Rushing Water soothing, serenity, drowning, flowing
Created by: Adeline Melton, Tiffany Melton, and Grace Stamm
Clear Tiffany Melton
I don’t know where I belong. Maybe somewhere out at sea, Dancing in the rain, Or diving in the blue deep.
Rain falls down from the heavens and onto my smiling face. I tilt my head up and become immersed in its immediate presence. Water puddles and collects on the granite cobblestone path. I press off the concrete and jump, Suspended in the air, Then fall down with a splash into dark water below.
Sunshine ripples along the freshwater pond, In vibrant golden reflections. I slip off my shoes and dip my toes in, Breaking the cool clear surface, Struck with a welcoming cold.
Soothing summertime swims at the lake, Cooling off my boiling skin. Buried underneath the sun-warmed water, I feel alive.
The river behind my house, Running through the middle of the woods. Babbling brooks and clear glass waters, Pouring out and spilling over, Slowly wearing away rocks into pebbles. Silver moonlight cascading, Over oceans roaring waves, That crash against the shore. The tide will carry them back in, And pull them out to sea.
Downpour Tiffany Melton
Sunset On Romance Adeline Melton
Over the hills where the light was shining, our story began on that sun-soaked day. Your palm in mine, in the clouds, reclining. A halo in your eyes - you turned to say:
“I adore you, my dear. I’ll stay with you, looking after constellations at night. In my embrace until the sky fades blue, I’ll hold you, so you never feel a fright.”
Linked-up arms down pathways of the bright sky, our passion grew inside of the warm sun. Clouds shrouded the light, and I wondered why you no longer appeared to be ‘the one.’
But I should have known of my love so fair, that you lied, and the sky was never - ever there.
Water Cycle Adeline Melton
The sand gets stuck between my toes. I must admit it makes my heart laugh. The sun is a flashlight, shining against my back. It’s warmth will make my shoulders blossom into a painting of freckles. I reach my arms out on either side, stretching as far as they can go. I wiggle my fingers in the air. I feel relaxed. As I dance forward, the sand heats up the soles of my feet. The wind picks up my hair and tosses it in the breeze. My soul feels refreshed, and my body is at peace. A seagull darts past my head, calling to its friends - my friends wait for me at the shore line. It’s nice to see their smiling faces as they surround me in this ocean of serenity. They take my hand and say, “We’re on this journey with you.” Water sloshes against our heels as we tread through the ocean together. Salt water spews into our face, and the wind beats against our backs more fiercely. “It’s time;” I tell my loved ones, “this is a journey I alone must take.” They head back to the shore line, and I take a big gulp of air. Arching my arms out in front of my body, I dive into the deep blue sky. The cool water meets my skin, and the ocean and I instantly become one. Pumping my arms and kicking my legs, I pull myself further down. Into the depths of the cold sky, I swim, my eyes squeezed shut. My chest feels tight, and my throat begins to burn. Frantically, my hands scramble across the bottom. I brush past sand to uncover a door bolted to the bottom of the ocean floor. I have to cram my fingernails into the ledge in order to pry it open. Wind swallows me up, and it feels like I’m sucked into a vortex as the door flies open. Water spews out onto the tiled floor. I lay on the cool floor for a moment, coughing up water. Someone with worn, beige flats nearly trips over me. They offer me a warm hand, which I take. A psychiatrist, with blond hair, smiles down at me: “Dear, can I help you?” Flustered, I pat my thigh to see my sundress is bone-dry. “Uh, I’m here to see Doctor Macy.” She smiles, “You’re speaking to her.” I briefly explain why I’m here, and she invites me into her office. The space is cozy, with dim lighting, lava lamps, scented candles, and tapestries of elephants pinned to the walls. I’ve struggled with myself for so long. Countless love is poured onto me; I’ve experienced a lifetime of joy. However, it’s the in-between moments and the quiet days that sneak up on me. Depression, self worth and self harm are constant forces in my life. I sink into a bean-bag chair, and I open up to this perfect stranger. She’s here to help me; this feels like something I should’ve done ages ago. After I’m finished talking, she smiles and says, “OK, love, let's get you prescribed on some medication.” The lights in the office buzz softly, and feel as if they’re wrapping me in a hug. I nod my head slightly, “Sounds good.” We develop a plan to overcome my mental illness. We set up a calendar, and make a list of positive reinforcements. The whole experience overwhelmed me with encouragement. It feels like I’m floating. I’ve been tormented, worrying about this day for entirely too long. It always felt like something I should be embarrassed by. . I walk out of Doctor Macy’s office feeling empowered. I’m ready to return to my friends and bathe, once more, in the sun.
