WELCOME TO THE MARCH, 2012 EDITION OF LINN COUNTY KIDS CREATE. SCROLL DOWN AND ENJOY THE FINE ARTWORK, POETRY, AND PROSE PRODUCED ENTIRELY BY LINN COUNTY STUDENTS.
EMBER AND JESSON
Art by Mickey, Albany Library Anime Club
DECEMBER 5
Poem by Bree
Dec. 5
My sister…..she’s,
Intelligent and strong
And above all beautiful.
With life,
she flew it as free as she could,
And for us a bit too fast
Today would be her 20th birthday,
I would say to her,
“Happy birthday!”
If she were still here.
But,
it’s ok,
‘cause she’s free now,
like the birds.
My sister…..she’s,
Intelligent and strong
And above all beautiful.
With life,
she flew it as free as she could,
And for us a bit too fast
Today would be her 20th birthday,
I would say to her,
“Happy birthday!”
If she were still here.
But,
it’s ok,
‘cause she’s free now,
like the birds.
THE FACE TIME FORGOT
Art by Sean Marie, Grade 8, Memorial
NEREIOUS
Art by Mickey, Albany Library Anime Club
BREAK
Story by Shirley, Grade 8, NAMS
Sometimes, people make mistakes. Mending up torn strands isn’t a simple task, but the gift that is born through it is promising. It’s a lesson learned through first-hand experience, a lesson that lasts an eternity.
On the edge of thought sat an unharmed innocence. With its roots embedded in the soil, a single birch tree stood.
“Why?” Alene sobbed. One by one, the leaves of bliss fell from its delicate host, disappearing into oblivion. The harmonious tree was stripped bare, defenseless from the eager flames.
“We’re sorry. We only want the best for you,” the man and woman chorused. Although the words were meant to be used as comfort, a sense of relief sat between each breath. The inferno would soon consume the timber. It knew of its inevitable fate.
Crest pressed her books close to her chest as she attempted to squeeze through the roadblock of students. Pushes from left and right gave unwanted contact. A shoe caught her by the ankle, causing her to let out a small yelp as she lost her footing.
“Sorry!” an ambiguous voice echoed from the crowd. With a gruff sigh, the blonde smoothed out the creases on her checkered uniform skirt. Days like this were expected; however, today felt a bit unusual. She began to make way toward a good friend at the end of the corridor.
Alene’s dull eyes were deeply focused into the tiles, but it didn’t take a genius to know that the floor had nothing to offer. The azure jewels remained fixated upon nothingness while unseen with dark bangs shrouding them. Her materials were clenched tightly in her grasp as she stumbled her way through the plethora of limbs and faces. Out of the unknown, a hand shot out to her shoulder, giving the brunette a bit of a scare. Rest was assured as a familiar face came into view. The silent girl forced a soft smile. Fake smiles were what Crest was notorious for being oblivious to.
“Hey Alene! How are you?” Crest let out between sharp breaths. She was bent over with her palms against her knees.
“I’m doing fine but—” Alene choked out weakly before getting cut off. A loud ring surged through the halls. Many students began to wander away from the cluster. Crest perked up in alarm. Sputtering a quick apology, the blonde took off in a brisk jog, intent on finally getting to class on time. She couldn’t help but feel guilty about leaving her friend so briefly, but another detention was not an option. A peculiarity snuck its way into her thoughts. Her shock when the bell rang gave her a glimpse of Alene’s eyes. The condition of them was certainly a rarity to catch in public. The curiosity quickly diminished when a question became directed toward the thinking girl.
“Finally on time, are we?” Mrs. Gyern smirked. The troublemaker gave her a wholehearted grin.
The once proud idol now stood with shame. Its bark was ripped and ravished, but the tree still stood. Raging embers continued to wreck its havoc upon the essence.
Tap. Tap. Tap. Crest had been waiting two minutes now; an unconscious sound reverberated from her shoes. Glaring at the house belonging to a certain friend, she ground her teeth in annoyance. It was odd at best. Alene had never been late before. The blonde shuffled to the side of the walkway to peer down the avenue. Duos of headlights flashed by in the dark dawn, but a distinct pair in the distance alerted her. It had been too long, way too long. Crest concluded that Alene was not going to make it. Her hands gripped the strap of the nylon backpack as she slung it over her shoulder.
