She smelled like herbs and sunlight. Like failed attempts at gardening and healing salves. She sounded like lullabies and the forest. Like warnings and black bears. She looked like impulsive decisions and brash words. Like soft spoken, begrudging apologies and life-risking loyalty. She felt like warm hugs and carefully bandaged wounds. Like anger veiled by…
Category: Archive
Archived: Sweet Tooth, or Stomach Ache by Lillie Irene Hernandez
Your lips are burnt sugar, glazed with vanilla the texture of whipped syrup. Your cheeks are like pieces of silk draped over a crooked wireframe. Your eyes are like pools of stolen moonlight, only they hide rigid daggers beneath them. Your tongue is contracted to a script, only so effortlessly written that my heart dances…
Archived: The Tailor Patched by Zoe Coats
A woman of rhyme without reason Was Miss Melanie Bleu She wore their scorn well— The woman who was taboo. He’d left her at the altar With naught but a festering feast; To another who stays gold His heart was only leased. To the tailor she went a-calling She’d dress fit for a queen Her…
Archived: Paint Me Back to Life by Eliza Bratt
She’s different now. I used to see her in chaos The bustle of people on the street The laugh of a child in the theater The bark of a dog in a winter park The hum of a car outside my window. Now I find her in silence In every frostbitten morning In every sunrise…
Archived: To-Do List by Elizabeth Dorst
It’s nice when I can count the worries on my hand I look at my list (my digits) and I know where I stand Then I can start to check them off one by one, Using a knife I cut my worries from my hand (very fun) I’m left with a beautiful perfect red stump,…
Archived: Cry, O Young One by Elizabeth Dorst
Sweet sap fills the air he sees, Through the thick mist and trees, He sees the bear-man, strong and tall, The little tenderfoot drools, He wants it all. But alas, his small feet are weak, He can’t express his love, His spirit is meek, He runs away when the bear-man is near, From shyness and…
Archived: Letter from an Ex-Gifted Kid by Elizabeth Richards
Please stop calling me smart. I don’t like it, and it’s not a compliment. Every time those words leave your mouth, I want to peel my skin off, Open up my skull and show you What those words have done to me. The scars on my self-love, The minuscule paperweight I call my self-worth, (The…
Archived: The Unknown by Kristen Kolb
She wakes up finding herself on her porch surrounded only by the sounds of the storm. It is still dark out and she looks at her phone to see it is 3:30 in the morning. It is typical for her to fall asleep on her porch, she sits out there for hours listening to the…
Archived: And so, it Began by Robert Beeks
A young man’s joyful laughter can be heard as the beating of hoofs tear down the beaten path along the calm river. His joy reflected in nature around him as he rides a beautiful brown mare through the brush. A kind and soft face can be seen under a wide leather hat, his gentle eyes…
Archived: Get Out by Alexis Begeman
My palms were sweating and my heart was pounding at 100 miles per hour. I had never felt this way before. The thought of telling my mother made me sick to my stomach knowing there was no way to tell what she was going to say. After all, I am her child and she always…
Archived: Blue Monster by Alexis Begeman
My first day off in weeks seemed like a breath of fresh air. With nothing to do and nowhere to go, it seemed only fitting to wear my favorite Linkin Park T-Shirt. As I slid on the shirt, I could feel the intense love from the hug of my best friend. With her being away,…
Archived: Heeding the Call by Jarred Mendenhall
“…and that is how I ended up in a room with 4 guys and a video camera.” Gil boasted. “Oh…” Fiona replied. Both women strolled through the sea of people that coursed over the sidewalk of the city they had found themselves in. Gil’s way of dressing got several looks from people, but despite that,…
Archived: The Old West Watcher by Payton McKevitt
The trickle of whiskey splashing into a cloudy glass somehow always drowns out the noise of all my patrons. In that moment of pouring, I get the tiniest hint of peace. Then I slide it to the drunk that ordered it, and I have to pretend to be invested in his story. Most of the…
Archived: The Cave by Jacquelyn Vick
Water slid down the stalactite, filling a pool where the rough cave floor sloped. Footsteps echoed the drip. The prisoner closed his eyes, pressing further into the jagged wall surrounding him. The footsteps silenced, and a metallic tapping caught the rhythm. The prisoner sighed and glared. A thin light above his bars illuminated the man…
Archived: Lorb Bless by Jamie Chihuan
This was taken off the I-25 and HWY 119 intersection. Coming off the highway I noticed this man standing with his dog under this sign. I parked my car at a gas station nearby and quickly made my way over to the man. This was back in February and I unfortunately forgot this man’s name….
