Last Saturday two bold poets represented Lawndale’s 6th and 8th-grade poets at the Poetry Center’s All School Reading. In another turn of events, the 8th grade class became two sections of poets, instead of one. This has been my excuse to showcase even more poems. This week, inspired by Amorosa M.’s poem “Where Are We From”, Lawndale explored what home, life, and community mean to them. These poems cross state lines, explore the heaviness of grief, and imagine the joys and pains of growing up in Chicago.
Ms. Barker
6th Grade
Wisconsin
by Rahsaan M.
I come from a
place where sounds matter
you will hear ducks calling
you will smell oil fields
you will smell diesel
also smell freedom
you will hear the 1939
express train that comes at 2:50
the big train that stops at the train stop
you will see the sunset
you will see all the ducks land to eat
when you’re in Wisconsin you will
just feel free
Where I’m From
Tabia W.
Where I’m from I see trees and rocks
all the time and the things I smell
are very normal and sometimes I
smell the wind blowing. The things
I have tasted are cookies and some
milk. And sometimes I hear bird
chirping and the wind blow and some
times I touch some trees and rocks.
Ms. Barker
8th Grade – Section A
El Barrio
by Kenderly C.
Puedo aver estado en varias partes
pero la guairita es la que más
quiero esta la gente amable, problemática
y mi familia paterna, el olor es el
mejor y ni se diga de la
comida, los dulces, la música y
el sonido de las motos es el
mejor cualquiera te da una
vuelta o la vuelta que se da el
señor gritando ¨papelón con limón
refrescate!¨
Getting Old
by Martrell H.
I come from a place where you
smell gas everywhere you go
Once I get old I want to
go home where I am alone
When I touch my bed
I enter my head
My blood ran cold when they
passed me the phone that’s how
I knew my grandma was gone
and that is how our lives go
I know it hurts it hurts so
bad but since she left I’ve
been sad
My nose is running I feel so
sick but how do I get rid of it
Dear Life
by Za’Mariah R.
I like to sleep when I feel hurt and low.
I daydream when I feel weak.
I feel safe when I’m alone but
also I feel unwanted. But everything
changes when I get around the people
I love. They turn on a light bulb
that I never knew was there.
Ms. Barker
8th Grade – Section B
Big City
by Sanajiah M.
I come from a big city
I come from the smell of food
I come from the taste of pizza
I come from cars and people talking
I come from black families having
a cookout in the backyard of
my great grandma
Sometimes I hope to leave
the city but I’m forever a
city girl
The Chi
Jymia E.
OH how I love The Chi
I love to see people footworking
down the street. I love the deep-dish pizza.
I love to see people in a group
down the street. I love to see
everybody h-a-p-p-y. I love
to represent my city.
Where I’m From
by Janya C.
I’m from kids growing up
& now they playing with guns. From the
time you pick up someone didn’t have to run.
From the time you walked outside & always
had fun. From the time when you were
young and never saw a gun. From the time you
went to the park and had fun with water guns.
From a time when you grew up & had
grass stains to cover the pain. The time
where I come from we had Icee Cups
& never made a plan.
I come from a place
where you never needed drugs
to hide the pain.
