After reading the classic poem “Chicago” by Carl Sandberg, the young poets from Waters Elementary wrote about their positive and negative experiences in the city of Chicago.
Abbie G.
Pigeons flock to the filthy streets
Snow falls at the end of March
One day it’s 70, the next it’s 30
This city is gross and dirty
Sun shines down on the glistening waters of Lake Michigan
The city is alive once again
It is summer time and the beaches are packed
The Bean downtown reflects smiling faces
Chicago is filled with many fun places
Kai C.
The city of Chicago is a city of diversity
Filled with various cultures and food
It is also a messy dangerous one
Where danger coats the cracked roads
And poverty and crime are common
I witness too often the poor miserable faces
Of once joyful people stricken down by poverty
Their pleas ignored by the brutal world
Charlie J.
Is our beauty really gone?
The centuries of smoke, of dust, of pollution
Cloud the sky
The fog can choke us
Keeps us from seeing the stars
Beautiful country sides and suburbs are what we wish to be
But here we stand, grey and ridden of green
Where is our beauty?
It is long since gone but is it really?
Our beauty is still inside of us
Living with the people
Our drive and determination
Our hopes
A city that doesn’t need the beauty
We are still strong
We are still living
We are still Chicago
Lucy L.
Struggling, springing, swerving, running, changing, moving
Like the wind of our name
The lake, like a big blue blanket over an invisible giant
Blue and rolling up and down into the clouds
Buildings growing tall as they reach for success
Coming closer to the skies as others struggling in the dust
Zach J.
Chicago a city full of hope and dreams
Yet not all come true
The filth and violence fill the streets
Smoke emissions
Babies crying
But look beyond all that
And you will find a wonderful city
With parks full of children
People socializing outside
Brightness everywhere
With birds chirping
Ruby N.
Sun over the lake
The traffic awakes
Sirens make the city shake
Late at night they gather ‘round
Seeing the Ferris wheel going with the quite sounds
Neighborhood swing makes the birds sing
Maxwell B.
Chicago with its’ parks littered
Train cars vandalized and broken
Poor faces crying for help
But Chicago with its parks and trees and slides
Trains to ride
Faces laughing and helping
Keilly S.
Chicago has Millennium Park, Chicago-style hot dogs, and the Bean
Chicago Some times has downsides to it
Like before the Chicago Fire
Sometimes it’s not safe to walk alone in some areas
Remus C.
Windy, cloudy, humid, grey
Messy, sticky, crowded, noisy
Condos and penthouses everywhere
Cars and traffic galore
Bright, friendly, fun
Parks and fountains and theaters
Cafes and tea bars and restaurants
Friends and family
Michelle D.
Chicago can be a negative place
Crime and danger
It can be a place with lack of shelter
And false hopes
With people of negative motives
But Chicago can also be a place with colors
And sounds and people and buildings and beauty
All kinds of accomplishments and people everywhere
It can be a place of hospitality and kindness
Frida C.
The Windy City
Filled with diversity
Cold Winters
Hot summers
All of the seasons
Chicago is fun
It may be filled with gangs
But it will always be my home
Deep dish pizza, the Bean, Sears Tower, so much more
A big city that is my home
Darwin K.
Trains rushing overhead
Cars are roaring, smells of bread
People talking, filled with pride
Others walking with a stride
Containing the energy until the sun falls
The night sets in
The energy dies
Peace, quiet. The world closes its’ eyes
I sit outside, thankful for the balance
For the moment of silence
In the sea of chaos and violence
Aria A.
The grey clouds from cigarette smoke
The loud honk of car horns
Distracting you from its glowing sunsets
And the beautiful cold clear waters
The Sun hiding its extraordinary light from behind the growing clouds
Nicolas F.
When I hear Chicago, I hear honking
The wind howling
People begging for money for life
I hear shoes clacking along the bird infested sidewalks
I hear the train tumbling along the tracks
As if it is about to derail
When I hear the sirens of ambulances
Screaming by, I don’t think of danger
I think of people helping, trying to keep their city
When I see the lake, I don’t see a filthy infested stream
I think of life
I think of people having a good time with what they have
Natalia B.
When all the cold wind fades away
And the tourists flood the city
When summer has just begun
To go on all 200 stories of Sears Tower
And to take pictures against the Bean
When sunshine covers up all of our worries
And puts a smile on our face
So we can peacefully swim in the waters of Lake Michigan
But then the cold hits
And the tourists book their tickets to flee
Because they no longer enjoy Chicago
And wait for Summer to come again
Because not only is it winter now
But that joy has been stolen from us
Since the gunshots replace the laughter of summer
So which one outweighs the other?
