We Will Remember
By Rachel F.
How strange and ironic this time was.
How we sprayed every package with Lysol,
and hoarded toilet paper
like it was gold on a roll.
We will recall...
The cookies we ate,
and the books we devoured.
The hilariously awkward zoom meetings,
the moment we became an armchair traveler.
The hobbies we kept inventing,
and the boredom we learned to ignore.
How we either buzzed our hair with a lawn mower,
or let it grow down to the floor.
Burned in our brains and will be…
The masks that made us look like criminals,
and how our living rooms became offices and gyms.
The days spent in our pajamas,
and how our daily walks were grim.
We will forever cherish…
The quality time spent with family,
and how life took on a slower pace.
Allowing us to notice the small things,
and appreciate the miracles right in front of our face.
A Bird With Its Wings Cut Off
By Jenna L.
You trap everything you love
And you call it that because what else can it be?
Manipulative, controlling, face the facts
That everything in the world will come before me
You say it’s love
Because you can’t admit when you’re wrong
You call it love
Because you can’t see that I’m never gone
You call it love
But you pin the blame
when you gave me the choice
To go either way
I made peace with you
And with him
But it’s never enough
And you say it’s still love
You call it love
Because you can’t let me go
Even though I have
A million times before
And being trapped in a house
Four months in
With no way out
Has been draining
Love is supposed to come easy
With a mom and dad
Even though they never question
There own authority
And you still question
Why I don’t say I love you
When all I’ve been
Is up in my room
Life Through the Screen Door
By Georgia K.
I’ve been talking about life as an abstract
I guess
Flowery poetry and the way every line from every hozier song sticks to me like knife wounds in my soul
The feeling of living through something we’ll never truly recover from has made my brain dance through the apocalypse with eyes closed so the world can’t get in
But what is there left but disappointment and weirdly apocalyptic music
I’ve been talking about life in the same way I talk about my English homework that’s 3 weeks overdue
Or that book on my bedside table I never got around to reading last summer or last weekend or last night
I just haven’t gotten around to it yet
I guess
I keep writing
Hoping to find some way to arrange words to let everyone feel this visceral feeling I have in my heart
And I learned that word last week from a good friend
The same way I’ve learned about every emotion I gave up on years before
Harsh reds seem to describe me much better these days than the flowers I forgot to water sitting on my windowsill
Or these hollow feelings I forgot to deal with when I was thirteen years old
But the light still shines in from that little window in the kitchen without so much as a nod to the way everything is crumbling
A Broken Despair
By Tristany C.
Chariots of gold
My heart forever He will hold
My soul He turns to clay
My night he turns to day
Away my eyes tear
The pain I cannot bear
I'm now in His care
Take away my strength, they do not dare.
The world I come to fight
I am protected by His might
He provides the everlasting Light
I have a way through the night.
Captured in a constant daze
He takes my heart and makes a glaze
A glaze of the Good News
A fire starts inside me with a fuse.
Mourning fills my heart until dusk is nigh
But in my mind, on the clouds I surely fly
Within thy grace, my cup never runneth dry
I am saved, hallelujah by and by
Matris
By Ella B.
the corona-crown was bestowed upon
my savta et nana
“only some will die” “a mask is restrictive”
some things are more restrictive than a cloth over your mouth for half an hour
some things like the weight on my neck as i hold back tears at the third zoom funeral i’ve attended this year
the breathing machine they were hooked into in their last moments
the pages of eulogies in the boston post
why was a mask ever politicized? why can’t we care about other people?
Virus
By Sneha B.
Heavy breaths,
Coarse voice,
A deadly cough,
Traps us inside.
The inevitable is here,
Slowly sweeping mankind,
If you were so afraid to let go,
Why did you choose to die?
Killing yourself,
In that menacious smoke.
You thought it was pleasure,
Recklessly you sustain,
Taking your kin,
Who were innocently behind,
You died within,
And took their lives.
We made this our world,
Selfishly, only our,
Not caring about the consequences,
When mother earth is enraged.
The time has now come,
To pay for our sins,
For the skies are now clear,
And wildlife is unchained.
Maybe this was bound to be,
For a virus to awaken,
To save this planet,
From a fatal virus,
Called mankind.
The Wicked Witch of the Northeast
By Kelly S.
I get used to my loneliness,
In the way that one gets used to the biting winter cold and bitter coffee.
Both aren’t easy things to swallow,
But you swallow them down anyway because what else can you do?
I know what’s going to happen to me.
I’m probably going to end up alone, but that’s alright.
That’s how it’s always been, you know?
Staying inside my four grey walls isn’t all that different.
I grew up with no special confidants, no enemies, no lovers.
Not me, I cried myself to sleep and whispered my own secrets back to me.
I became them all for myself,
My own greatest love, and my own worst fear all wrapped up in one.
I’m probably going to die alone, and that’s alright.
I’m used to it by now, I think.
But every time my ashes turn back to ashes and dust,
Picking up the broom and starting again seems harder.
The Pandemic Chronicle
By Samriddhi B.
Oh take me back please!
Back to the days when daddy returned from office with a smile on his face ,
When mommy could take workshops, seminars and more to enlighten young minds,
When I could celebrate birthdays and chill with my closest pals
Global news feed has now been replaced with the miserable condition of farmers and daily wage
labourers who are struggling to survive ,
The pathetic state of migrant workers struck in the worst financial crisis ,
The pitiable condition of the poor and destitutes who are on the verge of economic and social
collapse!
Oh take me back please!
Countless covid19 deaths globally, has left sorrow and remorse.
With the doctors and medical staff risking their lives and the health officials giving all they can,
This virus seems too stubborn to leave ..
Getting to hear about old parents yearning to meet their kids ,
Young minds losing hope and ending lives in depression,
Talented youth losing out on jobs ,
Adds to my tears and anguish !
Oh take me back please!
World Today
By Hridya G.
When the world departs with it's failures
We remember for the poor souls,
who left their footprints on earth.
It is neither a great watch nor a sobbing story,
when fate acts at its strongest phase.
Sometimes, an act of compassion can grow long as far as your selfless service
Choose the right path, for it is untouched ahead in the future.
We Can Overcome
By Muskan J.
It has affected a lot,
But now it's time to sort
Building immunity is the sum,
Together we can Overcome!
Poems
By Shreya J.
1) The heart is a place of court
Where the decisions of mind
Are valued upon
You can betray the mind with facts
But never the emotions of the heart.
2) I never was
But always to be
Giving hope to the living and dead
Being there, coursing inspiration in all
I’m not physically present
But always there in mental being
I’m tomorrow, I’m order
Judging all the ways of humanity.
3) The mirror is the truth
Where you see the world in a new light everyday
Seeing the imperfections
Is what a normal person does
What makes you extraordinary
Is your ability to see the good
Just like half glass full
Where your perceptions
Generate a new you.
4) Don’t traumatize your present
With the fear of future
Just bask in the glories of present
Cause with every moment gone
The present is becoming the past
With no way of getting it back
You may be forced
To look upon the past.
