week33-08

Trees

By Cora Sloan
Richmond Middle School, Grade 7

like strong hands
holding the world together
strong roots
reaching down
into the damp soil
leaves
swaying gently.
All you need
is a little courage
and you can climb
to the very top.

The Moon

By Scott Messer
Benson Village School, Grade 7

In the night there shines a light
Hanging by a silver thread.
It has a sister in the day
That shines so brightly.
It controls the sea and waves
And has a billion little followers.
They don’t shine so brightly
But they twinkle all the same.

One Character of a Dog

By Elana Van Arnam
Northfield Middle School, Grade 7

When we moved to Vermont ten years ago from Columbus, Ohio, we made many changes. It was quite a transition, moving from a very busy city where a mall and movie theater were only a walk away, to a quiet, rural town with a population of 5,500. We have a family of four, but decided we needed something more to complete the family. So we got a dog. A golden retriever puppy was what we settled on. When we arrived home from church one Sunday we had an ambitious and rambunctious puppy with us. We decided to name the golden ball of fluff Amos, after my father’s grandfather.

My Angel

By Colleen Crete
Rutland High School, Grade 10

Sweet sounds of the calming river soothe my soul
Fragrant grasses fill the air from the hills that roll
My little sitting stone, from which I observe this beautiful day
Off in the distance I hear the children play
I feel this presence next to me when I am alone
Even though I have this feeling, yet nothing has shown
Bad days when you think nothing can help
Thoughts of my angel put a smile on my face
He may not be there but that is not the case
Always in my heart he will be set in stone.

Shifting Current

By Kayla O'Toole
Crossett Brook Middle School, Grade 7

Life is a river
Sometimes stopped and frozen
Just waiting for things to thaw
Sometimes flowing smoothly
Making it around all the bumps on the way
Sometimes just swimming with the fish
Going with the flow
Sometimes raging around everywhere
But always moving on.

Pizza, Something I Feel Strongly About

Dave Lembke
Chelsea Public School, Grade 12

The Fair

By Drew Dudley
Chelsea Public School, Grade 11

When the fair comes town
Excitement rises
But why?
The music, lights, people.
It’s all there is one spot
Continuously running into people you know
Meeting new faces.
The food
Delicious and full of grease.
But still
It’s all eaten.
The lights when night begins to fall
Filling the sky
Almost as if it’s day
Letting the world see everything.
The rides
For all ages
The rush of excitement for 90 seconds
The wind in your face
Not knowing where you’re going to end.
But at midnight
The excitement ends there
But still
The memories of the day and night linger.

Green

By Sara Archie
Lebanon High School, Grade 12

It rolls around in my purse
I have to shuffle through the loose change
Through my books
My cell phone
My lip gloss
My CD player
My college paperwork—
(Jeesh, how much crud do I have in here?)
To find the goods:
Green.

I try to smile
But I know
It’ll be all gone after
My jacked up college tuition sucks it into the void.

But for now…
Shopping spree anyone?

Green

By Audrey Picut
Deerfield Valley Elementary School, Grade 4

When I think of green, I hear the greenish wild waves crashing down on the shore, green spray flying everywhere. When I think of green, I feel the green seaweed beneath my feet, pulling me down, beneath the shining surface. When I think of green, I see the bright green leaves on the big, bushy apple tree in the music teacher's garden, swaying in the breeze. When I think of green, I taste the delicious green tea ice cream on my lips, traveling slowly down, into the depths of my stomach.
And when I think of green, I think of the small green peas cooking on the stove right now-my dinner.
And that is what I think of green.

Green

By Jake Dombek
Ferrisburgh central School, Grade 5

Green is clean
Green is light
Green is very very bright!
Green is spring
Green is grass
Green is very very vast!
Green is energy
Green is power
Green is as pretty as a flower!
Green is nice
Green is kind
Green is also easy to find!
Green is wet
Green is dry
Green is very, very shy!
Green is gentle
Green is strong
A world without green would be wrong!

Green

By Cody Brouillard
Rochester High School, Grade 9

Green
To me that means spring
The snow is melting
The sap is running
Trees budding
Flowers blooming
Deer eating
Turkeys gobbling
Gears shifting
Weather warming
Grass growing
Water splashing
Sun shining
Kids playing
Wind blowing
Spring slides into summer
Winter is just a distant bummer

Snapshots

By Erin Maguire
Essex High School, Grade 9

Green is;
dangling before me
seducing my senses into
a controlled confusion of
love and loss, blending
our features until I can't
find the real me or the right
you and green is;
an elegy. Of
summer, of granny apple
pies and fractured Polaroids
rescued from the neighbor's
soft lawn on the
other side of our fence, where
the grass always seemed
sweeter until we got there and
discovered green is;
relative.

