Poetry Contest Honorable Mentions 1998

Armijo Library

Sad

Sad
is red.
Dark
like blood.
Tastes like rabbit's meat,
that was killed that day.
Is like vomit
that I have to clean when my dad
was in
the hospital.
Is like a person screaming
because
another person is hitting her.
Feels like getting sick
so I
can't play.
Depressed,
miserable,
troubled.

Hart Elementary School
4th Grade

Halloween

La noche de brujas me
puse en la ventana a mirar
a mis amigos los mostruos
vi pasar.
Va el vampiro sediento
de sangre y con su capa a
la gente va a chupar sigue la
bruja que con su sombrero
y su escoba invita a todos
a brincar.
Va riendo el esqueleto que con sus risas y sus
huesos le suenan todos al caminar.
Sigue la calabaza que con
su gran sonrisa a todos los niños
invita a gozar.
Que el gran
desfile a de comenzar.

Hart Elementary School
4th Grade

Proud

Proud
is a golden field
with millions of sunflowers
that cheer
with happiness,
Like clear mist after the rain
while the wind blows,
Fresh air
At the peaks of mountains.
Is being the first
to discover
dinosaur bones.
Feels like snow
falling from
the cloudy
sky.
Like Beautiful boat whistles
coming over the lonely
water.
Arrogant,
confident,
mighty.

Hart Elementary School
4th Grade

Bookmobile

My Poor Friend Me...

I know a man
Who doesn't have many friends.
I know a place he lives
Where trouble never ends.
I know it's hard for him
to read 'tween the lines
And his days are getting so much shorter.
He simply turns away
Instead of bearing down.
His ship is crumcrumbling
His crew is one of the clowns.
I know this man all too well,
It's my poor friend me.

A portrayal of the great dichotomy
(a reminder of a tragic history)
It's my poor friend me.
And in running out of steam
I know there are people
Who are cynical and vain,
They point their finger
'Cuz they can't accept the blame.
They live their lives
Under a blanket of shame and their progeny,
Crawl from underneath it.
Lately I've come to the solution,
And it begins with me,
But I'm so fallibly human,
I've picked the lot.

DLC Job Corps

Dispair

It seems like things are always wrong.
Time goes by so slow
A second seems so long
Sitting alone with no smile to show.
As time goes by
I shorten my life
I don't want to live, I don't want to die
I feel like I'm walking on the blade of a knife.

My mind keeps swinging
Back and forth
The fat lady keeps singing
Pointing me up north.

Time passes even more
I still can't stop thinking
My mind is still at war...
The fat lady stopped singing
In my life, I had done nothing
but swim in my sorrow.
I ask what could I have done
To see tomorrow.
The fat lady smiled and said
You shouldn't think life was all it seems
What you wanted to say you should have said
You should have listened to and followed
Your dreams...

DLC Job Corps

The Sacrifice

Coming into a world of darkness
Master of all, Gods of Gods,
Quietly share our deepest sadness
Regardless of your dignity of Lord.

Walking amongst us all, your children.
Carrying everybody's pitfull cross,
You have saved us on a compassionate pilgrim
Your sacrifice will never b a loss.

More tha a hero...
More important than a savior.
"Our Lord"

DLC Job Corps

Cielo Vista Library

Confusion

I sit here in my room
Thinking
Thinking of life
Thinking of death
A ringing in my ear
A ringing with steady hymn
Confusion
Thoughts
Spinning in my head
Walking as if in a daze
People live
People die
These things give pain
No matter what they are
Shame
A shame so strong
A ringing in my ears
A ringing that grows louder
With every word I write
Time ticks away slowly
Tick, tock

It will stop for nothing
Not even death
Ignorance
Stubbornness
This creates my shame
Tick, tock
My thoughts
My loves
My despise
Whirling in my mind
Walking as if in a daze
Pictures of my loves and friends
Dance before my eyes
As if alive
They dance around
Right before my very eyes
Confusion
Do I love?
Do I hate?
A ringing in my ears
A ringing that grows louder

With every word I write
Young ones live
The elderly die
Tick, tock
Time ticks away slowly
Feelings explode inside me
A sensation I have never felt
before
Is he coming
I don't know
Do I love him
I don't know
Tick, Tock
Time is wasted
Days are lost
Years go by
In the minutes that tick by
A ringing in my ears
A ringing that grows louder
With every word I write.