5) I wished to fly
Soaring in the sky
Feeling the soft breeze, the misty clouds
Rubbing against my skin
But that wish can never come true
Holding me back
Is the human drama and emotional trauma
Clutching me with their dark tendrils
Never to be left
Just growing and wrapping its tentacles
Tighter over my agitating body…
6) A deepest wish to break the bonds
Struggle to keep the chains desolate
A fake smile required for the fake world
Living doesn’t matter now
Its all about survival
Dying a thousand deaths inside
Pain glowing in the eyes
But all covered with just a fake smile.
7) Gone are the days of fun
Like the wind
From the chasm to the run
Deep is the depth of heart
Like the bottomless ocean singing from thy heart.
8) The evolution of time is the new hope
Hope that someday, it’ll be better
Humanity will be back again
Someday, the answers hidden will reveal itself
Coursing through time
Along the speed of light.
This Season
By Isabella S.
This Lenten journey is definitely one to never forget~
Quarantined, seeing Jesus on the cross and people dying is surely enough to make one very upset.
This season.
This season of Lent,
We didn’t put on our skirts and ties to get ready fast
Simply because there was no 7:30 Sunday Mass.
No Father Carlino’s Homilies, Eucharist or church bells ringing.
No piano, Holy Water or the congregation singing.
Instead..
we watched church in the family room, saying prayers together.
No matter whether in church or home, God will be with us wherever.
This Palm Sunday, no palms to make crosses- big or small.
Desperate times like this, God will pick up our crosses when we fall.
Going through Holy Week
Holy Monday, Holy Tuesday, solace is all we seek.
Saying many, many prayers as we continue to see the COVID-19 numbers peak.
Holy Wednesday- Judas betrays Jesus for 30 silver coins, so sad.
As we now see the whole world- even my town infected- this is really bad.
Nothing on the market shelves,
businesses and schools are closed as well as many other things.
This Easter, no get togethers or family gatherings.
Holy Thursday- The Last Supper and Jesus washes his Apostle’s feet
As we look at these brave doctors and nurses putting their patients lives first to treat.
Good Friday- we see the unjust trial and horrible crucifixion of our Lord Jesus Christ.
With fasting and prayers all day- the blood He sheds for us doesn’t even suffice!
Scourged at the pillar and crowned with thorns,
Shows how much he loved us~how much he adorns.
He carried his cross “Thy will will be done,” as he said in Gethsemane the previous night.
While on this Good Friday we prayed for all the COVID-19 patients who are trying to survive with all their might.
The nails in his hands and feet, He suffered in so much pain.
The agony, the suffering, as the nails pierced into his veins.
Jesus then died on the cross and was laid to rest in the tomb.
As many Americans this Easter will be connecting with family members on Zoom.
Easter Sunday is here!
He has risen-~although we may not see Him,
He is near.
Although we may not be present at church with the incense and the Easter flowers,
We pray in our homes to Almighty God to give us His strength and His power.
For all the COVID-19 patients may we pray for them today.
May we get on our knees and humbly say~
That the Almighty God in heaven will be with us all.
The strong, the weak, the short, and the tall.
God created the heavens and the earth.
He chose Mary to give a very special birth.
To Jesus Christ His only son, who suffered death on the cross.
As we continue to pray for all the lives that have been lost.
Let God protect us, our state, our country, our world...
Everything does happen for a reason~
That is why we go throughout the Lenten Season.
Let’s be joyful and full of hope this Easter Sunday.
Our Lord has Risen up!
In the future, we pray, we will be back at church to receive Communion from the sacred cup.
We don’t know when this will end,
or when the curve will start to bend.
But...
We do know, we have God and Jesus in these tough times.
The strength, the hopefulness and love so divine.
Yes,
this Easter Sunday we are not wearing our finest clothes to church or receiving the Holy Eucharist.
But,
let us count our blessings.....
which are simply numerous.
One thing that did not change-
is that Jesus Christ has Risen today!
Praise be to Jesus!
Alleluia!
Amen!
Let us pray!
COVID-19
By Akhao K.
From the known land it came,
Spreading the smell of fear to the nations;
The fear of death.
The running world struck by fear.
In days it conquered thousands of lives;
Humanity cowered in fear,
Keeping itself in isolation.
In days it became a global fear,
Life that vanishes;
While humans are trying to be survivors,
Even the wealthy fear it.
Nations close down in fear;
Where hundreds are starving for food.
Humans lock themselves in four walls,
Hoping that prevention helps them survive.
All lives hope for a life amidst the deaths;
It's more like the end of time.
melted ice
By Tia K.
She was cold as ice,
Who never melted.
He was hot as fire,
Who made her melt
At the first sight.
Petals of my Diary
By Chanchal B.
Poetry drips from my pen
Like early morning dewdrops,
I soak it in my diary
Like an inked morning flower.
Isn't It Yours?
By Naina S.
Little do you know,
the Sun is yours,
though it enlightens your way,
those scorching rays closes your eyes,
and demands you to listen your heart.
Believe me, only the sun is yours.
Water is yours,
though it quenches your thirst,
it wants you to douse your fears.
Only the water is yours.
Air is yours,
though it is capable of making you a life,
still it desires to make you alive.
Only the air is yours.
Earth is yours,
though it's full of disasters,
it wants you to save yourself from all.
Only the earth is yours.
Sky is yours,
though it is with you for all over,
but wants you to guide yourself,
so you learn to stand alone and strong.
Damn it, only the sky is yours.
The Darkness
By Izelle K.
she kept looking where the light filters in.
but the world still seemed so dark.
A Little Distance
By Mahi P.
Maybe the walls are coming for you,
And you miss the people, you want to meet.
This house is causing you all the blues,
I'm sorry if you miss the sun and the heat.
A few out there are falling short,
Of hope and time, as we speak.
The game of life isn't an extreme sport,
But We can be their strength as they fall weak.
The world on its knees, praying to whomever above,
Together we can fight this situation.
Just A little distance, and a lot of love,
And just like that we're all a part of the solution.
Tell the walls, to hold on and you do too,
The people you miss? tell them to be safe.
Let your ideas make rainbows to fight the blues,
And stay away, for the ones fighting like the brave.
Dear Cute Hot Black Guys
By Nandita
Dear Cute hot black guys,
When I see you
I don't look at your broken English words
Or the right pronunciation and the grammar
I don't look at your skin color
Or your hair
I see the struggle set deep beneath those gorgeous eyes which once watered fountains and diamonds,
I see the struggle of dating and making friends on a land which is strange to you,
I see the struggle of trusting someone with your heart which has been broken more than once,
I see the struggle of walking on the streets while getting stares,
I see the burnt charcoal , the blackboards which couldn't teach us moral values and the pencil lid which broke with all the pressure
I see not black but the darkest shade of brown
I see you as hot as fire
Because you have learned to burn.
Masquerade
By Ian C.
