In preparation of this week’s post, I have reflected on three events that have always symbolized renewal for me. Whether you are Catholic or not, chances are, you have noticed the first – people walking the streets wearing crosses of ash (and maybe a little glitter) on their foreheads (an event signifying Ash Wednesday which begins the Lenten season, where some people give something up and others reaffirm their New Years’ Resolutions), the fact that Daylight Savings Time begins next weekend, and the coming of spring a week after that.
These events assured me that we often begin new chapters before we close those that have come before; with this, I am presenting a little more than the upper classmen’s sonnets that I promised. Last week’s blog featured all 6th grade writers since the 7th and 8th graders were working to perfect their sonnets. While they did, the 6th graders started the process of writing new poems on the theme of love, but focusing on a different topic: Place. In particular, we wrote about places we love, our city, our neighborhoods, our homes.
We read, “The Backyard by Twilight” by Doug Van Gundy, which places us in a backyard beneath the city, in an evening wrestling with the edge of summer. As always, we discussed vocabulary like cacophonous. We discussed the sensory details present: the smell of barbecue, the sounds of cicadas, and the lull of nearby traffic. The students then began to write. A few examples of the beginnings of these poems, which become the beginnings of villanelles during today’s class, are shown first, here, and then you will find yourself engulfed by the lovely sonnets written by the teenagers, who “don’t know anything about love”. To complete these, the 7th and 8th graders were provided with a sonnet template where they fleshed out their drafts. And now, we will round out the season of love and embark upon the newness of spring. Please Enjoy.
6th Grade
William G.
My LIFE in my Room
When I am in my room, laying there
doing nothing but watching YouTube,
but then I do something I like to do most
Sleep, where I can dream of doing nothing
Or dream of doing awesome things
Now you know my life in my room
Now tell me yours
Micah T.
My Favorite Place
My favorite place
in the house is
in my room
when I am in my room
it feels like my own
little world
8th Grade
Kaitlin K.
Some Kinds of Love
Some love can make your heart broken
And with some love they can make you cheat
Some kinds of love can get stolen
And in some kinds of love you can get beat
Some love can bring you to a new start
And some kinds of love can bring you peace
And some kinds of love can warm your heart
And some kinds of love brings out a beast
Some kinds of love can bring you fear
And some kinds of love makes you blind
Other kinds of love can bring you tears
And some love can make you lose your mind
Some kinds of love is hard too, sometimes
But some kinds of love can’t cost a dime
NaKayla W.
Love
Love is the meaning of life filled with light
Love is like a star in the sky shining bright through my eyes
Love shines like a light so bright in the night
Love can fill your heart with beautiful star lights
Love rises like the sun in the sky I can barely hang
Love is like the waves in the ocean saying hello
Love smells like a beautiful strawberry fruit outside
Love tastes like a watermelon with sugar on top
Love looks like a dolphin in water jumping out to eat
Love is in the air with the beautiful sun
But love is not always fir when he is there
It also looks like a tear drop in every stare
But love is always there that you can see
And it never goes anywhere that you don’t see
Jeremiah G.
The Bad Part about Love
Love is like a bumpy road
You have your ups and you have your downs
It leaves your heart lumpy
Also leaves you with a frown
Feelings are shown
Hearts are broken
Memories are gone
It leaves you choking on your words
Left lonely like a single dollar in your pocket
Missing the good moments and regretting the bad ones
Seeing things that remind me of you make me want to holler
Doing my best to move forward and forget everything
But I wish you the best of luck
From now on I’m going to keep my feelings tucked
7th Grade
Tamara C.
What is Love?
I love a soul, heart, pride or sacrifice?
Is love to fear or to have tears?
Love is whole, love is art, love near inside
Love is a bad dream and it is not here
Is love taught in bright, lovely, colorful lights?
Is love so quiet that you will be cheating?
Do you just love when its night
Love is not just eating, getting beaten
Give your love and soul, also energy
Is love to be hurt or heart-broken?
Give me love, hope, kindness and symphony
I can think of many ways for my heart to be stolen
Don’t make my heart fall and die
I will want to fall down and cry
Kanyeh
Love is True Pain
Love is like a gift that you could never lose
It’s at the point where you chose who you love
Love is a gift that you could drift, if you let go you will slip
The end where you descend and you might end
An ocean silent, motionless and deep
You could win love and love could be broken
If you let go and push you might sink
Hear truth and reason of words I’ve spoken
Love could be a pain or some type of hurt
Love could be pain as if you have been killed
You could try to heal it but make it worse
Hearts will mend; before you know, it will seal
Love is powerful, something you can build
Sometimes it’s like gold or harder than steel
Janiyah C.
What you thought?
Love is good, very good, sometimes even great
Love is bad, sometimes sad, even makes you cry
You don’t love me like you said you would
And it’s very sad, it makes me mad
Love is not red, love isn’t roses or chocolate candy
Love is not blue like the sky, not like the ocean
You love me, at least that is what you said
But you can find it in the one little clue
What is love if you’re not here with me?
If you are not guaranteed with me?
What you thought this was?
You were just gon’ leave me without saying goodbye?
Love is just heartache.
Love is just love.
Kamarria W.
Love is a Mark
What is love if I’m always with my hood?
If it doesn’t make me feel any good?
I hide my feelings inside
I put my pride aside
Love makes me go blind
Love makes me go hide
Love is not real, love is not blue
Although you can find love in one clue
Love is an open door
Until you feel tears and fears
You dream and sing
With sad moments in between
You put a mark on my heart
Love is a mark in the dark
Maurice F.
Me and My Family
I know I love my family
Then I try to be helpful to my family
Then they see the love we have cant’ be broken
They love to play and have fun
Then they look at the TV for hours
Then we eat together, talk with anyone
Then we go to our rooms
I love my sisters and mother
I hear my family feel love
My mother makes food
I feel for the family
I know I’d like myself to do more
Then again I try to be like the air
Marshawn M.
What is Love?
What is love? Is it just a heart?
I really don’t know, I think it’s just pride
Or romance, something like an art
Love is something that people hide
Love is something that people keep inside
Does it mean you’re in love if you cried?
My love is like a car so come jump in my ride
When I run out of gas I aint got no heart
But all you gotta do is play yo’ part
If you love me and I love you
then we can push it like a shopping cart
We can be like the Simpsons, Homer and Marge. I aint talkin’ Bart.
So you better stay with me. Love is like a one way street.
No matter how much you look, you would never find someone better than me