MacArthur Middle School
8th Grade

Marching Band: Not Just a Class

Dawn. The earthly winds glide through a field of green.
The heavenly clouds hover in anticipation of the morning.
The silent birds gather around this field to witness
A daily activity that spurs the excitement for the
Day's birth. A light shines through,
Illuminating the place where people meet to achieve
A goal which has been set in their minds since the beginning
Of their lives. A goal so rewarding, that few may achieve its
Splendor. The day begins to break into its form, into its
Routine. People flock to the field of dreams. Prepared,
Focused, ready. Within seconds, they are organized,
Ready to perfect outstanding abilities of the mind,
Soul and body. The day flows like water into
Evening. The days go by like sand in an hourglass.
The day of judgment arrives. The tension builds.
The crowd awaits The Group that has set their
Minds on this moment, now must prove their
Worth. They march on the field like an army
Ready for battle. The call is given, the tension builds.
To the extreme, and the power of this lone
Army overwhelms the world. The precision, unmatched.
The ambition, undefeated. The intensity,
Showering everyone in sight.
This group is one and they call themselves...
Band

Burges High School
12th Grade

Mientras Hayan

Maestras como tu el
Mundo sera un lugar
Donde florescan la
esperanza y el amor.
Maestras como tu enseñan
a sus estudiantes con su
ejemplo a tener fe en ti
y sadiburia y la bondad
de Dios. El Mundo es un
Lugar mas bello gracias
a Maestras como tu.

H.D. Hilley Elementary School
4th Grade

Clardy Fox Library

Sweetness

Is a game of truth.
Sweetness is an old lady with wisdom.
A child with a smile that does not compete with anything else.
Sweetness is sugar inside somebody's heart.
Sweetness is something you share.
Like hugs and kisses.
Sweetness is when your grampa puts you on his lap and tells stories to you.
Sweetness is when somebody you love whispers in your ears.
Sweetness is a somebody that says sweet things to you.
Sweetness is when you taste the love people give you.
Sweetness is also when you give sugar for people to taste.
Sweetness is when you cuddle a puppy.
Sweetness is when the person you love gives you some flowers.
Sweetness is when you're sad and the person you love holds you.
Sweetness is something you feel in your heart.
Sweetness is like a flower blooming.
Sweetness is like a beautiful day.

East Montana Middle School
8th Grade

Irving Schwartz Library

The Light To feel the sun warm my face, and rid my body of the cold that runs through me. To taste food that will cure my hunger pains and fill my lifeless body. The soft hand comforts me, pulling me, and beckoning me towards the light. I live on in the trees. I look down from above, and I see... Myself in you. J.M. Hooks High School 12th Grade	Cosas Yo tengo un gato, el se llama chato. El agarra un plato y arriba un pluto, y arriba pone un sapo. Su amigo se some un taco, porque es muy flaco. El pato se mete al charco, su nombre es Laco pero le dicen Marco. El señor se sienta en el banco, que es muy blanco! Sambrano Elementary School 2nd Grade
	Autumn Leaves Autumn leaves down, down, down. Jump, jump, jump. Leaves fall down. Skroosh, skroosh, skroosh. Leaves fall sown, down, down. Leaves falling down, jump to the ground! Leap Academy 1st Grade

Lower Valley Library

Perfect Bird

If I could just find a word
to describe what I heard
this morning outside my window!

There was a fluter of wings,
then the air tinkling
like a thousand diamonds
spilling to the floor.

Soft as the first real snow.
bright as a clown's fake nose,
the song went on and on.

I listened for an hour or more
Or maybe I was just dreaming.
Oh for the right word
to describe its singing
now that the bird is gone!

Bel Air High School
11th Grade

Madres Hispanas

Madres Hispanas,
The most beautiful madres God
could give us.
God made madres hispanas
with a taste that no other
culture could be
except Madres Hispanas!
They try to give us a better life.
Since many of our madres don't
have a husband
And were left with their kids,
They always want the best
for us,
Always!