Green is;
the backyard in July
and waves teasing the tips
of our toes while we
sucked Popsicles in the
sun and asked big questions about
the little intricacies of
our world and watched the
dogs play under the
swing set. Back then
green was;
applesauce and cinnamon
during the last summer
we whirled between the white
birch trees and the
pines that shielded us, under
a rich emerald canopy, from
harsh realities and false
hope. Green used to be;
everything and
every
one

The Bomb has Fallen

By Sierra Cruikshank
Rochester High School, Grade 9

Flashes in the distance, blind me
Bright shades of green race in streaks.
It started with a stroke of orange
And forever that’s all I will see.

Green

By Melissa Werle
Woodstock Union High School, Grade 10

Green looks like a slippery frog
Climbing through the muddy leaves
It feels like a prickly cactus
Or the hard, bumpy shell of a slow turtle
It tastes like a bitter, oily olive
Tangy and strong
Smell the sharp scent of pines
Or the citrus-y burst of a lime.
Green is the crawling ivy on old houses
And the sparkle of an emerald
It sounds like the hiss of a snake
The crunch of an apple being bitten

My Green
By Peyton Wilson
Vermont Academy, Grade 9
Green is the start: Ready set go!
The color of beginning, right?
Green is the color of a blooming spring
And of days that are long and bright.
It’s the color of luck – and of winning
Money! Mom’s new plants! A yard!
Green is the color of easy going
And a life that isn’t hard.
Green is my color; the nice fuzzy hat
That was made for me long ago.
Green was the color of happiness
And of a home 'worthy' to show.
Now green is the color of the park
At which I spend a lot of time.
Green was the color of your last
Happy birthday sign.
Now that I think, green was the color
Of a few ‘sorry’ cards sent my way.
Green was the color of your birth;
Isn’t it coming this May?
And now, for me, green is the color
Of a memory I wish to save.
It’s the color of the grass that grows
Tall above her grave
Green is the color of her soul;
Has it yet flown into the skies?

When You Hear the Word Green . . .

By Gianna Carchia
Woodstock Union High School, Grade 10

When you hear the word green
Think of the Earth
Of how nothing you buy
Will compare to its worth

When you hear the word green
Think of the world
Of how much it has gone through
Of how long it has twirled

When you hear the word green
Think not of envy or wealth
Instead, do consider the Earth’s fragile health

Choose to respect the Earth
Want to keep it green
Decide to keep it safe
And resolve to keep it clean

The Tilt-a-Whirl

By Christopher Prado
Colchester Middle School, Grade 6

Tilt-a-Whirl!
Exciting, thrilling
whirling, spinning, turning.
Fun...at first, then not...
Tossing, whipping, reeling;
queasy, sick,
Green

Green

By Emma Seaver
Hartford Memorial Middle School, Grade 8

I can’t wait for the green to come
for the birds to sing
the crickets to chirp
for the flowers to sprout.
I can’t wait for the caterpillars
for the wind's sweet breeze
the dew on the grass
for the bikes to reappear.
I can’t wait for the green.

GREEN

By Kacie Collins
Woodstock Union High School, Grade 10

Pedal to the metal
Cruising down the road
Something in the distance
I better take it slow.
Green light fades to yellow
Yellow fades to red
The seconds take forever
Thoughts wander in my head
At last the light blinks to green
And I am off
Me and my machine.

Green in my Room

By Chloe Dickinson
Woodstock Union High School, Grade 10

Lightly changing with the light
Forest green in the darkest night
Like lemon yellow in the sun
When morning shines in
The day has begun.

The lime green of my room is ever changing
Inspiring my art and never taming.

Green

By Sean Bjornsson
Woodstock Union High School, Grade 10

Green to me is that amazing week in spring when all of the trees explode from that pale green, light brown of buds that you hadn't even noticed to that incredible lush green that fills every corner of your vision so fully you can't escape it.

Emerald Eyes

By Greta L.A. Zarro
Rice Memorial High School, Grade 9

The emerald green of her eyes
sparkled as she brushed past me.
I am the hidden admirer
who has not been given the chance at love.

Yet, I continued to stare into those eyes of her unassuming face
like stained glass windows in an sacred church.
Unopened gifts to a new pleasure
of which I have not received.

Her green eyes begged me to venture inside of them
to search for the meaning behind her stare.
They haunt me at night as I see their almond shape and deep color
these eyes still wrapped in a package of mystery.

