During our last class of April at Waters, homerooms 301 and 302 created riddle poems inspired by Sylvia Plath’s poem “Metaphor” which begins, “I’m a riddle in nine syllables.” Students guessed at Plath’s riddle, then had a hand in creating their own poems for their classmates to figure out!
301
Impure?
by Anonymous
He is a field of colorful tulips,
Sitting confidently, ready to be picked for a bouquet.
A ripened fruit at its most delicious.
He is a shiny apple,
A pair of new shoes.
She was a wilted rose,
Begging to be thrown away.
A molded apple,
Shriveled up and rotting away.
She was a pair of old, tattered shoes.
Blood
by Sarah A.
It’s blood running through our veins
an undescribable conditional feeling
like a diamond in the depths of the earth
Carrying a mountain on my shoulders
but still can’t replace it
like a sea full of fish
“…”
by Ameer E.
An unforgettable pinch that will never go away
Is an undying flame that can never be put out
I am a star amongst many but I shine the brightest
Is the first bite of that meal that you simply can’t get over
The everlasting light
That always guides you right
Is the first step that starts your day
So thankful that it doesn’t go away
Riddle
by Layla H.
I sneak up on you at the worst times.
A feeling one gets when talking to their love.
I’m red, black, blue, brown, like a disease that only some receive.
A difficult thing for some to do.
Like a puppy in a new home.
A happy couple walking down the run.
Family
by Zack J.
Long car rides is time spent together.
A soaring tree filled with bugs, is a bundle
of laughter and love.
A breath of fresh air, is something you
can’t live without.
Can you truly be lived without?
Family.
You sleep knowing you are _____
by Charlie M.
It is a blanket that the children think protect them from monsters
It is a glorious shield, unbreakable and unstoppable
It is a feeling of being at ease and able to rest
It is the fortress that you can feel safe in
But it is a wall that can be broken down with a hammer
A person shot down by the bad parts of the world
Even when it breaks it is a vase that can be fixed
It is a person that learns from mistakes
And it is a feeling that everyone deserves the right to have
Freedom
by Lucy D.
The heart of America
The foundation of this nation
Shatters like glass
302
Untitled
by Kylie B.
I’m a valentine’s card that’s passed around all day.
A red post-it note, shared and then dead.
I’m sometimes used incorrectly, but am there for everyone.
I’m a thousand-year-old tree, been here for centuries.
I never leave anyone behind, but sometimes I am left behind.
I am not cared for but caring
I am not loved for but loving
I am love, how can I be loving?
Being on Top of Things
by Ray B.
Getting out of bed and staying on
your daily schedule
while making sure your
dog is fed
and making sure you
pay the bank back.
All in all, make sure you’re
on track.
Honesty
by Arfan M.
I’m eating broccoli instead of moldy cheese
eating ice cream at 46 when I’m divorced & depressed
A broken limb or a papercut
I’m a fish allergic to water
The ungodly sound of a cannon splitting your guts
That one itch that doesn’t go away
That one cough that occurs and you’re trying to
Hold it back for the fifth time in a minute
It’s better now than later.
My thoughts
by Harper M.
My own dreams, trapped with my own fears.
Are they weary, or are they dear?
Questions, oh questions flooding my mind like a pool,
What I think could be intelligent,
but only makes me feel like a fool.
The tiny people going to work up there
but to me it’s all just a blank stare.
Untitled
by Jak M.
I’m a person’s day getting better,
It could be you
It could be the street sign
Or maybe it’s me
Someone who needs help
Maybe it’s a dollar that can’t buy you happiness
But at the end of the day it is something you say
Something you do, something you try
Or my day feeling accomplished.
It is kindness.
I Am Hard Work
by Joaquin N.
I’m a basketball player playing in a desert
a fat cat trying to jump in a chair
a puppy trying to stand still
a little kid trying not to cry after
getting hurt.
I’m a gym nerd trying to get an 8-pack.
A student getting 100% on a unit test.
An 8th grader getting into a top tier high school.
What am I?