With a screech, the vibrant vehicle stopped a street over. A dark-haired fought to arrive at her destination. Her breathing was irregular. Narrowing her eyes, the impatient girl greeted, “You sure took your time.” Alene avoided eye contact; the eyes had already received enough abuse. The exuberant girl circled the shy brunette like a predator. “You sure haven’t been yourself lately,” Crest spoke in a snarky tone. Each word caused Alene to flinch, but Crest soon noticed this. “Hey don’t worry about it—besides, you’re my best friend. If you need help, just shout.” The shorter of the two was grateful that she had someone to rely on.
Gossip fueled the girls at school, as if it was the only motivation for them to come to school. Alene could hear them ramble on; it wasn’t like they tried to keep quiet. One girl mentioned as she motioned with her thumb, “I heard that girl there’s parents are getting divorced.” The reserved girl could feel the eyes pass by her direction. It was her, they were staring at her.
In an instant, Alene stood up and ran out of the classroom. Silence overcame the previously lively area. Crest bit her bottom lip and clenched her fist. How couldn’t I see this before? Next thing she knew, she was trailing after the one who needed her the most.
Stars observed as the bark ebbed away from reality. No help was provided, for their presence only degraded the tree even further. All the suffering became too much for the life to handle. Crackling fires gnawed at the slivers. Bleak ash took the place of the embodiment.
Green scraped the horizon. The spirit of serenity exhaled upon the land, sweeping fresh sprouts like a brush through hair. Petals swayed in the warm decadent. In the middle of the abundant grass sat a feminine figure. Her knees were tucked in as she let out her built up emotions.
Another person sauntered into the area, relieved to find who she was looking for. The blonde cut through the meadow, up to the curled up brunette. Wrapping her arms around the weeping girl, Crest pulled Alene into a radiant embrace. The regretful teen confessed, “I’m sorry for not noticing earlier. It was entirely my—“
“No! It was my burden to carry,” broke in the cerulean-eyed-friend. The last thing Alene wanted was for anyone to endure the pain that she had received. Crest gave her an odd look. “That’s what friends are for. We’re here to help carry that burden.”
In a break of dawn, the hands of Gaea brought anew. She was the one that could bring about miracles. Her divine wisdom channeled into the rift of thought, for she felt pity for the young being. The aura whispered around the collection of ash. Pulsing with great power, the energy dispersed, scattering the powdery substance. A small sapling stood in the place of its predecessor, returning the seraphic brilliance the void once had.
On the edge of thought sat an unharmed innocence. With its roots embedded in the soil, a single birch tree stood.
“Why?” Alene sobbed. One by one, the leaves of bliss fell from its delicate host, disappearing into oblivion. The harmonious tree was stripped bare, defenseless from the eager flames.
“We’re sorry. We only want the best for you,” the man and woman chorused. Although the words were meant to be used as comfort, a sense of relief sat between each breath. The inferno would soon consume the timber. It knew of its inevitable fate.
Crest pressed her books close to her chest as she attempted to squeeze through the roadblock of students. Pushes from left and right gave unwanted contact. A shoe caught her by the ankle, causing her to let out a small yelp as she lost her footing.
“Sorry!” an ambiguous voice echoed from the crowd. With a gruff sigh, the blonde smoothed out the creases on her checkered uniform skirt. Days like this were expected; however, today felt a bit unusual. She began to make way toward a good friend at the end of the corridor.
Alene’s dull eyes were deeply focused into the tiles, but it didn’t take a genius to know that the floor had nothing to offer. The azure jewels remained fixated upon nothingness while unseen with dark bangs shrouding them. Her materials were clenched tightly in her grasp as she stumbled her way through the plethora of limbs and faces. Out of the unknown, a hand shot out to her shoulder, giving the brunette a bit of a scare. Rest was assured as a familiar face came into view. The silent girl forced a soft smile. Fake smiles were what Crest was notorious for being oblivious to.
“Hey Alene! How are you?” Crest let out between sharp breaths. She was bent over with her palms against her knees.
“I’m doing fine but—” Alene choked out weakly before getting cut off. A loud ring surged through the halls. Many students began to wander away from the cluster. Crest perked up in alarm. Sputtering a quick apology, the blonde took off in a brisk jog, intent on finally getting to class on time. She couldn’t help but feel guilty about leaving her friend so briefly, but another detention was not an option. A peculiarity snuck its way into her thoughts. Her shock when the bell rang gave her a glimpse of Alene’s eyes. The condition of them was certainly a rarity to catch in public. The curiosity quickly diminished when a question became directed toward the thinking girl.
“Finally on time, are we?” Mrs. Gyern smirked. The troublemaker gave her a wholehearted grin.
The once proud idol now stood with shame. Its bark was ripped and ravished, but the tree still stood. Raging embers continued to wreck its havoc upon the essence.