Riverside Middle School
8th Grade

Love

Love smells like the strong scent of a freshly bloomed field of red roses
surrounded by baby's breath.
Love tastes like luscious chocolate covered, creamy, red as blood cherries.
Love sounds like the song of two snowy white doves deeply in love on the first
cool morning of Spring.
Love looks like a beautiful painting of a couple sitting on a hilltop,
watching the
sun set over their calm little town.
Love feels like the warm embrace of the arms of the one you love.

Riverside Middle Schoo|
8th Grade

Main Library

Untitled (To protect the Innocent) C ompact Disc O n-line Information M ulti-Funtional Database P roductivity U nit T elecommunications E xtensions R ead-only-memory V icious megabyte extermination I mpenetrable R azzle-dazzles the PC U npredictable destruction S wallows up memory Wiggs Middle School 6th Grade	Fighting in the Family Fights start in many ways, On many different days. We argue where to eat, Or where not to out our feet! "Why'd you make me fall?" "It's not my fault you fell over the ball," "You put it there." "If not there, then where?" It goes on and on, And I'm not a con Wiggs Middle School 6th Grade
Mamá y Papá Mamá nos ama y nos quiere A nosotros nos regaña Mi mamá se siente triste A mi mamá le gusta bailar con papá. Papá ama a mamá A mamá y a papá le gusta jugar con nosotros Papá está enfermo y está triste A papá ya no le gusta bailar, se quiere sentar. Mesita Elementary School 3rd Grade

Memorial Park Library

The Shadow

There is a shadow with me always,
when I look back, I see nothing,
But I feel it.
I feel its cold, gripping blanket around me,
When will it leave,
When will it return,
Does it ever really leave?
What is this shadow?
I search constantly to find an answer,
I find none, none.

Get away...
I hide, it hides,
with me.
What could it be?
What could it be?

After all these years...
Finally I realize what the shadow is,
What this thing is that has been haunting me all my life,
My life,
My heart,
My soul.
It is the hatred and forgiveness that I never gave,
That polluted my heart,
That is what creates the shadow.
This shadow.
This shadow.

A mistake...
I never put my faith in God,
Put your faith in Him,
Don't make the same mistake,
Don't let the shadow enter you,
Destroying your life,
Destroying your heart,
Destroying your soul.
Have no shadow.
Have no shadow.

Break free...
Break free of that shadow,
Of this shadow.
Don't keep hatred in your heart,
"Forgive and Forget," the word of God.
Ask for forgivness and you will be forgiven,
Ask for his blessings, and you shall be blessed.

Break free...
Break free...
Break free!
live and trust in God?

Loretto Academy
7th Grade

Weeping Willow

One night as I laid my head on my pillow.
I remembered the story of the Weeping Willow.

I asked my Mommy why the Willows hung low,
She said the Willows are sad trees, don't you know,
They are looking for their children that never grow.

Deep in the night when most people sleep,
The Willows wake up and begin to creep.

They look for a window that is left open,
It is maybe the kitchen, the bathroom, or the den.

Don't sleep by the window at night mommy said,
Because the Willows are looking for children in bed.

All of a sudden the night noises began to get louder,
I heard the scratching on my window getting harder and harder.

Through the window I saw a gleam of light,
I saw the branches coming to life.

They opened the window a crack or so,
Then the Willow's branches crawled in quiet and slow.

They crawled up to my bed,
The branches roped around me from my toe to my head.

I twisted and turned and tried to scream,
They took me outside to never be seen.

All that was left was a slipper by the window,
Some say it was a mystery, but her mom knows it was the
Weeping Willow.

Loretto Academy
8th Grade

Sin Título

El niño y la golondrina
Hoy no voy a la escuela.
No enceuntro más alegria.
Que ponerme a descansar desde la ventana.
Una golondrina que escuchó al niño.
Contesto no hagas eso muchacho.
Vete a estudiar sin demora.
Que el tiempo que pierdas ahora.
Mas tarde lo has de llorar.