Ocean Haiku Grace Stamm
Fear Tiffany Melton
Fear, Used to have its strong grip on me. I believed there were things I could and couldn’t do. A certain measure of impossible that stood across from me, Like a dark pool of doubt rippling in the distance, Far off.
I’m toldmy limits, and won’t go too far outside the lines. The things I couldn’t do, because I was too scared. I didn’t think I was allowed, A person like me couldn’t, Never. It held me back with its crimson paws, Far too long.
It’s time to break out of the box I let it put me in, Free at last! Out from the cruel, inky venomous darkness, And into the cool, soft, radiant light. Nothing’s impossible, The whole world is yours. I can break the limits and lines into a million pieces, Shattered. So many dreams up on a shelf, That I thought I could never achieve.
My dark thoughts would consume me, Replaying over and over till they turned into poison, And self-doubt crept in. Now I see that I was dead wrong, My dreams are within grasp. Just waiting for me to reach out and grab them! Anything is possible.
Swim On Grace Stamm
Coming Undone Tiffany Melton
Pity Party Adeline Melton
Pity party Pity party Pajama pant legs My emotions get to me pulled up to my chest Sometimes it feels like a knife A plate full of cookies through my heart stacked on my bed It leaves me paralyzed I’m a small bug Mascara stains my cheeks Crushed under A blob of tears the giant foot of life on my pillow P P I A T R Y T Y My melancholy melody: a bitter love poem It turns into anger No one is secure from its strike The sun taps on my window and asks if it can disperse the storm-cloud over my head. Begrudgingly, I let it in. Slowly I breathe and smile again.
Sinking Tiffany Melton
Her I wear my heart on my sleeves My emotions come as they please There's no stopping the words That tumble and roll out of my mouth Maybe it’s a curse But at least the truth comes out Showing my tears like I'm wearing a sweater One day I’ll get better At hiding everything behind closed doors like you Maybe I’ll never know the truth But my feelings hang out in the open For everyone to see Telling you just how I feel Crying like it’s free You're a mystery that I’ll never understand Unless you let me
Him I want to let you in But it’s so hard for me to see what’s real I have these deep, deep wounds That can never heal I've been so abused in the past It’s hard to know what will ever last And what will be broken Over-careful, My thoughts are sinking I should just tell you what I’m thinking You.