Masquerade, masquerade
We must attend the masquerade
No ballroom dance, no promenade
Masquerade! Masquerade!
But what of all the friends I've made?
Masquerade! Masquerade!
Huddle in your huts for shade
Masquerade! Masquerade!
Feels longer than the Nights of Scheherazade
Masquerade! Masquerade!
Promise dies and anew is made
Masquerade! Masquerade!
To the future all our memories fade
Then a donkey's kick, the virus brayed
We fell about, and on the ground we laid
Please won't it end; the masquerade.
It's Been Long Enough Until We Meet Again
By Nishtha K.
It’s been quite long since this peril arrived,
thrashed us into chaos, whilst in our unprepared, the
sedentary lifestyle,
we suddenly were only seen, on these small rectangular
screens,
what were once hugs now
simply smile,
smile below the cover, smile a feet apart,
the blazing summer sending chills down the spine,
spraying around what assured us of health, on your things
and mine,
perplex-ion holding onto it’s place, in the priority list,
uncertainty surrounds quite literally everyday,
the economy slips down, so does the health, but it doesn’t
stop here,
worried if this peril had a heir,
but alike the rainbow shining bright,
amongst the dark raging and thundering sky,
the humanity lost not hope but gained it’s might.
Shreds, Grows, Deteriorates
By Khushi M.
It's the gatha of my transitions,
When I too wished for garnering ambitions.
I started my journey 4.54 billion years back,
All alone, with no one else to quack.
And, then slowly was accompanied by the human creed,
Little did I know that all it was 'human greed'!
Sluggishly ceasing and hindering my blooming,
With torpid climate, my body fuming.
My woodland transfigured into a badland topography,
Oh! You ruined my aspects of physical geography.
Human Geography now had it's say-
With everyone weeping all we do now is pray.
Wait, till now I've just grown and started to shred,
Now from where will you procure your daily bread?
I am ailing,
My strength wanning.
My cries were un-herard,
And now your plights are a thunder-bird!
My transition facet is this-
My recovery tenure is fix,
Healing, Aiding, Refuling now is regular and not in a dix.
I will soon bloom out pure,
Regaining my diminished vitality;
I will rise for sure.
I will rise for sure..
I will rise for sure...
I will rise for sure....
The Weeping Earth
By Mitali S.
I went to see the forts and the palaces,
with hundreds of people breathing freely.
Crowds stood in front of the showcases,
without distancing themselves completely.
I used to run around my favourite places in the morning,
without getting suffocated with something that covered our faces.
My smile would get even bigger when the senile people used to pass smiles,
with those beautiful gazes.
Roads didn't get time to lay around without the traffic,
and the pollution embraced us in its chest.
My heart always skipped a beat when my eyes saw the views so scenic,
it was almost like a World tarmac fest.
Time was passing and it increased its speed,
sins were so in trend that even the kids had blood in their little hands.
Amidst this, our planet decided that it was about time to be freed,
by eliminating the breathers from its lands.
Today, everything is happening just as a toddler thought,
"Mommy, the world will play ring-a-ring-a-roses with me one day."
Expectedly, the Earth heard his heart,
and at the end of the game, hand-in-hand, it dropped.
Kind hands picked it up,
and nurtured it with utmost care.
They confronted the virus that enveloped,
our little Earth who was filled with prayers.
Happy tears started dropping,
when our planet got the importance it deserved.
The World Fest started happening again,
with happiness and kindness with their seats reserved.
lemon drop skies and chocolate streaked summers
By Mia G.
it's hard to not long for what could have been.
what would i give to walk hand in hand down scorching pavement, flip-flops catching at splintering fractures & dandelions who defied the odds? what would i give to spring from doorways as though we could fly, hearts free of virus thoughts & heavy stones of fear?
how i long for those lemon drop summers, hard candy sticking to the back of my teeth, happiness flooding my mouth, staining my tongue. how i wish for cuffed short days, poolside afternoons, dewdrop mornings, & firefly evenings as the tides lull me to sleep. i crave your hand tracing firecrackers along my scalp; i need to see your smile as opposed to the facade of cotton shielding you from germs, but also from our fizzling chemistry. could our sparks go flat behind our masks?
it's funny how you don't appreciate something until it's gone. you & summer are synonymous; anytime i smell sunscreen, it makes me think of you. lemon drops don't taste the same without you by my side; i hate the medicinal aftertaste that i never seemed to notice before. your ever-present smile made them sweeter, somehow.
it's hard to see the blue in your eyes from six feet away. i remember thinking that your eyes were actually mirrors, reflecting the sky in all her glory. i half expected a cloud to drift into your pupil. now i can't remember if your irises are overcast or sunny or somewhere in between, and it pains me.
but we're alive. the earth is rotating & dawn spreads her fingers across the heavens each morning without fail. we're gripping the slippery rope of sanity with white knuckles & it seems as if we might fall, but i know our sturdy grip can shield us from this hurricane.
one day, we'll sit beneath the elm tree in the park & watch as clumsy clouds spill chocolate across the sky and giggle as the sun admonishes them. we'll breathe in honeysuckle joy & entwine our fingers without a care in the world, palms pressed together, chocolate dripping into our hair from the branches above us.
but, until then, hold on. i'll be there in the park, waiting for you, & the sky knows not to spill her cocoa until you arrive.
Time Lost
By Annelise R.
I have lost my grip on Time,
for on closed fist it nipped,
pulled dauntlessly on my
trusting thumb,
pricked by ambition
and
a tendency to watch
the coming of the horizon.
To the waning sea,
Time ran,
paws bloodied and free,
the night I forgot to watch
the setting sun.
Three weeks have escaped my grip;
I know not of their journey,
though I am the mindless passenger.
Where is she now?
That somber child,
with burning lips,
depraved of choice?
Fleetingly, Time is heard
in the call of a bird,
but I cannot be certain.
Each night,
I wait for dawn,
and
for morning to take its throne,
yet in apprehension
the boundless night prevails.
Alone
By Annelise R.
In the eternal afternoon,
days blend into nights
and the knife cute deeper
into my hopeful flesh.
To beat the ticking clock,
I sit and stare,
inventing friends in the glass
of my bedroom window.
Would you hear it if I called?
Or would my spirit echo off the walls?
New Normalcy
By Tanmya T.
the brink of tears comes at a time like no other
the echoing, distant woe of a dream faraway
but locked, trapped inside
the enclosures of the metal phone
flawless human beings whose laughs chime like bells on a beach
being heard through the girl’s ears
only separated through an artificial screen
but brought together through wishing and waiting
for the contagion of pleasantness to penetrate through her, too,
for anything to occur once and again
and be brought back to the distant longingness of deadlines and due dates
rather than the deadline of the
number on the scale to dial back
waiting for the chance to shine with the waves of the ocean kissing the tips of her toes
rather than the chance to own the edges and curves that are carved from none other
than the true and mastery Creator of
perfection and wishes.
waiting to be earned back
by herself and not anyone else.
not the new normalcy
that she only knows through the enclosures of the small metal phone
but not now, not now, not now.
