Stowe High School

The late afternoon sun shone down on the boring party. It was a mix of the complete opposite groups, and myself being one of the middle I had endured comments about both. Most of us were bored out of our minds, while others were broken into scattered groups that had invisible barriers; I stood in one spot, conversing with whoever was there. He stood a couple feet away. After our last fight, which ended with an apology and an awkward hug we were now back into the confusing relationship that changed daily. Though I had no particular romantic interest in him, something about him made me (make that everyone) care about his exact words and gestures to me.

Price to Pay.

Supposedly I am the master of my fate,
But frankly I find this “adage” out of date.
No meandering course, footpath have I taken,
Where your needs did not surpass my own, correct me if I’m mistaken.

Just wondering, where exactly do my necessities fit on the scale?
A life led only to please one and all, a definite route to fail.

Counting….

The intentional size of a razorblade,
One day circumference, the next, meet your bane.
Wait it out as you wish, untreatable mistake of the decades
Logic you may define, for her was never gained.

So easy to think, one swift gesture to pink.
Layer upon layer, pore upon pore,
Years of effort, you expand and you shrink,
No aspect of that pulse matters anymore.

Perfect in each imperfection,
Eyes blinded, point in her direction.
With each motion of her hand,
You display a lesser man.

Gaze upon her winding curls,
mesmerized by each anxious finger twirl.
You thank god in that moment for his generosity,
No obstacle in the world to slow your forward velocity.

You feel yourself slipping back under,
Gradually falling, ..you wonder,

Never Ever…

Don't try to tell me that I won't make it
God forsaken,
My goals you ostracize that for YOU, did not fit.

Don't preach to me the consequences of my action,
gaining satisfaction,
the faults you alone can see in my passion.
Don’t criticize what answers you have never found,
not a sound,
TRY to help me along, find some common ground.

Six

By Rafferty Parke
Stowe High School, Grade 11

It is midnight in June.

Six teenage girls sit on the edge of a lit pool, feet of various sizes and legs of various lengths dangling into the clear glowing water. Pajama bottoms are rolled up to the knees, and a blanket is draped across a few pairs of shoulders.

One turns to regard the rest, her thick blonde tresses flopping to one side. Their forms are darkly silhouetted, save for their faces which are illuminated in turquoise. They are laughing at a shared joke, each unique laugh resonating across the water to form a sort of haphazard harmony.

The blonde joins in, gasping for the cool summer air. Her stomach drops at the idea of leaving the others. She has half a summer of uncertainty ahead of her. As she would later realize, that half summer would be an unparalleled adventure that would open her up to new people, new places, and new sides of herself.
For now, though, she sits with these girls, her counterparts, her sisters. She listens as their voices fill the night, water splashing at their feet.

By Rafferty Parke
Stowe High School, Grade 10

Maddie was terrible at waiting.

Mere moments of idleness were exhausting for her. At this particular moment, as she lingered at the doorway of the Golden Bridges Retirement Home, she was deciding what to do with her arms. When she crossed them, she felt she gave off an unapproachable air. Straight at her sides was too stiff a position; with hands in her pockets, too casual. She wished she had brought a bag to clutch.