Tap. Tap. Tap. Crest had been waiting two minutes now; an unconscious sound reverberated from her shoes. Glaring at the house belonging to a certain friend, she ground her teeth in annoyance. It was odd at best. Alene had never been late before. The blonde shuffled to the side of the walkway to peer down the avenue. Duos of headlights flashed by in the dark dawn, but a distinct pair in the distance alerted her. It had been too long, way too long. Crest concluded that Alene was not going to make it. Her hands gripped the strap of the nylon backpack as she slung it over her shoulder.
With a screech, the vibrant vehicle stopped a street over. A dark-haired fought to arrive at her destination. Her breathing was irregular. Narrowing her eyes, the impatient girl greeted, “You sure took your time.” Alene avoided eye contact; the eyes had already received enough abuse. The exuberant girl circled the shy brunette like a predator. “You sure haven’t been yourself lately,” Crest spoke in a snarky tone. Each word caused Alene to flinch, but Crest soon noticed this. “Hey don’t worry about it—besides, you’re my best friend. If you need help, just shout.” The shorter of the two was grateful that she had someone to rely on.
Gossip fueled the girls at school, as if it was the only motivation for them to come to school. Alene could hear them ramble on; it wasn’t like they tried to keep quiet. One girl mentioned as she motioned with her thumb, “I heard that girl there’s parents are getting divorced.” The reserved girl could feel the eyes pass by her direction. It was her, they were staring at her.
In an instant, Alene stood up and ran out of the classroom. Silence overcame the previously lively area. Crest bit her bottom lip and clenched her fist. How couldn’t I see this before? Next thing she knew, she was trailing after the one who needed her the most.
Stars observed as the bark ebbed away from reality. No help was provided, for their presence only degraded the tree even further. All the suffering became too much for the life to handle. Crackling fires gnawed at the slivers. Bleak ash took the place of the embodiment.
Green scraped the horizon. The spirit of serenity exhaled upon the land, sweeping fresh sprouts like a brush through hair. Petals swayed in the warm decadent. In the middle of the abundant grass sat a feminine figure. Her knees were tucked in as she let out her built up emotions.
Another person sauntered into the area, relieved to find who she was looking for. The blonde cut through the meadow, up to the curled up brunette. Wrapping her arms around the weeping girl, Crest pulled Alene into a radiant embrace. The regretful teen confessed, “I’m sorry for not noticing earlier. It was entirely my—“
“No! It was my burden to carry,” broke in the cerulean-eyed-friend. The last thing Alene wanted was for anyone to endure the pain that she had received. Crest gave her an odd look. “That’s what friends are for. We’re here to help carry that burden.”
In a break of dawn, the hands of Gaea brought anew. She was the one that could bring about miracles. Her divine wisdom channeled into the rift of thought, for she felt pity for the young being. The aura whispered around the collection of ash. Pulsing with great power, the energy dispersed, scattering the powdery substance. A small sapling stood in the place of its predecessor, returning the seraphic brilliance the void once had.
PAINTED WOOD SCULPTURE
Santiam Crossing
BRIGHTER
By Trevor, Grade 8, NAMS
Though the world is filled with darkness.
And pain surrounds you like a harness.
Don’t curl up and live in fear,
The light of God is nearly here.
For though you may not see the light,
And all the days might seem like night,
You have to hold on and be a fighter,
A light in the darkness shines all the brighter.
And pain surrounds you like a harness.
Don’t curl up and live in fear,
The light of God is nearly here.
For though you may not see the light,
And all the days might seem like night,
You have to hold on and be a fighter,
A light in the darkness shines all the brighter.
TWILIGHT (A SEER)
Art by Desiree, Albany Library Anime Club
ME AND MY LONGBOARD
Poem by Bree
It makes u feel free,
soaring like a bird thru those streets.
and knowing nothing can catch you
for
you are too fast.
An escape,
going far away, if only in your own mind. . . .
and when u stop, you come back
not that you want to but,
because you have too,
for,
you can’t ride forever.
soaring like a bird thru those streets.
and knowing nothing can catch you
for
you are too fast.
An escape,
going far away, if only in your own mind. . . .
and when u stop, you come back
not that you want to but,
because you have too,
for,
you can’t ride forever.
WATERCOLOR PORTRAIT
by Mickey, Home Schooled
THE EIGHTH WONDER
Story by Madeline, Grade 8, NAMS
Left, right. Left, right. These were the steps away from my past and into my unexpected future. Into a future that will change me forever.