The Labour's Plight
By Irmin T.
The man walked with his family,
pebbles poked their bare feet,
shoulders hunched in near defeat.
Yet they walked on,
to their homes
miles away,
while we watched from,
our cars.
Havering
By Kate T.
You're a hundred miles away,
Holed up in some Essex town I'd never heard of before.
I'm a channel away,
staring out from Ben Head,
Bitterly wishing I had been born Eddie
McGettigan;
So I could swim to see you.
You're a pen pal, a confidant,
A distraction from the constant demands for worksheets and word documents,
You're 2020's consolation prize.
As the days stretch on,
And elasticated strings stretch behind my ears,
I'm all the more disappointed that you're a hundred miles away,
Holed up in some Essex town I'd never heard of before.
Together
By Aryan D.
May the beauty of words,
Overshadow the heinous,
Grieves of this hollow world,
Filled with shallow people,
Whose mercy we demand,
For sake of peace and sanity.
May the power of music,
Bless ears of the persecuted,
Over years and years bringing,
Glitter of hope and quenching,
The thirst of their hearts begging,
For tranquility and welfare.
May the verse of God,
The holy almighty and his,
Voice bring out the love,
For humanity in you,
So you may drag yourself,
Into the wild to disperse,
Your duty of spreading love.
Promise whoever you look upto,
Whomever you pray to,
Whomsoever this concerns to,
Keeping at bay our differences,
We will spread euphoria,
Together, Together and Together.
The Doctors
By Harsimran K.
So much they do
For us
Pandemic warriors – they are
Saving us
Thanking each time
We see ‘em
Is what they need
He
By Harsimran K.
The summer haze
Worse than a plague
She won’t go out
And read
And write
And love herself
An Alleged Source
By Celeste M.
An intangible force
With an alleged source
Brought remote living
Having us live in our home building
Our lives are at a pause
School barely starts in the fall
Families separated
Civility has faded
They say it rooted from the Orient
Controversy is underwent
An epidemic
No, a pandemic
A mere event
No, it’s the present
The symptoms of the intangible source
Is an alleged source
Tremor
By Chhavie G.
Is anything foreseeable?
Who knew waves would gulp the predictable?
The glitter is now grimful,
Would that claps be again youthful?
Was it just god's plan,
Or Was it just fate,
Who knew that the mansion,
Would now just be a crate!
The sky wasn't our limit,
Now wings flap in a cage,
As the water has wrung out,
From the infinitely far space.
When I step behind,
And look across the ocean,
I feel it was meant to be
As the mortals weren't woken.
Though the tremors are strong,
But we aren't holding up wrong,
Let's follow the human religion,
And await the joyous season.
Corona Warriors
By Vaibhav R.
When the nation was locked,
When the transportation blocked,
When the streets were quiet,
And nothing was right.
Death and mourning all around,
Not a single soothing sound.
Natives suffered the quarantine,
For the world got COVID-19.
Then they came to protect us,
From this fatal corona virus.
Working out day and night,
To make the situation stable and right.
They are out of their dwelling,
So, the world can play and sing.
And enjoy the freedom again,
Without any fear or pain.
To save the world from this hazard,
They themselves ventured out into the deadly blizzard.
They are our doctors and police, protecting us,
During this pandemic of coronavirus.
Not giving a second thought to their life, Putting themselves at the tip of the knife.
Salute to doctors and police out there, So, the world can breathe fresh air.
Thank you for shielding the nation,
With absolute effort and dedication.
Afterparty
By Eva G.
As we sit inside our homes today ,
Phones in our hands ,
Music in our ears ;
We mustn't let our minds bleed.
We may be perched up on the top of the world,
With nothing to do but stay in.
But how long ?
How long can we stay there?
The winds must blow sometime ,
They must take away
the Ill fate we view today as A Holiday;
but tomorrow as Doomsday.
Let's hang up the birds in the sky,
Let the animals soar free,
And rid our homes , the earth;
of smoke and of the chemical screen .
Let us paint the skies blue once again.
Let it blend with the green of trees;
And make the rain crystal clear.
Prepare for the afterparty.
For the Earth may be self loving;
But Until we vow ,
To let it love itself.
We must not breathe in it's fresh air.
We mustn't tread on the green grass,
Until we learn to keep it that way.
And we mustn't be free,
Until the Earth isn't too.
This may be a time to take your phones,
and let the music speak ;
And it may be a time
we finally admire what has become of our home without our interference.
We must let nature co-exist,
Play with us , games we all enjoy.
Let the birds talk to us ,
through chirps .
Let it become a time
we inspire ourselves and others ;
To help the Earth grow,
once it let's us breathe free .
Let us vow to keep it clean,
and make it a better place ;
even after it's given up ,
And got rid of this Ill fate.
Contemplation
By Katya T.
My whole world has disappeared from my reach
Everything I thought I knew is blurry
There are just some things that are hard to teach
How to be strong and how not to worry
As everything I have worked for is postponed
I contemplate why my ambitions must pause
Time won’t stop for those who feel trapped and owned
By this life-altering time and its cause
Everyday is just like the one before
I try my best to make a new normal
But I now understand what this time's for
To realize the values that make me mortal
I wonder why this is happening now
I’ll try to make good out of it, I vow
Rendition of my Purpose
By Prarabdh A.
I was sitting alone near the sea shore
With my tiny little brain trying to ignore
All the misery of life, just for a second
Because of which my life is reckoned
Suddenly a cool sea breeze hit my face
Reminding me of the dreams to chase.
The dreams which are bounded with time,
Through which i can earn in dime
In order to travel the journey of life
Happily, ever after without facing much strife
My Heartbeat
By Prarabdh A.
Father you are a role model for me,
For all my locks you are my only key.
Father you helped me to face all my problems,
And you are above all in the column.
Father you are the one who built this abode.
You made a complete strong road,
Joining me to my destination.
You gave me the best education and motivation
So that I can do the best in the future
You were always to me like a tutor
There were times when you scolded me
But by doing so you also moulded me
Mother is the other car seat
Cause if she is my heart you are my heartbeat
The Prime Time
By Asmita A.
Since decades physical abuse is declared as a crime
But now the youth should take initiative because the time is prime
It's not about Asifa from Kathua or Damini from Delhi
But about every girl even in burkah or showing bellies
They are given cigarettes scars and iron marks
Even the night says "Don't roam alone in parks"
Because the environment is not safe for anyone
Whether it be a kid a lady or a respected citizen
The boys stays in the safer side and are gay
" The girl might be wrong " the society says
The thinking and the views of the society has to change
But not by poster banners or human chain
The great movies like shridevi's Mom and big b's pink
Give us a wonderful message but compelled us to think
That if everyone is equal before law
Then why our society has this big flaw!!!
Covid-19
By Glycia L.
Confronting consolidated victories
Blocking all roads and horizons
Validating, unprecedented, destruction
Preventing dreams, progress, lives
Dismantling any and all normal routine
- 19 years of renovations, construction, destruction
Countries unfold to meet targets
The living attempt to colonize planets
And suddenly, everything stops.