Archived: Printmaking by Miguel Rocha
2-color reduction linoleum relief print. Oil based ink was used and printed on mulberry paper.
Archived: Static Smile by Kado Covnot
Bio: I’ve been drawing all my life, but didn’t take it seriously till about 6th or 7th grade. I love being able to make a drawing, whether it is cute, creepy, or just plain out of nothing and watching my audience’s eye light up. I love hearing the “You drew that?” “How did you do…
Archived: Love for Peace by Sonia Billings
My favorite atmosphere is peace. Perhaps I value peace so much because I did not always have had it. I grew up in the midst of a civil war that lasted 12 years which caused a massive exodus to other countries, in search of living in a peaceful environment. The war in El Salvador began…
Archived: Queen of One Million Stars by Chloe Parsons
Scarlet memories written on the pane of a silver screen. Rose petal dreams flow while we dance in the vivid moonlight. Pushing away the pain of everyday life. We are free with the stars in the sky.
Archived: The Shopkeeper by Adison Linder
Bio: Ever since I can remember, I’ve been driven to create, whether it be art, poems, or stories. To me, creating something is a way to get people to think about the world differently, whether it be through a particularly good painting or a thought-provoking novel. It lets us put the stories and images we…
Archived: Head in the Clouds by Linnea Smith
Bio: Ever since I could hold a pencil, I’ve been drawing. Quietly in a corner, in my notebooks during school, just about anywhere I had the chance. I’m a very introverted person who enjoys being alone with my thoughts and observing the world around me, and I most naturally express myself through art. I’ve never…
Archived: Backyard Photograph Through the Eyes of a Nature Photographer by Nicole Peerman
Bio: My name is Nicole Peerman. For a long time in my life I have adventured with Photography on my own until the time came for me to be able to attend college in 2017, Graduated May 2011 from Northridge High School I’m currently a much more talented Aspiring Photographer / Nature Photographer, right along…
Archived: Fresh Prince of Boo by Kado Covnot
Bio: I’ve been drawing all my life, but didn’t take it seriously till about 6th or 7th grade. I love being able to make a drawing, whether it is cute, creepy, or just plain out of nothing and watching my audience’s eye light up. I love hearing the “You drew that?” “How did you do…
Archived: Strangers on a Plane by Elizabeth Richards
Jake leaned back against the plane seat, groaning as he ran his hands through his hair. Forgot my earbuds for the…eighth time now? How much worse can this day get? You really shouldn’t ask questions like that, because fate adores irony™, and yes, it can get worse. Want to know how it can get worse?…
Archived: INK by Alexandra Basting
When the lights dropped, screams began. Jason Vorhees, Georgie, Jack Torrance, The Crow, and Jigsaw stepped onto the stage causing the screams to raise higher. We screamed with the villain from Friday the Thirteenth. Heavy lyrics about the curse of Crystal Lake, bearing our horns as he commanded the stage. Too soon, the lights dropped…
Archived: Blending With Your Worries by Casey Sandoval
Hi, my name is Anxiety, and I exist in, well, everyone; however, I am speaking to you in Casey’s mind. I make him worry about family, friends, and everything else. I get along with my cousin Depression. Depression and I go way back, but let’s talk about me, since everything is about me. As I…
Archived: I’m About To Break by Nathan Peterson
“I got an e-mail in my pocket, and I think it’s starting to melt!” The little ditty went through my head for the twentieth time that day. It was the opener for one of my Strong Bad Emails, an online cartoon I loved to death, and which my parents, for no real reason, despised. We…