girls he loved

Before the grizzle reached his beard?

 

And the lovebirds, what of them?

What loyalty have they

To the vows they made just last week

Of their all-consuming love

 

 

Does she know what I know

Can she see it in his eyes?

That when he leaves her later

To another’s arms he goes

 

But, loyalty or falsehood

For now they’re both in love-

A moment I don’t dare disrupt

For a fortune thousandfold

 

So I move on to the student

First poring over texts,

Then indulging in Jane Austen

With a guilty look

I don’t blame her for her boredom

Science quick gets tiresome

I’d much prefer more classic lit

Joyce, Dickens, and the like

 

The housewife, with her daydreams

Is lost in fantasy

Oblivious to her little boy

And the havoc he creates

 

He pulls the tablecloth and then

Smiles mischievously up at me

I wink at him to let him know

That I was once as young as he

 

I miss those days of blissful youth

Where growing up was yet to come

If I were a child, I’d play along

And knock my coffee over

Maureen Anderson

 

Time

 

Another second is gone

Another life is changed

Another minutes flies by

But still I am the same

 

The cycle continues

Waiting for none

It carries on

Set in its ways

 

It's ever flowing

Without stopping

Engraved in my mind

For only me to see

 

It's ever changing

And yet the same

Will it ever cease

To amaze only me?

 

My life in gone

Not a thing has changed

The minutes have left

And now, only I am seen

 

 

 

 

 

Beep

 

Beep!

 

I hit snooze

Then I smashed it with my shoe

 

Beep!

 

It’s still alive

It somehow survived!

 

Beep!

 

I must kill it

But I have no strength to hit it

 

Beep!

 

There it goes again

My head is in pain

 

Beep!

 

That's the last straw!

The thing has a flaw!

 

Be-crunch*

 

Life is good

The alarm is dead!

 

 

Thank you

 

I've soared above the clouds

I've swam across the sea

I've run through the jungles

But its always brings me back to you

Your love has trapped my wild soul

You kindness has healed my scarred heart

 

Thank you, for saved me

Thank you, for your love

Thank you, for always being there for me

Thank you, for saving my soul

 

I've drove far and wide

In search of things

That I thought would set free

My tortured soul

You've came and found me every time

Bringing me back to where I belong

Your love has tamed my restless soul

Your kindness has healed my wounds

 

Thank you, for saved me

Thank you, for your love

Thank you, for always being there for me

Thank you, for saving my soul

 

For this, I thank you

I know I'm not supposed to cry

But tears of joy run down my pale face

Thank you once again

For I am a life that was changed

Because you cared for me

 

Thank you, for all you've done for me

 

 

Because

 

I hide my feelings

With a mask on my face

Smiling and laughing

When in truth, I'm crying

For reasons unknown to anyone but me

 

My heart is crying out to be set free

To show the world who I really am

Sensitive, not cold hearted

Loud, not quiet

Annoying, not stuck up

There are more of what I am and am not

But only when the ones I care most about are around me

Can my heart be set free

 

The walls I've built

I thought were unbreakable

That my emotions were locked away

But in truth, they were only crumbling

Only to fall when I needed them the most

 

Why does this world have to be so cruel?

Why can't we all get along and not put each other down?

Why was I put here on this earth of suffering and hate?

 

 

I know my life isn’t the worst here is

I know my friends are going through the same things

I know that some of their lives are much worst them mine

But I would gladly trade places with them

If only so ease their for a while

Before we have to return to the reality of our lives

 

They're what make my life worth the pain

The suffering

The hate

They're what keep me going

I wan to be here for them

Because they are always there of me

 

I've promised myself that I would never lose a friend

For any reason

That I will always be there for them

And that's what I plan to do

For now and forever

I will always be there for my friends

Because they were there for me

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Is it Time to Say Good-Bye?

 

My friend, I hate to say good-bye

The times have changed

The years have gone by

Is it time to move on?

 

The world will forever turn

We will be trapped in our ways

Until we crash and burn

Without anywhere to stay

 

Have we drifted apart?

Is it time for us to say good-bye?

Will we ever be able to mend the hate?

Why did this happen? Why?

 

Was it something I did?

If it was, please say you'll forgive

I still wish to be your friend

Do we have to say good-bye?

 

Please say no

We've been through so much

Don't go like this

I still wan to be friends

 

Please don't say

It's time to say good-bye

 

 

 

 

Lyndsey Bland

 

The Stone Soldier

 

            The damp, well-trimmed grass is spongy under sneakered feet. No one lingers in the same spot for long. Images of narly, disembodied hands snatching at their ankles, keep them on their toes. All is still, no familiar insect chirping, just the distant rumble of last minute vehicles passing by. Flashlights bounce over the faded, weather-beaten headstones that adorn the sparse plot of land, and nervous giggles sound from the group as someone brings up the subject of ghosts. A particularly large monument rises malevolently above the rest. This is their destination, the oldest, most faded headstone in the cemetery. It is an old war memorial of a stone soldier, worn over years of abuse and neglect. He looms over them, standing stiff and alert, his gun poised in his lichen-incrusted hands. His pupiless eyes, glazed over with rust and decay, stare blankly into the overgrown forest nearby. A twig snaps, like the swift crack of a gunshot, throwing everyone into panic and screaming towards the safety of home. The bobbing flashlights disappear into the darkness, and once again, the dead rest in peace.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Aly Quick