What was play now is pause, bright red
People die in beds, but we also saw mutual solidarity in the streets
Unprepared and fake news governments running leagues
Racism, homophobia, feminicide and other crimes still most revolting, but this time the people are not silent
Unemployed in droves, but never without hope
With or without vaccine, many risk getting their daily bread "And the salary is ok", said Professor Raimundo
Confined at home for a crime we didn't commit
But we do it so that more people don't have to suffer
A year undecided, unpredictable, abnormal
A virus reappears, everything falls apart
Nothing is like before, and the race begins
Not by weapons, nor by industrialization,
Neither for oil nor gasoline But for a vaccine, more than that, around the world that we once thought boring
Through the streets full of stressed and backward people
For trade more alive than the carnival itself
For the parties we have so much to keep from going
For the hugs and kisses not given
But we wait, because everything has a beginning and an end
And in the end, we will be able to look back and learn from what happened
Regret what we lost and smile at what was left and what we gained
A new reality
Corona
By Ruby Y.
Oh Corona, you got all of our holidays from our school,
Eat this not that Drink this not that is the rule,
If you sneeze, cough or have fever its not at all cool,
The prices have dropped been it groceries to fuel
Greet your loved ones without a hug,
Have sanitizers and wash your hand with water full of the mug,
There are malls and cinemas with the board of no entry,
We got to mind that our bottles aren't empty
It's easy for everyone to make a corona a meme,
Until it's not going to have effects that are extreme,
A little virus taking many lives was no one's dream,
All newspaper, the Internet has it's flow till the magazine
Scientists are working hard to identify what's the corona,
They say it doesn't infect people by seeing their persona,
The masks and sanitizers have got their lead,
If you take care of your self you don't need to dread.
Tea Time
By Salma N.
The washing machine is clanging again,
And the tea waits impatiently for my mother,
Who senses my thirst for clean bedsheets
Like a bird of the same feather.
There's a ticking I swear is sentient as a doll,
Resonating in my ear-
Stuck between busy and bored and busy again,
Both a waste of time, I fear.
This overbearing desire to see the world
Is gross and omnipresent.
It won't be the same when this is over
So you pray it lasts forever.
Yet your present is a present that lasts a mere moment,
Although that shouldn't come as a shock.
Cling to it like that and it will hand you over
To the twitching hands of the clock.
So continue to dwell in the fresh linen scent,
For this stifling freedom is quite rare.
It won't be the same when this is over,
So brew enough time to share.
My Biggest Earn
By Rimjhim J.
I Knew , I was ill,
Everytime I complained, was given a pill.
Increased temperature made me frustrated,
My parents love ,kept me motivated.
I was scared, the statistics spoke a lot,
Day and night, I lied on the cot.
Scared as hell , but feared to tell.
Days passed, my paa took me to a doctor.
Doctor cracked some jokes, and created some laughter.
The reports broke my mum's heart,
I could see her pain,
But my brother asking her to share things,
Were all in vain.
I saw my paa breaking down.
He patted me, said , "you'll be fine."but
Was there with me till night's moon did shine.
I could see his fear in his eyes,
his face showed his heart cried.
They were sent away , I was left alone.
I know, all night, they did moan.
Next morning , I was glad, they tested safe.
Tasty soup was served, prepared by the chef.
They told me to pray, God hears!
But it seemed,God had put on headphones with his favorite music on.
I was given bitter solutions,
But had to drink for better conclusion.
I was recovering rapidly, but couldn't express it happily.
The days came I was fine.
My mother waited for me, with tears in her eyes.
I was happy, but a corner of my heart
Cried for those who died.
This phase of quarantine, taught me to cherish my life.
It made me realize,it isn't something which can be ended with a knife.
I promised, I would love myself.
I would not give up if I fail.
This life is a gift, I will enjoy it.
I will do different things,
I will go to mountains,
I will dance,
I will tell my parents how much I love them.
I will tell my brother how much I missed him.
I have learned a lesson and
I consider it THE BIGGEST EARN.
Quarantine
By Salma N.
Never thought I’d grow tired of a symphony
As iridescent as the notes strung together
By some lonely birds, calling for the carefree
Remarks on controversial lovers and bad weather.
I would tune them out, simply by closing the window,
But the heat would be trapped in with me.
33 degrees with nowhere to go, slow
And exhausted by the long-awaited humidity.
So I slump back on my armchair - my bosom
Marked loosely on the seat - again acknowledging
Humanity’s hypocrisy. I despise the persistent
Heat, but what was it I asked for mid-Winter?
Inconsistency will be the death of us, sooner
Than we’d like. The book I’m holding is feeling heavy,
My throat hitched and sensitive. Emotion? Phlegm?
Maybe something I can actually be allowed to have.
My phone is silent, the meaningful sound a stark reminder
That I am a dot in a blinking globe that knows everything
About Ignorance’s hold on them. But Ignorance is an enemy
Of Reality, so in hindsight, what’s not to love about it?
With a head smoking, and a heart slowing,
I let sleep take me, and the world is weightless once again.
A smile graces my lips. The birds aren’t sounding so lonely,
Not anymore. Not now that I know what peace sounds like.
To Be Inside or Not To Be Inside; That is the Question
By Sabrina C.
2019:
How I loathe to be outdoors.
I’ll be a recluse, behind closed doors,
For I’m the one the couch adores,
And the dirt outside clogs my pores.
2020:
How I loathe to be indoors.
Chat on Zoom, then sweep the floors,
And weep about my many chores.
Free me now and I’ll be yours.
Ramen
By Adele L.
In a haze of morning fatigue,
I watch the world spiral out of my window
As my naked despondency
prickles the easy excitability
of the swirling oils in ready-made ramen
The television booms,
“Thousands diagnosed. Quarantined. Dead.”
In a kaleidoscope of chopped scallion and miso sauce,
my reflection crumbles
The half-bitten remainders of last night’s stew
bob about the surface of my bowl’s infinitude
They say, “You are what you eat.”
Pinching my nose
I swallow
Quarantine Feels
By Amy C.
The sunlight shines,
Through my window blinds.
The fresh air is in despair.
I dream of the world’s repair,
For I am bored
In this place: indoors.
Routines
By Adele L.
A cycle of mousy hair and dandruff shampoo
A staggering addiction to breakfast at noon
A weekend well-spent in blanket cocoons
An appetite more erratic than a summer monsoon
A mountain of creased sweaters from early June
A sullied bed scattered with leftover food
An overcast view of the westside bayou
A dusty television playing mauldin cartoons
A surplus of savings pooled in tired games of pool
A pair of black eyes smeared with tears watery blue
A household of beetles in the nooks of my room
A barren swing crafted with bent, splintered wood
An abundance of letters written in letters with loops
A thousand distractions in makeshift school
Distinct singularities morph into routines
When you're stuck in quarantine
Stuck
By Adele L.
