To my textbooks,
to my calculus tests,
to my college applications,
to my scholarship applications,
stop making me tired,
I’m sleepy.

To the internet,
to the funny pictures of cats that make me smile,
to the satirical news articles that make me giggle,
to the online MMO games that distract me for hours,
stop keeping me up at night,
I’m sleepy.

To my dog,
to my friends,
to my acceptance letters,
to yummy food at midnight,
thank you for comforting me,
I’m going to bed.

– Sydney Sweeney, 17
From the WritersCorps 2012 book “Let Me Be,” by students at International Studies Academy

Poem of the Month: December 2012

Sunshine is quiet
in the morning — it yearns to stay pristine. But
the birds mar it with their flight, and
tea kettles boil and
buses start running.

Nevertheless, sunshine is quiet in the morning.
Sometimes, if you have big windows and you
leave them open,
the curtains, that is –
(and they’d have to be east-facing) –
then the quiet sun would be a sight to see:

it would sneak
over rooftops and
expose things hidden in the night –
flowers, perhaps.

The dark dawn recedes;
the birds wake up; the slummy shops
open; the drunks wake
from their sidewalk beds.

The tea kettle boils.

– Raeme Miccio Gavino, 17

From the Spring 2011 book “Through the Looking Hand,” by students at International Studies Academy

Poem of the Month: May 2011

Love I don’t know how to reject you
When I’m sad you can always comfort me
When I’m happy you make me ecstatic
You stay anywhere
I can find you anytime
Sometimes, you make us lose our reason
I hate you and I appreciate you too
Love, you are candy
You are poison too
I always imagine I can control you, Love
I can control myself
However, that is just my illusion

– Tian Yang (Jessica) Chen, age 18
From the WritersCorps book “Paper Dreams” at International Studies Academy

Poem of the Month: February 2010

I will send to my mother
a behaved daughter
that will always make her happy
so she doesn’t need to be mad anymore.

I will send to my stepfather
a money tree
that will always grow money
so he doesn’t need to work for anyone.

I will send to my two little sisters
a forever childhood
that will never end
so they don’t need to worry about anything.

– Elaine Pau, age 15
From the WritersCorps book “Paper Dreams” at International Studies Academy

Poem of the Month: December 2009

I will send to my mother
a behaved daughter
that will always make her happy
so she doesn’t need to be mad anymore.

I will send to my stepfather
a money tree
that will always grow money
so he doesn’t need to work for anyone.

I will send to my two little sisters
a forever childhood
that will never end
so they don’t need to worry about anything.

– Elaine Pau, age 15

From the WritersCorps book “Paper Dreams” at International Studies Academy
Poem of the Month: December 2009