Lyric poem: The girl in the wheelchair

She sat, not speaking

Her face pale, her eyes vacant

But inside her head she was dreaming

Dreaming of a way out

Her legs were not broken

Nor her hands or feet

She sat in the wheelchair because

It was her hope that was a shattered glass

They told her she'd have a normal life

Without a worry or care

As she looked off into space

She realized how wrong they were

As pretty as a daisy

But with sickness overcoming her

She had nowhere else to turn

No one else to be there for her

In and out of clinics she went

Too sick to have the energy to walk

Not even a teenager yet

Yet she had lived a lifetime 

She should be worrying

About friends and nails and boys             

Yet she is stuck within these crying walls

Worrying what the next day will bring

All she needs is a sign of affection

Someone to tell her she'll make it through

She is locked away in her own prison

But knows that soon, all will be done

She waits for it to be over

For someone to reach out and give her a hug

She waits for the end of all this

And to get rid of the cancer inside her

She sat, not speaking

Her face pale, her eyes vacant

But inside her head she was dreaming

Dreaming of a way out

Visual poem: As I grew older

As I grew older – By Langston Hughes

It was a long time ago. I have almost forgotten my dream. But it was there then,
in front of me, 
bright like a sun—
My dream.
 And then the wall rose,
Rose slowly,
Slowly,
Between me and my dream.
 Rose until it touched the sky—
The wall.
 Shadow.
 I am black. 
I lie down in the shadow.
 No longer the light of my dream before me,
 Above me.
 Only the thick wall. Only the shadow. My hands! My dark hands! 
Break through the wall! 
Find my dream! Help me to shatter this darkness, to smash this night, to break this shadow 
Into a thousand lights of sun, into a thousand whirling dreams
 of sun!

     This poem, is special, because of how simple, yet meaningful it is. Each word within it packs a punch, and uses good methods of getting the message it's trying to convey across. I can relate to this poem in certain ways, for example the title of the poem. The events in the poem, kind of tell the story of what happens as you grow older. This goes for me as well, despite that I am still young, I can already feel, what the poet calls "the wall of shadow". The poet also uses many good poetic pauses during the poem, and a good concept choice. Thos are some of the reasons that this particular poem caught my eye.

     I chose the picture, because of how literally it represents the poem. In the poem, it tells of a wall of shadow, blocking the narrator, or antagonist of this poem, from reaching his dreams. The picture shows this well, and the fact that it's made of bricks could convey that it isn't impossible to break through it. The wall continues, meaning there is no way around it, you have to break through it. The glowing white arrow is like the "light of sun" in the poem, breaking through the wall to attain the dream. Both represent the determination of the individual to reach his dream. Those are a few reasons that this picture was the one that stood out most to me.

Poetry Ballad: Students

Your friends, your peers, more so known as students

Taking down each task with extreme prudence

Though sometimes for teachers they seem like pollutants

As cool as they are they can become quite a nuisance

All of the popular kids can be pretty cool

Walking down the halls disrespecting every rule

While not all are like this, some can be quite nice

Let’s just say some others lack trustful advice 

The smart ones, the cool ones, however you group it

Deep down inside we’re all the same you must admit

Students are actors, but are also able to stay true

Here at Riverside we greet you no matter what you do

Your friends, your peers, more so known as students

Taking down each task with extreme prudence

Though sometimes for teachers they seem like pollutants

As cool as they are they can become quite a nuisance

Work might be an overload for their minds

But with some hard work they’ll get through just fine

Piles forever stacking up on the table

Shot through their brains like an electric cable

Teacher shakes his head as he sees their mark

Should have put extra punctuation on this part

Here at Riverside the students don’t give in

Say they’ll make it better and then they begin

Your friends, your peers, more so known as students

Taking down each task with extreme prudence

Though sometimes for teachers they seem like pollutants

As cool as they are they can become quite a nuisance

At the end of the day, you know they’ll be there

So make sure you listen close and pull up a chair

Students can be a pain and don’t always stay true

But you can always count on them to be there for you

Narrative poem: He reached

He reached

For a lone single hope that to his dismay had gone beyond his grasp

One last memory before his depart

His eyes, filled with tears, his hands trembled

He hoped that this wasn’t the last time he would see

The busy lights of the streets

The hopeful glow of the buildings

He felt the harsh rain against his skin

Sheets of water rushing down, plummeting to the ground

He watched, as the world around him slowed

Everything in a blur

Hope was the only thing that carried him forward

He stood alone, in the obscurity of the night

No one to console him, nowhere to go

Nowhere to live

He reached

He remembered the days where he didn’t have to worry

The days where the world made sense

A time in which he was joyful, and always used to laugh

A time where there was a new adventure around each corner of his life

It was when he had the world by his side

And everyone was there to comfort him

A time… long gone

He reached

For his last desires, before the looming fate before him would swallow him up

His feet clipped the pavement, the only sound in the silent night

His clothes were wet, and his body was sore

He didn’t know how much further he had to go

He didn’t know if he would survive, he didn’t know if he had the chance

But he pressed on

Though all he’d been through, he felt the slightest glimmer of hope

Beckoning him

Like the light at the end of the tunnel

It stood there waiting for him

He looked up at the moon, looming over the scene

The stars above, and the city lights around him

Bright, hope

He reached

He watched as the man approached him

A gentle smile of understanding on his face

He wondered where he would take him

Whether his life would change forever, for the good or the bad

A hint of relief flooded through him, as the man put out his hand

An offering he had never gotten before… and so

He reached

I Am Poem

I am creatively smart

I wonder if what we see is real

I hear the wind rushing through the air

I see a carnival, taking place on the top of the world

I want to stare into my future, and see what it brings me

I am creatively smart

I pretend I’m a crime-fighting spy, stopping my foes in their tracks

I feel unstoppable, crushing obstacles in my path as I make my way to victory

I touch the softest marshmallow in the world

I worry about nothing, taking on challenges like I’m superhuman

I cry for others, and take away their tears

I am creatively smart

I understand why people don’t like school, but I myself do  

I say whatever comes out of my mouth, even if it’s weird

I dream about anything and everything, my mind overflowing with thoughts

I try new things, and never stop until I succeed

I hope that my next day will be as good as today

I am creatively smart