The fleeting gratification of morning salutations
Within square confines in a sea of lost connections
Through heightened barricades of muted flesh and bone
I struggle to find soul in the people I call home
Volatile poignance and ingenuine grins
Feigned content on my spent dishes' brims
Two's company and three's a crowd
Tranquility looks past bickering loudmouths
In a room without windows
and a house without echo
Where do you keep your deepest troubles?
Pandemic
By Rabiya N.
How drastically has our lives changed,
A deadly virus has affected us on an extremely large scale.
It brought a wide variety of changes in our lives,
Making us understand so much more about this temporary life.
From economic crisis to loosing so many precious lives,
This pandemic has brought our mind and soul tormenting us to the extreme heights.
Helped us realize about the little things we forgot.
How easy was our life, and how we could do everything according to our choice,
We could walk on roads at any time and nobody would question us the very cause,
We were not captivated inside our homes,
Like slaves without any criminal account.
How grateful should we have been,
For this earth,
That gave us numerous treasures,
And how we kept mocking it endlessly without caring at all.
How grateful should we have been for our beautiful life,
Even though it gave us heartbreaks and troubles.
For, that life was so better than this,
Atleast we could sometimes smile with an ease.
But, can we for once look at the positive things it has brought,
And how our lives are going to change post covid-19 and beyond.
We won't take Hygiene for granted,
Neither will we complain about our lives.
We're gonna spread positivity and have a hope so strong,
Realizing how short this life is,
And how we don't know who we will be talking to someone for the very last time at all.
How necessary is it to love ourselves and the people we have around,
Keeping all the hate and jealousy apart.
Helping our neighbours with the little we can,
And giving the barking dog a food can.
Caring for the one's we have around,
And it's okay even if they've not been for you when you needed them some time.
Let the "generous-soul" inside you leash out,
Because I'm very sure everyone has it inside as we are "humans" after all.
This Time
By Ariba A.
All the winners left
Victors now gone
Losers still mourn
All the applaud
Now just stopped
And nobody knows what to do
All adrift
Powers now shift
Ranks up down
King is a clown
Queen is a witch
Masters to beggars
Everybody switch
All adrift
No balance in the world
And nobody knows what to do
No wounds heal
fells like bleeding steel
Hatred flowing
Pain growing
And we all feel
No way to conceal
All the skeletons out of closet
All the demons out of pocket
Left open all the fear
And no one to bear
A Catastrophic Nothing
By Prugna K.
Creeping passed, undetected in motion,
Spewing venomous betrayal,
A microscopic forced of catastrophe,
Leaving in its wake, a stench so
Morbid pacifists became a radical burden
Kidneys failed, lungs collapsed,
And all that could be done,
Was absolutely nothing
An uninvited invasion
of mind and body
A force unknown
Pandemic Master
By Sakshi D.
It walked in like a king,
Wearing people's panic as a crown,
The world is it's throne.
But hey! Don't just blame Corona alone.
Because the numerologists have announced,
Year 2020, the number 4 in it has made its arrival prone.
But it did come bearing gifts.
Time. The precious priceless gift.
When I was called upon,
To decorate my words in the best possible manner,
About my victimised life,
Confining me to my house,
Depriving me of La Pino's pizza,
And that delicious havmor ice cream.
About the happiness of the child inside me,
Who got a bonus vacation,
Reliving the joys of eating together with the family.
All I could think of,
Was that king sitting outside my house,
With a magical imaginary trident,
Creating a thin line between the words 'confinement' and 'staying indoors.'
As I can see the difference no more.
Because counting the minutes of the day with family is perfect,
Yet the want of fresh air almost chokes me.
No question marks have been put on my unconditionally long sleeps,
Yet the excitement of any activity has come to nil.
I could sit with that beautiful book all day long now,
Yet my eyes crave to read more and more faces.
All I could think of,
Was that king sitting outside my house,
With a magical imaginary trident,
Creating a thin line between the words 'confinement' and 'staying indoors.'
And I juggle between the two.
Like the two sides of coin it is,
But the toss now seems to have become eternal.
The World Nowadays
By Siddhi S.
I opened my eyes to see the world around
Nothing but some silence covered the ground
There was a fear that engulfed the sky
No longer the birds could 'freely' fly
The world nowadays is something else
flowers seem to be colorless
The smiles around me are joyless
It's the fear of losing Someone close
It's the fear of surviving alone
Those who shared souls are now living at distances
Families are shattered , individuals are broken
The World Nowadays is something else
People are sinking in an era of grief
I just narrated the miserable story in brief
The world nowadays is something else...
Coronis
By Sohini R.
Corpses wrapped in black plastic.
Dumped at lonely fields,
Dark nights, the pyre sings.
I see them too, I’m not blind.
It’s the first time I opened my eyes.
I saw myself,
Awake inside, instead of sleeping at dawn .
Flying without wings, without help
Running with single small-steps on the spinning ball .
Unfamiliar…. cold-hearted, isn’t it?
White pages, colourful paints
Nyx said she’ll be on vacation
For my part of the fate .
So I let my roars free.
But the mountains are echoing a deep AUM,
Chants of life at the break of dawn .
Guess it’s a dream again.
Kept sitting beneath this dead tree .
One day she whispered to me:
I am alive. You should also be.
Fooled them with her dry branches .
She just kept healing, determined not to lose any more precious chances.
Halcyon at frondescence .
Sometimes it’s necessary to focus on your burns,
Instead of a nobody’s stance.
Won’t make you a demon .
Someone’s black maybe you're white.
Stop criticizing yourself, it’s alright.
Everything affects everyone differently.
Tired
By Sonia H.
I'm tired -
Tired of constant echoes
Of discouraging voices ;
Adamant thick ropes -
That don't let me
Stop my agonised noises.
I can feel -
Clouds cover my dreams
Shield what's mine, from me-
While I'm dying
To get back to me.
And if it ain't enough
I don't care what is
The slope's getting too rough
How damn hard it is!
My soul's given up
'Cause my sins backfired
With pain overflowing my cup
That's it - I'm tired!
Material Summer
By Ella M.
This summer has mostly been made
Of 2ams,
When the darkness feels impenetrable,
And the sky is grey in every shade.
This summer has mostly felt
Like a Thursday,
When it all feels all sorts of suspended,
And nobody can read the hand that’s dealt.
This summer has mostly sounded
Of November,
When life becomes sadly lack-lustre,
And almost nothing has abounded.
But this summer will be followed
By autumn,
When our earth will glow with beauty,
And our loneliness shall feel borrowed.
Perhaps the summer of
A virus,
Was needed to teach us all,
To do as the leaves; burn bright and fall.
Untitled
By Sree Durga K.
I saw the dainty daisies mourning alone,
For their world was filled with pernicious silence.
Every growl for a crumb of bread to fill the gut,
And a drop of water to drench the parched throat was unheard.