 

Kaen's Song

 

Twinkling stars in a velvet sky

Shining rays of the moon's great eye

Crystal water smooth as glass

Musical river flowing fast

Crimson leaves upon the ground

Pearlized dewdrops of dawn abound

 

Snowy fields gleaming white

An eagle takes to soaring flight

A wolf's howl chills to the bone

A memory engraved in stone

Silver fish jump in the sea

Rain drips from the leaves of trees

 

No earthly wonder shall draw near

The beauty of an angel's tear

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Reach

 

Sometimes I wonder...
Ask myself why...
Something just whispered...
now I want to cry...

That it's too much for me to handle now
To know that I can't touch you now
To see what am wishing for
just beyond my fingertips and

it's too much for me to bear
imagining you standing there
I never felt so much before
I never felt so weak but

It's a little past me now
Just a little beyond what I can see
It's too far for me to reach
But I want to. How I want to Reach...
The comfort of your arms

And you're beyond the morning sunlight now
Beyond the deepest darkness now
and even though I try so hard
I can't seem to get that far

torn inside, I'm letting go
outside my window it begins to snow
and though it's warm inside my room
I only feel the cold 'cause

It's a little past me now
Just a little beyond what I can see
It's too far for me to reach
But I want to. How I want to Reach...
The comfort of your arms

~Intsrumental~

It's a little past me now
Just a little beyond what I can see
It's too far for me to reach
But I want to. How I want to Reach...
The comfort of your arms

~music fades to pianisimo~

Sometimes I wonder...
Ask myself why...
Something just whispered...
now I want to cry...

~sudden pick-up~

You're so close and yet so far away
But I hope you hear my voice today
'cause you're so dear to me
You're my cherished dream

It's a little past me now
Just a little beyond what I can see
It's too far for me to reach

But I want to. How I want to Reach...
The comfort of your arms

 

 

 

Untitled

 

A Heart weighed down

    with sorrow and pain

A sparkling Dream

    of  Heaven's gain    

A cursed soul

    who yearns to love

A thunder cloud

    like a gentle dove

A heart of gold

    In a world of Black

A rolling wheel

    that cannot turn back

A spirit burns

    to justice make

A mind's great urge

    to fate's chains break

An aim so true

     for protection won

A child of hope

     is cruelty's son

Ten in body

       One in soul

The precious blood

     and beauty unfold

 

 

Strange Feeling

 

As I'm standing on the road

Feeling lonely in the overwhelming crowd

I see you pass me walking by

 

And I watch you as you go

And I wonder if I know you from somewhere

Far away and long forgotten

 

But I go on, I just live

In this empty, loveless world I have been placed in

But I have the strangest feeling…

 

A Missing Chapter

 

You left with a smile upon your face

A new adventure

Things to see and lessons to learn.

You were filled with hope and yet

You knew that you were changing.

 

Your years of sorrow melting away

Your friends were near

To teach you how to be yourself

And free your true emotion

From a heartache of regret.

 

But I wasn't there to watch you

How you confessed

Of the love that hid inside you

And made a vow to protect

The happiness of those around you.

And now you're cold beneath the snow

And I was here alone.

I felt it in my heart and knew

I'd never hear the tale from you.

I'd missed the greatest chapter.

 

But my feelings couldn't run their course

An angel appeared

I saw your face, but a quieter soul

And I felt that you'd intended

To leave me something I could cherish.

 

She can never take the place of the love I was denied

Or of your smile

But I can make her happy, and she will always

Wrap her love around my aching soul

And show me I am not alone.

 

I hate to know I missed the most important things

That changed your heart

And how I'll never hear you laugh

Or see the sparkle n your eyes that told

No matter what our mood, you always cared.

 

I'll miss the way you always tried

To make us smile

While being sure we were always trying

To keep you pleased at any time

And if we didn't you'd make sure we were quite aware.

 

But as long as she stays by my side

I will keep living

To protect the ones I love until

I follow you into the light of heaven

And join you watching over those left behind.

We have shared the same true love

The same great dream

To preserve a happy future for her

It goes beyond our duty to fight out our lives

It is fueled by a never-ending love

 

And as long as I can stand I'll know

Your spirit lives

As long as I make sure you didn't

Fail to make their lives a little

Happier than they might have been

 

A heart-felt tribute to you, my friend,

Whose life has touched every soul that ever knew you.