Crockett Elementary School
3rd Grade

Richard Burges Library

Life

Life is bright as a harvest moon.
I sounds like an angel playing its harp.
It tastes like fresh strawberries,
And smells like fresh rain in the morning.
Life looks like a flower blooming in Spring.
It makes you feel like the hope of a new day.

Montwood Middle School
8th Grade

Westside Library

Untitled

Heavy lids, tingling toes...
"She's"...as if I had fallen into a sleep with that word.
Jinxed by the position it made in time.
Small substantial hits battered my body and with each realization I
swayed--physically and emotionally
Back and forth, tick, tock,
so sad to know the clock is gone.
Has my mind wandered, it so often does when I stress this day.
Words, words, they fill my head
stop the insistence of knowledge.
I need not go down that road.
"She" laid under the bridge.. of no turning back...so did I
Tingling toes...as if I had died with her
pandemonium dancing through my mind...
Tick, tock...
I am unaware that the day is falling and the night has risen
Another name upon the list, another angel to paint the fire, exhale the
hate for this in your body.
Tick, tock...
Something on the horizon tells me this will not fade gently
Stars that look like you, a bright one--that fell
Numbness in my toes, all feeling is gone
Utter silence, shattering,
the tone in my head makes me believe so.
Pressure building
threatening to bury Moses with his crimson tide
get me out of here, seizure? Injustice? Me?
Where do I belong?
Where now?
On and on the story goes
the woe stays a little too long, the hole resurfaces sometimes, but then...
The tingling is gone.

Franklin High School
12th Grade

Paradox

I am an infinite amount of emotions,
Constantly thinking, analyzing, perfecting,
I am the river's forceful rage,
And the sea's peaceful tranquility.

I am ecstatic one moment, horrified the next.
My moods fluctuate in extreme degrees.
I am the silent ascension of the sun.
And the smooth, somber setting.

My opinions contradict each other.
I am mystical, yet searching.
The heroic prince on his quest,
And the dying villain in agony.

I strive to find myself in this world,
To find my purpose of goodness,
But for whom I ask? God? Mankind?
I am anything but typical, so unpredictable.

My heart cries out one truth,
My mind convinces me it is a lie.
I am the pounding power of blood,
lost in the mazes of my insides.

Franklin High School
12th Grade

My Careless Cat

My kitty is a jump-up cat.
He jumps on this, he jumps on that.
He jumps on beds and tabletops.
He doesn't think before he hops.

He's really careless, don't you think?
Why, once he jumped into the sink!
I know a rule he doesn't keep,
It's ALWAYS LOOK BEFORE YOU LEAP!

Carlos Rivera Middle School
5th Grade

Ysleta Library

Untitled

I smiled at you
You smiled back.
I asked for a hug
You gave me five.
I asked for a kiss
You gave me five.
Now that I ask
for you to be my
Girlfriend you
want to be my wife!

Camino Real Middle School
8th Grade

Untitled

Once I saw him passing by
I knew he was the perfect guy.
I couldn't help it.
He was standing next to me,
I felt his arms all around me.
I was so excited,
I wanted to tell everyone.
That he was going out with me.
He was telling me lovely words.
And when all the girls passed by,
They whispered, "what a lucky girl!"
When I turned around to look at him,
The only thing I saw was that
I was late for class.
Then I realized it was just a dream.

Camino Real Middle School
8th Grade

Su Preferida

Mi mami tiene tres hijas de "Oro"
Aunque una es su favorita,
Es la Mayor, su tesoro
Le dice en secreto, Es la mas lista!

Susurra en la noche "Eres mi preferida"
Mi mas grande tesoro, dice en las mañanas,
Fortuna y alegria inundan tu vida
Tu eres la muestra y ejemplo de tus hermanas.
Ya sea en el parque platican por horas
la vida, la escuela y su futuro planean,
Y la hace leer y estudiar largas horas
y tambien cocinan y rien y leen y juegan.

Yo se lo que siente se ser preferida
Mami la consiente pero es muy estricta,
Yo se que no es facil, pero estoy encantada
de ser su tesoro, su hija favorita.

Loma Terrace Elementary
3rd Grade

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