Tim Lyons

This cold day in winter, windy and bitter
Snowflakes softly drift down from the sky
To cover completely in a white blanket
The rugged mountain and town nearby.

One snowflake falls from a dark cloud
To join its counterparts below
It knows it must follow the wind
But knows not where that wind will go.

It begins over a mountain, hovering high
Floating above people cruising on skis
While others sit in lifts, and trees
Extend as far as the eye can see.

It flies down the mountains, bouncing along
Passing over snowshoers, wolves, and a bear
Entering the town, it glides toward a hill
With neither a thought nor a single care.

The hill is packed with small children
Laughing, playing, and having fun
Some sled down the hill, racing and chasing
While others catch snowflakes on their tongue.

The snowflake soars over a cluster of green
Where people drag trunks under their arms
These people pay, and then drive away
With their new tree from a Christmas tree farm.

I stand there at the pantry door
I’ve had my meal, but I want more
Today it’s simply not my goal
To eat just mushroom casserole

Maybe some extra smooth peanut butter -
Mom threw it out; there was too much clutter.
I could have a cup of rich gelato –
No way, it’s flavored avocado.

How about a banana, with peel so gold?
No, all the fruit is growing mold.
Really? Even the luscious low-calorie limes?
Try one, but you’ll have to wipe off a layer of grime.

Oh no, I say. Maybe cream of wheat?
No, non-instant oatmeal is now obsolete.
In the fridge, I saw some apple pie…
Wait, we’re saving that for the Fourth of July.

There’s a couple of sodas in the garage…
No, I was wrong. That was just a mirage.
What about cake with chocolate icing?
It’s Grandma’s fruitcake - not enticing.

It appears I’ve been denied.
I return to the table, unsupplied.
It’ll be a while, I have a hunch
Before I can eat a decent lunch.

I stand there at the pantry door
I’ve had my meal, but I want more
Today it’s simply not my goal
To eat just mushroom casserole

Maybe some extra smooth peanut butter -
Mom threw it out; there was too much clutter.
I could have a cup of rich gelato –
No way, it’s flavored avocado.

How about a banana, with peel so gold?
No, all the fruit is growing mold.
Really? Even the luscious low-calorie limes?
Try one, but you’ll have to wipe off a layer of grime.

Oh no, I say. Maybe cream of wheat?
No, non-instant oatmeal is now obsolete.
In the fridge, I saw some apple pie…
Wait, we’re saving that for the Fourth of July.

There’s a couple of sodas in the garage…
No, I was wrong. That was just a mirage.
What about cake with chocolate icing?
It’s Grandma’s fruitcake - not enticing.

It appears I’ve been denied.
I return to the table, unsupplied.
It’ll be a while, I have a hunch
Before I can eat a decent lunch.

No one likes to wait.
It can be dull, and there’s usually
something else that we could be doing.
Yet life requires waiting.
Without it, life becomes the Autobahn,
a highway of zooming people
instead of cars.
On the busy highway,
there are no traffic lights,
no stop signs,
or intersections.
The feeling of time hurrying us would be like
the minimum speed limit

No one likes to wait.
It can be dull, and there’s usually
something else that we could be doing.
Yet life requires waiting.
Without it, life becomes the Autobahn,
a highway of zooming people
instead of cars.
On the busy highway,
there are no traffic lights,
no stop signs,
or intersections.
The feeling of time hurrying us would be like
the minimum speed limit

It's Easy Being Green

By Tim Lyons
Rice Memorial High School, Grade 9

Is it really that hard
Being green
and blending in
wherever you go?
Making up a beautiful forest scene
or a grassy plain.
You look nice,
but you never stick out.
You’re just part of the background.
People see you
but they never really notice you.
They just pass you by
after they catch a glimpse of you
as if you were a pebble
on a cobblestone path.
You’re just an addition
and not really anything
on your own, by yourself.
You’re a tree on a mountain
a lily pad in a massive lake
a leaf of lettuce in a salad.
There’s less pressure,
less hassle, less strain on you.
You can just be part of scenery
and go with the flow.
It’s less dangerous that way
and much easier.
But the most significant people
ever to walk this earth
were not green.
They were red.
They were yellow.
They were turquoise.
Those colors stand out
in the unvarying scenery
of static green.

The Big Game

By Tim Lyons
Rice Memorial High School, Grade 9

Some love the game
While others do not
Some get to play
Others are just onlookers
Some just follow what they are told
By the leaders that give orders
On offense some do best
Others are always defending
Some try to win
And some only play to look good
With all their dazzle and flash