What was she saying through that fleeting look?
Those eyes that glanced at me from behind mascara-coated lashes.
The green glinting and my heart beating fast
did she feel the love for me that I desperately have for her?

This green makes me blissful
I know when I see it that I am looking at her.
I hope I never see it
in the eyes of someone else.

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.

Green

By Emma Sienkiewycz
Hinesburg Community School, Grade 8

Fresh
Green
Blades of grass
Stretch through the thawing
Mud covered ground

Trees
Have leaves
Budding from their branches
For the beginning of another
Long year

Forest floors
Covered
In moss
And ferns

Flowers blossom
Leaving a trace of perfume
Wherever they are
Their long
Green
Stems
Stretching towards the sky

Roses
With thorns
Covering their stems
Danger
A warning
Like barbed wire
Keeping you away

Then it rains
Stepping out the door
Dodging the bullets
Modeling green mud boots
Carrying a green umbrella
Held high above a nest of tousled hair
Diving into the storm
Fearless
Green eyes glowing

All signs of spring
Coming
And then there
Until the green
Gets greener
And then turns to reds
Oranges
Yellows
And
Browns
Then disappearing under the fluffy
White
Snow
Until...

Fresh
Green
Blades of grass
Stretch through the thawing
Mud covered ground

Green

By Ayla Gill
Ferrisbugh Central School, Grade 3

Inspired by Mary O’Neill’s
Hailstones and Halibut Bones

Green is the grass in your backyard
Green is a frog swimming in a pond
Green is lettuce in your garden
Green is an unripe tomato
Green is a turtle on log
Green is a cucumber in your salad
Green is a witch’s face on Halloween
Green is an alligator in a swamp
Green is a vine on your home going up, up and up.

From Far Away

By Bethany Sullivan
Mount Mansfield Union High School, Grade 11

Sugarcane streamlines the bus
jostling and jumping
over a not-so-paved road.
Tall and bright, tasseled at the tops
vividly green
but somehow not quite right.
Because for me,
green is the Green Mountain State
even when the mountains
are painted so white.
It`s my turtle-green junker of a Jeep
that I like driving to school
over potholed dirt roads.
And it`s the green ink
that proclaims `Made in Vermont`
on a gallon of pure, rich maple syrup.
It`s the wide pastures
where Vermont holsteins munch
and make milk creamy as a daydream.
It`s my best friend`s eyes
inquisitive and humorous
and the emerald green on the New England Federal Credit Union sign.
It`s the eruptions in the trees
of electric-shaded buds
when spring comes.
Green is Irish luck
or a healthy lawn
and it also seems to be everywhere.
But for me
it will always be home.

Green: an analysis

By Angela Wood
Colchester High School, Grade 10

Green is a symbol of many things. In fact, it’s quite fascinating how many things it represents in different scenarios. It is the color of envy- when you covet something owned by some one else, whether it be materialistic, a reputation, a relationship. It is the color of sickness, as well. It seems as if it has a rather unpleasant connotation associated with it.
Yet at the same time, it can also be used in reference to so many nice things. The new growth of spring, for example, is always represented by green. It is a symbol of new and healthy life sprouting up out of the ground. This is the complete opposite of its less uplifting ideas. How can it represent both healthy growth and sickness at the same time? There are few, if any, other words which can be used in such a broad spectrum.

Green For Me

By Olivia Christie
Fairfield Center School, Grade 5

Green for me is many things but most of all it’s spring

It’s the cool, moist grass against my bare feet
the air a springtime aroma smelling strangely sweet

The warm dark nights under the stars above
the soft muffled coo of the mourning dove

The sunset releases a comforting glow
the river so calm waking up from the snow

Spring for me is many things but most of all it’s green

Forever Life

By Sally Tucker
Hartford High School, Grade 9

I’m leaping
And I know
The net is nowhere
Below me
I’m falling
and
I don’t know how
To catch myself
I’m landing hard
But my feet aren’t
Underneath me
I’m hurting
As I lie broken
Against cement

I had no idea
Life could be so
Painful
Rejection could be
so endless
I didn’t know I could
Plunge so deep
Beneath the surface
Of my power.
I’m dropping
With no hope of reaching
Control.
Control of my feelings
Of life of love
Of happiness
Of what seems
Beautiful
What seems right

I’m flying
Soaring
Reaching forever
Up
I’m running
With the wind
Guiding me forward
And forward
Into the unknown
Where I want to go
I’m dancing
Knowing the song
Won't stop
Because it's infinite
And full
Of every possibility

I know I can
Get myself to smile
Each day
I know I will
Guard myself from danger
Be strong enough
To let someone else
In
I know I’m living