The little instincts yapping on their way down our insentient souls have subsided,
Tired of being anxious and insentient all the time
The stars are chortling at us,
For we are covering our faces lest getting into a vicious trap
The sun is sauntering through the sky to it’s wish,
For now every cruel man is shut inside
We skimped through the sultry days and filled our pockets,
Little did we know that they would now be mere fragments of paper.
We ruled the land to our desires,
Leaving all it’s wailings and requests unheeded.
Out of the world, somewhere in the infinity…
We are still looking out on how to be self accustomed.
Every single desire of us are becoming stale,
For we ourselves are rotting in the grot.
Still selfish and rude,
It’s high time we realize that love is the cure.
Dear Mom
By Navdisha G.
Your skin's getting thinner,
you've got wrinkles under your eyes
I see you becoming weaker,
I see you getting fragile.
your eyes look tired, yet very calm,
your smile's still angelic, just the same charm
your hands-weary, they're getting more colder
but your hugs ? still comforting and still as warm.
As I progress towards my youth,
and I see you getting older,
just wanted to let you know, mum
you're still as beautiful as you ever were.
A Dusk for the Dawns
By Navdisha G.
I'm not afraid to hurt myself,
if you promise to save all those who're hurting
if you promise they won't have to cry locked inside those walls
if you promise they won't die a little everyday
if you promise you'll take them the right way.
There are fears keeping them awake at night,
they're insecure that maybe they're not bright
they're haunted by mistakes they've made in the past,
they're lost inside memories they thought won't last.
I'm not afraid to bleed my wrists,
if it'll save those fighting themselves everyday, those who're lonely- calling for help
Promise you won't keep them waiting
promise you'll tell them it'll all go away and that it's important for them to stay.
My Dearest Dog
By Oskar L.
You didn’t judge me when I fell
to your side and wept on your
furry shoulder, mumbling words
you didn’t understand, suddenly
alone.
You didn’t judge me when I
kept saying ‘I love you’ to thin air,
unused to being isolated from
the person who makes my heart
flutter.
You didn’t judge me when I talked,
incessantly, meeting your bright
eyes and wishing you could use
that lolling, panting tongue to
speak.
Molly, my dearest dog, you have
kept me company when no one
else could. Dad at work, boyfriend
at home--his home--but we became
friends.
I am forever grateful for that, and for you.
The World Is Suffering
By Shachi
The world is suffering, I know why!
Because we are the reason, so do we cry!
We are the one, who polluted it to the sky,
Bound to happen, else we would have already died.
Now nature is healing, because we never tried.
It’s bitter to hear, but not telling a lie,
Don’t be an idiot, and don’t go to verify!
Lock yourself down, because it’s already ratified.
Help your nation, because you know why!
The world is suffering, let them try!
A Little Longer
By Vedanshee P.
When times are uncertain and your life seems to be on pause,
Learn to love others more and live for a cause.
Learn to be strong together staying by each other's side,
This might seem endless,
But this ain't the end of your ride.
Don't let the time go in vain,
And do what you can to get through this bane.
You'll soon dance in your own sunlight,
You'll soon laugh around in that darker night.
But for now just hold on to the globe,
For it can't break your togetherness and hope.
Try to find strength in this uncertain time,
Hold on to it and change the paradigm.
A Poem to
COVID-19
By Ahana L.
She had, I know, more days to live.
So why did you do that to her? To me?
Were you blind to the love she had yet to give?
Or do you just kill all that you see?
I wish you knew how bright it shined, how pure it was-
The heart that you carelessly took away.
What I wouldn’t give to see her again,
Could I please have her back, just for one day?
I’m way too tired to carry this anymore.
I know what I want, what I need to do.
So please come back; and take my weary body.
For when you took her soul, you already took mine too.
God is Love,
Love is God
By Sanchi
There is a power beyond everything
everything is just nothing in front of love
love which is the most beautiful feel
feel that starts defining your true soul
soul which become powerless
powerless is the world in front of love
love which is the most powerful power in the world
world which dies for the emotions
emotions which is the taste of life
life in which inevitable is love
love which is complicated and complex
complex are the emotions and behavior
behavior which includes affection and belief
belief in GOD is what we call love!!
COVID-19's Bareness
By Mansha P.
There is a certain chaos inside this mind,
That turns the eyes blurry everytime,
Storms of unwanted feelings,
Clearing every happy spellings,
And now life seems just barren,
Neither happy nor sad, just swollen.
I am still a mess caught,
Certainly, I am prisoner of my own labyrinth of thoughts,
Desperately waiting to be untangled,
The vacuity of bliss and the filling of bareness,
Feeds the barren soul making it drain every happy memory,
For now, getting messed up is the new barrenness!
Life in Lockdown
By Arjun J.
Lockdown is an odd place in time
So I thought I would write about my experiences in a rhyme.
My mum was teaching me lots of things at home
Whilst on the news I heard many would probably need a loan.
I kept on washing my hands
And dreamt of going on holiday to far away lands.
I spent lots of time outdoors playing swingball
But a few weeks into Lockdown I ended up having a fall.
My Mum and Dad would worry
And I was told not to hurry.
I spent days resting and playing Nintendo switch
But yet again my parents would worry if my eye started to twitch.
We played board games and had movie nights
We took picnics to the fields and often saw kites.
On Thursday for our NHS we would clap and cheer
We would talk to our neighbours and Daddy would have a beer.
My sister and I would build a den
And we all wished that this crazy time time would end.
Lockdown is an emotional roller coaster altogether
But to get through it we have to remember that we are in it together.
Worst Movie Ever
By Nhi H.
if i could rewind to the past i genuinely would.
my life was a movie that i had rated 2 stars, certified rotten
but when i look back, critics gave it 5 stars, certified fresh
a blockbuster compared to this low budget indie film
of a girl that is stuck at home attempting to cope with
the loss of her friends,
her school life,
her extracurriculars,
her daily life
when does this movie end?
i hope it never gains a sequel
Fathom
By Palash T.
Don't you fathom?
Aren't you going to the bottom?
Were you thinkin' about Covid?
Nay? Then about your deed?
You should be!
Well, you know why?
It's because of your unjustified cry.
Don't you fathom?
Now run, go to the bottom.
An Unforeseen Intrusion
By Tanisha B.
In the crisis of the world
Who's laughing ...is the earth
Automobiles parked...
Clouds moving apart..
No airplanes in the sky
The birds flying without any sigh..
The nature is healing
Contented is its feeling
Itself there was never a thought
That it could get relief from flood and drought..
While the masterminds locked between the four walls
Who rocks is the nature and the flock...
Goodbye pollution!!
In the timeline an unforseen infusion...
Swap of lives between the mother and her children...
The young children now countering death whereas the mother seem to have years and years of breath...
Homebody
By Gabrielle P.
I started this year with my best friends as
we counted down the last seconds of last year.
We made plans and we had dreams as
we toasted to a new start for us: high school seniors.
I was in a good place and I was happy with the way things were.
I finally found the stability that I was searching for:
Promises of prom were on our lips and
college was a distant destination far from our minds.
