Wormser Workshop

A Day at School

Nervousness is contained

in the classroom of unknown tests

Kids tap their pencils

impatiently waiting for the bell

and holding their heads in their hands

Aromas of lunch foods

flow up to the higher floors

from the cafeteria

Kids push and shove

to be the first down the stairs

and the first to the buses

Basketball Practice

Sweat pours over my cheeks

and into my eyes

temporarily blinding my vision

I raise my knees, my muscles are burning

I am constantly pushing myself to the limit

I receive cold and harsh stares

from my teammates

when I make a mistake

and pushes and shoves come

from my opponents

Blood trickles from legs, caused by falling

to the wood floors

Tears erupt from welling, cloudy eyes

And this, is only practice

Blood Cell

I am a blood cell

I live inside your body

in your cozy vein

There are trillions just like me

so no one thinks of me as alone

nobody thanks me for helping you live

nobody

Oh no there’s a cut!!

I must rush to the scene

I spurt out, I gush out

and I am exposed to the world

I am afraid so I harden

and am a scab

I fall off into the cold grass

Now, that is my home

Dragonfly

I am dragonfly

graceful and speedy in flight

I dash from reed to reed

grasping mosquitoes on the go

I am free as the wind

and when I get tired I float

or ride the gentle breeze

In storms I tuck into the trees, feeling

a slight sway as the trees dance in the wind

I smell the sweet rain, but feel no water drops

I am safe in a small bushy tree

under a robin’s wing

Earring

I am an earring

Swaying with the hair,

Colorful,

Fashionable,

I am the final accessory

of any outfit

I am what makes guests envious

When taken off,

I’m in a cool,

velvet jewelry box

Or left alone

on the bureau,

seeing the people running around the bedroom

Searching for something else

That’s when I know

That I’ve gone out of the style,

And that’s when I fall

From the dresser

When they find the new

piece of jewelry

Feeling alone

No longer insecure

And like last season’s fashion

M. A. Middle School

by Chelsea P.

Girls giggling

as they gossip

skipping down

the hall, staring

at the desolate walls

Lunch ladies cooking

that fragrant smell

of the midday meal

drifting out of the cafeteria

Hope’s calming smooth voice

after the ding, ding of the intercom

Dismissing the 6th graders

after an excruciatingly

harsh day

at M. A. Middle School

Horse Bam

The barn fades, light to dark

The only noise is the beating of horse’s hooves on the worn battered dirt

and the whinnies that flow swiftly through the wind

Slow footsteps sound down the alley

a door screeches and swings open

In the field, two best friends

go for a run.

I am a Nail

by Emily C.

I am a nail

I am always getting hit on the head

Always being pushed into something

Then after a long time, I get

pulled out again

If I get wet, I will just rust and break

Once I fell on the floor, and wasn’t found for a week!

It’s a Tough Life

by Brianna B.

I am a pencil tip

I excite so many in my beginning

but I am used and worn

rubbed away

becoming dull

however I am fortunate

for the rest of the body gets chewed on

or rubbed away as well

and never comes back

for I have a great friend named Sharpener

and whenever I need a lift I go to her

The process is painful

but after I feel refreshed and renewed

Mid-Saturday Morning

Cars racing by

As I lay outside on the cool, dewy grass

The warm sunlight from behind the trees

Beaming down on the tired face

My father getting ready

To give our lawn a long-awaited mow

Making trips in and out

of the house

Shrill voices of my brothers screaming

from the front yard

But then everything goes quiet

Until I scream from the feeling of water

Exploding a few feet

away

M. A.

M. A.

is very big

3 floors tour above me

The hustle and bustle of tired students

Pushing and shoving impatiently

a loud cough, a sneeze like a bomb

The smells of the cleaners the janitor has used

the night before

So many different people

a feeling of belonging and not

My friends come and whisk me away

and our excruciating day begins

M. A.

Clocks tick as kids

impatiently wait

for lunch to come

The sun shines

off the glowing instruments

as the band plays

Shoes squeak as kids bolt

down the crowded hallways

to be the first ones out the door

to the bright yellow buses waiting

outside

Mustangs

The field lightens, dusk to dawn

the sweet smell of young foals and dew covered grass

creeps around

As it reaches the stallion and he lets out a grunt

The mares and foals whinny to the breeze that flows freely with them

While standing by the Stallion that lifts his head,

a new foal, a filly, barely a day looks up at him

their eyes lock, they meet at the muzzle

Up and up they rear, together, running in the wind

under a growing sunrise

Our School

by Emily C.

Fire alarms

buzzing, screeching, flashing

quietly,

evacuate the building

waiting patiently

to reenter the school

bolting quickly

through the art clad halls

as soon as the whistle is blown

it is time to return to school

My Life

My little sister cries

in her small room shut away

I clench my teeth in great annoyance

While she sobs for no reason at all

The sweet smell of the barn

my horse brushes against me

he nuzzles me and I smile

as we speak

our secret, silent language

I am ecstatic

In the ocean I dive

The cool water hits my face and

I go under

into the silent,

murky water

and wait,

until my lungs burst

I rise above the water

to breathe

This is my life

The Dragging Day

A mix of voices

Deep and loud

Echoing in the narrow halls

Teenage children

Unwillingly sitting in

Ordered desk rows

Heads down and silent

Time drags on

Throughout the school day

With the clock’s ticking more important than

the lesson

Quiet whispers

and folded-up notes

Are exchanged in the middle of class

Tooth

I am a tooth

I’m squeaky clean,

white,

and shiny

I love the feeling of being caressed

by the wonderful soft bristles of a tooth brush

some of my friends have been yanked out by

a scary man in a white coat.

But they never yank me

because I am the front tooth.

And I’m the one

that gets brushed the most.

Sometimes yucky food

gets stuck on me, and then I look ugly

But most of my life is clean...

just like me

Schools Out

Quiet lockers

Two, one, open to the world

The whole floor seems to

flow with silence

All except the slight breeze

Heads down in books

The pages are rough and gritty

The talking whispers and laughs are barely audible

Bells go off

A stampede like a horse race,

Sets off into the hallways

Until Tomorrow

You slam the alarm clock

For the umpteenth time

Covers hide a sister’s head in a lumpy bed

always wanting more time

to relax a tense mind

heading down the stairs, half awake

bleary eyed

with bits of toast in one hand

Friends greeting

A slamming locker

Colorful clothing marks a student’s personality

Your binder and laptop weighing you down

too many smells to describe

never ending noise

A family reunites

after a long and busy day

Forks scraping up leftover spaghetti

yawning as you drag yourself to bed,

until tomorrow