But I regret with all my heart

That I missed the greatest chapter

 

Of your life.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Jake Michaels

 

Journey Home

 

Here I am riding bareback once again along the old dirt path.  Along the side of the road are lilacs in full bloom, letting their sweet smell glide through the rich country air.  There is a magical sense of comfort in this field, as though it is hugging me in its superb perfection.  As the pine grove grows near, my horse becomes tense.  Both of us fear this dismal place, with its age-old stories of horror.  Three lustrous black crows fly away from us, calling out warnings of the present danger.  Slowing down to a trot, we hear the spooky call of a large owl.  I think to my self, "How can a place so horrible contain such beauty?"  But we've passed that now, crossing the brook that runs crazily throughout the countryside.  Realizing that the worst is over, we are overjoyed by the sight of our destination.  We gallop joyously across the hayfield, with its stalks bowing to us with the help of the wind.  I gaze at the old, two-story log cabin I love so much.  Its ancient logs are wise like the owl.  The knots gaze at all that pass by.  Beyond the farm house the world goes on forever.  I am finally home.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Lauren Jones

 

Nature

 

The beauty of nature is not plain .

It is not something sprung from the hand of man.

It is not spoiled.

It is not corrupt.

Nature in its beauty does not wane.

It does not fail the test of time.

It will not perish.

It does not come from sin.

Nature does not fade, whither, and die.

Nature breathes.

It comes from the hand of God.

 

 

 

 A Heart’s Affliction

 

Surely would they come--

They’d bash and crush and blister.

Upon the broken pallet,

A star -- to me a sister.

 

Soon midnight would fall,

And bring its dusk anon.

And leave this tragic moor,

A victim of the dawn.

 

 

 

Acquiescence

 

Sit outside.

Breathe the air.

Feel the life--

Know it’s there.

 

See the beauty.

Know its hand.

Let wind take you--

As you stand.

 

Give into life.

Let it enter your veins.

Still in the essence-

Follow the rain.

 

Open your heart

To the truth of the thing.   

Know that this glory

Is of one divine King.

 

A song through the ages

As always before.

A thought of a presence--

Felt deeply as more.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Catherine Kruta

 

Music

 

That which cannot be expressed by words alone

Has been Expressed to me

The Heart behind the harmony

Was sung so beautifully

One can hope and feel and Listen

A Song will soon appear

That which cannot be expressed is shown

By a haunting Melody

With Music one is never seen

As a nothing more than lonely

All the Notes are bold and grand

When it's heard, in Joy we stand

 

It is a window of the Soul

The one thing that makes us Whole.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Grade School Creative Writing Contest

 

Poetry

First Place

 

Hailey Miller

Eighth Grade--Zion Lutheran School, Bethalto

Come Down to Me

 

When you are sad, I am confused.

When you give me strength, I am amused.

I know you are here to comfort me.

 

When you listen, I am heard.

When you sing, it's like a bird

It's all now clear to me, you see.

 

When you cried under the rain,

I was the cloud that was to blame.

Now look at what that dark day came to be.

 

Come down to me.

Make me the girl that I should be.

Give me a chance.

You always give me a second glance.

I'm who I am.

Please don't change.

Just help me.

I'm who I am.

Come down to me.

Second Place

 

Faith Decker

Eighth Grade--Zion Lutheran School, Bethalto

A Rainy Day

 

On a day when people feel gloomy,

I feel fresh.

On a day when people are sad,

I feel glad.

When people carry umbrellas,

I carry a smile.

 

I go outside with no shoes.

I find it pleasant.

I run

Until I fall.

Some find it queer.

I find it fun.

 

In a world of fear and suffering

It is nice to run.

I'm not saying I don't like sun,

But some days rain is fun.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Third Place

 

Garrett Hausman

Eighth Grade--Zion Lutheran School, Bethalto

Spring Break

 

Spring is near.

The birds I hear

Singing softly back and forth

After their voyage farther north.

The snow starts melting, the flowers bloom

Slowly fading the winter gloom.

I love spring, and summer, too

The warmer climate and break from school.

Happy children run and play

During the pleasant, longer day.

Football is over and baseball begins.

Now, instead of the Rams, the Cards should win.

I can hear creatures all the time

The birds at day and the frogs at night.

The cold and harsh weather is finally gone.

Now it is nicer from dawn until dawn.

Clouds scattered in the sky

All surround a lonely kite.

Soon this season will come to an end.

School will resume, and you'll be with old friends.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Short Story

First Place

 

Michelle Hanko

Eighth Grade--Zion Lutheran School, Bethalto

Em

 

It's only been six months since Em moved away.  Six long months which seem like years.  I live in Tremont, Indiana, and Em did too, up until six months ago, when she moved to Las Vegas….

 

 

 

Second Place

 

Robyn Gerber

Seventh Grade--Trinity-St. Paul, Hamel

Opening the Door

 

…Kirsten looked up from the letter and looked at her father's picture hanging on the wall.  Tears stung her eyes.  Daddy was going to come home from the war in two weeks.  But he was coming home now in a casket….

 

 

Third Place

 

Brett Balsters

Eighth Grade-Zion Lutheran School, Bethalto

Roach Wars

 

The year is 2005.  The place is the basement of an elderly couple;  war has broken out between the two civilizations of the cockroaches.  The Walz are a colony that lives in a big hole in one corner of the basement, and the Unders are a colony that lives under any type of furniture and will occasionally move from place to place.  Now, after months of fighting, the end is drawing near, and both sides are very nervous….