Suddenly, all of that was ripped from us.
Our year was put on an unsteady foundation.
Plans were canceled and dreams were crushed
and we stayed at home wondering what’s going wrong in the world.
The last day of school to a new school year.
Two weeks out became Five months in.
Four years of high school were gone in a blink
and we were all at home the whole time.
Our chairs were placed 6 feet apart at graduation.
I sat near the front row. During the national anthem,
I took a knee. My friend in the back knelt with me.
I heard a kid in the audience ask why.
Then we all went home and wondered what’s going wrong in America.
Social distancing is easy for me to follow.
While people stand 6 feet apart in public, I stay
in my room that is twice that distance in dimensions.
I am safe at home in my bed, in my room.
The friends I started the year with
all drifted away like dead leaves.
Does my crush even still like me?
I cried at home, wondering what’s going wrong with us.
Everything I write now is sad…
I have all this time to myself to think about things
I never thought about while I was around others:
Do I steal oxygen from someone who can achieve
more in a single breath than me?
We’re living in our own moment of history that will be in future textbooks.
Our stories will be told to later generations after us.
What will we be known as? I’ll be known as the homebody;
the one who watched change through a screen.
But I know that I will end the year as a very
different person than from when I started,
Because I stayed home and wondered
what’s going wrong with me.
The Pandemic
By Sneha G.
It all started in 2020,
We never know when its gonna end,
"Get used to the new normal!" They've begun to say,
Knowing that the inside us want 2019 back...
We're all in this together!
From age 3 to 23,
We all hate zoom and Google meet,
From moaning to enter our classrooms,
To moaning to enter the class links sent,
It's all become online now...
We're all in this together!
From parents giving lectures upon spending more time on studies,
To our parents scolding our lecturers for extending our online classes,
From "Happy Holidays!"
To "Why such Bad Days!"
Our mentalities have been varied so much....
We're all in this together!
From the canteen and hotel foods,
To experimenting to cook,
From getting all dressed up,
To feeling lazy to even wake up,
From watching movies in theatre,
To rewatching all series on Netflix and Prime,
It's all changed so much....
We're all in this together!
This pandemic has treated us all in different ways,
It's still better to be grateful than to be hateful,
We've all tried our best to evolve our selves,
Maybe this time was meant for us to understand that....
We all live on the same planet and
We're all in this together!
Expectations for the New Normal
By Abita T.
Now, the day is here,
which we were all wanting to hear.
The day of our freedom is finally here.
Staying in those four walls,
made me realise that been home isn’t that bad at all.
The new normal isn’t normal at all,
but life is all about evolving after all.
Distance which used to exist between enemies,
is now common among families.
The hands that were used for hi-fi,
now, all they do is purify.
COVID brought distance among people,
but couldn’t distance the love among people,
after all love is more powerful than any pandemic.
Unexpected
By Yasmin K.
To my senior friends
Will I ever see you again?
The hope in my heart is real
But I'm a realistic
I understand that people grow up and move on with their lives
You will be starting college soon
To my favorite teachers
We missed a couple of months
Next time you see me I will be a senior
Less time to ask you questions
Less time for you to give me advice
I hope my senior year goes by slow
So I can soak up all the lessons you want me to know
To my Asian friends
Please do not listen to the xenophobic comments that some people will try to say
People suck
People are ignorant and rude
To my junior year
Yes you ended quick
I know this was supposed to be a great year
We were supposed to go on trips
We were supposed to start college applications and advisory
Now the AP exams are coming quick
I know I can’t get you back
So I’ll look forward to my senior year
To me
I know this has been stressful
I know you've stayed up late doing homework because the workload had increased tremendously
I know you are trying your best
So please don’t overthink
Take a break once in a while
Close your eyes to think
Try to relax and think of something that makes you happy
Care for yourself
And your mental health
It’s okay to put yourself first
It's Nature's Turn
By Manaswi A.
Ages ago, nature was nurtured!
Nature was worshipped.
Mother Earth by virtue,
Provided us with the same warmth.
Man's never satisfying greed,
And his ever wanting needs,
On the go he succeeds,
Now,that made him concede..
This time we are paying off our misdeeds
It's bitter, to taste our own medicine.
A microscopic Creature,acting like a Mirror,
Is telecasting our demeanor towards nature
Its self healing it's sphere.
Unlike us,it is helping discover..
The tales of long Lost love and humanity!
Letting us experience our acts of immorality,
Those harsh life of caged animals,we find entertaining.
Nature is like our mother,being selfless
Who gave us everything,
loved her children to eternity..
Punished them when they cross limits.
Smoke of Memories
By Manjeet K.
This summer, left me alone to feel,
how lonely we are, me and my pens.
Forgot, the last time I had a happy meal,
with people, I used to call "My friends".
Feeling stifled, can't bear the canopy of those trees.
So quiet, can hear the humming of that bee.
But he told me,"It's the smoke of memories,
that you feel", is walking along me.
The Last Day
By Nidhi N.
Autumn skies cried greatly and bled,
The last of the sparrows had finally fled.
Faded Polaroids were lying on the floor
Forgotten words crept away from the open door.
Time and talk had taken their leave,
Saints had lost their will to believe.
The fog had lifted but in its wake
It shattered all the prisms we had made.
Gone was the rainbow and the gold,
Gone were the stories that would never be told.
Hands slipped as the leaves fell,
Silence, but a truth everyone could tell.
What happened to the promise?
What happened to one last wish?
Always in my heart but maybe never,
Because always had lost its forever.
A blind eye we had turned for so long,
Finally we could see our heinous wrong.
And as silent goodbyes never left our lips,
The cold air gave us an empty kiss.
And all this while we stood shocked and still,
Wondering about our part in this obvious kill.
When did we destroy all the roses we grew?
When did we lose the normal we knew?
The Darkest Duration
By Mansha P.
It seemed like there hid the treasure.
Somewhere in the depth of the sea.
Maybe someone came here,
And disguised the wealth.
But it shone more brighter.
As the weather grew darker.
It imparted it's lustre.
To the parts of the sea.
And it remained no more hidden to me.
I became fortunate than my previous days.
Prayed the Lord Almighty.
To bestow me this treasure everyday.
Does it seems I am too greedy for it?
Yes I am.
Because everyday I wanted to see.
How that moonlight scintillated the sea.
Every photons imparted it's shine to the sea.
And it looked like the treasure in the sea.
But it wasn't just that.
It also looked like the rays of hope.
That brings strength for me.
In my darkest duration of life.
Smiling Eyes
By Jasmine R.
The ringing in my ears
is drowning out the fears, and
my silence leaves me numb and hollow.
This strange momentum keeps me going, and I keep myself from knowing my reflection's tired and sallow.
From where am I lead? Each message is left unread because I'm never told when it will end.
Maybe it will end when the curve descends, but how will I be able to smile at others again?
Whatever they'll let allow, I'll stay behind the mask or screen for now and learn to smile with my eyes instead.