Birds Adeline Melton
Siren Grace Stamm
Another mission in yet another abandoned warehouse. Can’t these smugglers get any more clever? It’s always “figure out where the illegal stuff is, break into the warehouse that it’s in, fight smugglers, take the said illegal stuff, and return it for the greater good.” At least that’s what our General says. My name’s Anneliese. I work within an elite group of six enhanced individuals. There’s me, of course. A hydrokinetic who isn’t afraid to send a tsunami towards anyone coming my way. Then there’s Lilith, a telekinetic who just so happens to be the least annoying of the six. Next is Thalia, an ex-assassin who just so happens to control darkness. We just call it umbrakinesis. Then there’s the men. Lucas was an accomplice to Thalia back in her assassin days, but eventually, the two broke away from that life. He’s a photokinetic, which means he controls light. He is the balance to Thalia’s darkness. Next is Wes. Though he has no kinetic ability, he does have the eyes of a hawk and ability to hear within a five-mile radius. He’s also the inventor of the group. He’s always looking for ways to improve our team. Finally - General Reed. He has the ability of teleportation, though he rarely uses it. He says he’s gotten rusty over the years. Now I sit huddled behind a solid wall along with Lilith, waiting for a cue from the General. All that was audible was the sound of gunshots against metal. “When will they learn that we can do as much as them,” Lilith scowled, checking around the corner. “Heck, we could do more. Behind you!” I raised my voice, quickly forming a wall of water and sending it crashing towards a smuggler that was running towards us. The water hit him hard. If I could guess, I would say it felt as if he belly flopped on a brick wall. It wasn’t that hard of a hit, but it was enough to knock him out. “Exactly my point. We can fight perfectly fine,” Lilith glared. I looked down at my waist, where a lightweight belt was now resting, holding various knives and daggers. One thing I had noticed was that I wasn’t familiar with a single one. I had left all of my preferred daggers at our headquarters. “Ever fight with a knife?” Lilith spoke up, breaking my haze. “I know you know the answer to that question,” I smirked as I twirled a knife around in my hand. “It’s not my fault you always resort to your powers,” she shrugged. At that point, a large boom came from the inside of the warehouse’s gates. I turned to Lilith with determination. That was the cue. We ran as fast as we could, Lilith already yards behind me. We followed the path of Thalia and Lucas, who had already been inside the gates. The General then came up next to us, also running to get in as fast as possible without setting off another bomb. Making it in the building, I held a dagger in one hand, and a sphere of water in another. Lucas and Thalia had a gun, the General unarmed, and Lilith with smaller rocks that she was controlling floating behind her. It was dark in the building, the feeling of dust surrounding us. “Wes, we're in,” the General said, leading us through the halls cautiously. “To your left is the hallway. The door at the end is where the Harmonium is being stored.” Apparently, Harmonium was the Illegal Metal of the Day. Smugglers have been trying to get it across the border ever since the government outlawed it. General nodded and started sneaking through the directions Wes had given him. He waved for us to follow. Upon reaching the door, he held up three fingers. Then two. Then one. After he kicked down the door, a laboratory was revealed with at least eight people that began shooting at us. Lucas began firing left and right - Wanda began firing away with her powers - I began shooting waves of water out whilst fighting alongside my team. “Thal, Anne, go!” General shouted. “We can hold them back!” Thalia and I glance at each other before flipping our way to the storage area. “Any day now, Wes!” Thalia said, cracking into the smaller storage room. The idea was that Wes would track us, and somehow make his way to the harmonium to take it. I looked over to General to see him barely holding off two people, fighting them at the same time. They wouldn't go down. Looking back at the units, an explosion caused Thalia to push me backwards. Wes finally managed to cut his way through the heavy stone walls. He stood there, giant laser-thing in hand, waiting to get the harmonium. Thalia began to help, and I looked over at General once more. He was still fighting off the two smugglers with a third running towards him with a blade that would surely kill him if he was stabbed in the right place. “Anne! A little help here!” I heard Thalia yell at me. I looked at her and back at General. I shrugged at her and began to run at the guard aiming at General’s heart. Just in time, I ran in between the two of them - General glancing back at me in between punches. I began to try and get a good hit on the guy. They were trained well. They must’ve been part of a military unit at some point. I managed to kick him back, but he came running, knife in hand. Without thinking, I pulled out a long sword from my back, ducked beneath his own punch, grabbed his arm, pulled him towards me from behind, and stabbed him through the back of the heart. The blade cut clean through his body. The man gasped, unable to scream. I held him with one arm and held the sword with the other. The man began to struggle, his limbs soon becoming weak. I harshly pulled the sword out, and he dropped dead to the ground. My face was blank, staring at the body, not knowing what to do. My old self was creeping its way back into my brain, saying things I hadn’t thought of in years. It’s just another kill. No witnesses. “Come on!” I heard from General. I snapped out of my haze for a second, but another war was going on in my brain. My old and new selves were fighting for control. I could see the General gesturing for me to follow him. My body seemed to take over from my mind. I began to run with him towards where the harmonium previously was. My body was taken over. I felt numb and un-fazed by anything. My memory was even cutting out. I don’t even know where my soul is. Soon it was all over, and I was still stuck in my haze, unsure if I could ever get out.