I paced and more and more rapidly, trying to get home. Well, if you can call a 200 square foot apartment home. Almost running, I tried to get back to the only joy I had left in this dreary, dark world. My little sister, Rose. After my parents were lost in the tsunami last year she is the only light I could find in this monotone world. Although I’m only 18, I decided to move to China. India was an unbearable sight, afterword.
I came home to Rose with her nose in a book. She managed a forced smile and quickly turned back to her read. Her glasses slowly crept down her nose only to have her push them back up. The first sign of sunlight in two months beamed through the window only to disappear again.
As day turned to dusk I grasped the last container of ramen-noodles and turned the stove on. ”How was your day Rose?” I murmured.
“Just normal”, she whispered under her breath.
I dumped the noodles into the pot and tried to stir away the awkward silence.
The clock struck ten o’clock and I shot awake. My feet sprang into action, carrying me to Rose’s room. I try my best to carry on the stupendous storytelling my dad brought upon our family. I pulled her favorite book, The Eighth Wonder, off the tilting tangerine shelf. I dragged a tufted stool up to her bed. Immediately, all eyes were on me.
Once I opened my mouth, my lips spurt words. “Once upon a land in the clouds, made of marble, yet light as a feather. Not humans on Earth or the rest of the world have set eyes on such a spectacle. The floating city is an innovation that’s only known to a small civilization. Only birds could admire the place in the cloud. The people were even more amazing than the city itself.
One day, the warriors of the sky pondered if there is anything beneath them. Few people believed the madness until the day. . .”
The clock struck midnight and I slammed the book shut.
Another repetitive day came to an end. I sat down on the tufted stool once again and opened the book to resume the story. Something was different. The pages felt like marshmallows; in fact, the pages smelt of marshmallows as well. My fingertips tingled and my cuticles buzzed. A beam of impenetrable sunshine pierced through the parchment. A cool breeze danced through the room, shortly followed by a bird spontaneously gliding through the pages. It swooped and dipped all around the room and concludingly perched atop Rose’s head. I shut the book, not believing what I had just witnessed. Rose stayed silent with awe.
Refusing to believe this madness, I opened the book again to only find the same beam of light. Inside myself I was conflicted. ‘What should I do? Should I go in? Will I fit in? That was a pretty small hole. I really shouldn’t have had those Twinkies yesterday. I guess I could try. But what if. Anything could be through that hole. Huh. I’ll just let Rose decide. Okay.’
I sighed out my worries as well as the words, “What do you want to do you want do?”
Just then I heard our parents call our names. I couldn’t hold in my emotions any longer. Every teardrop was like a waterfall cascading down my fuchsia cheeks.
Rose’s glazed over eyes met my damp ones and we instantaneously made a decision. I pressed the glistening pages to the ground, hoping I would fit. Rose sat down, slowly gliding herself in as if it was a pool. When she finished, I backed up and dived into the gaping seam.
We were falling in midair. Falling and falling. Then . . . SPLAT! We landed right onto the back of a bird. Long, majestic, and swooping. I closed my eyes and spread out my arms. I’m flying. Rose could not help but laugh at the sight of my cheeks touching my ears. I could’ve glided for hours. We eventually dove onto a pillow of clouds to find the Eighth Wonder.
A detailed spectacle just as the story described. We admired the city in awe, until we heard them. Again. I ran and ran only to find two parrots. They repeated our names time after time, like a broken record. The only thing that was left of them was mom’s coral apron and dad’s favorite hat. I spun and spun and spun. Then it all went black.
I woke up in our small, yet bright, living room. “Brooke, woo who. Are you awake?”
I sat up. “Where are the birds and the clouds?”
She answered me with, “You must have had a dream, silly. “
I remarked “But it felt so real.”
Questioningly, I lay back to ponder my “dream”. I never forgot that dream. Still, to this day, I believe The Eighth Wonder lies inside that book.
I paced and more and more rapidly, trying to get home. Well, if you can call a 200 square foot apartment home. Almost running, I tried to get back to the only joy I had left in this dreary, dark world. My little sister, Rose. After my parents were lost in the tsunami last year she is the only light I could find in this monotone world. Although I’m only 18, I decided to move to China. India was an unbearable sight, afterword.
I came home to Rose with her nose in a book. She managed a forced smile and quickly turned back to her read. Her glasses slowly crept down her nose only to have her push them back up. The first sign of sunlight in two months beamed through the window only to disappear again.
As day turned to dusk I grasped the last container of ramen-noodles and turned the stove on. ”How was your day Rose?” I murmured.
“Just normal”, she whispered under her breath.
I dumped the noodles into the pot and tried to stir away the awkward silence.
The clock struck ten o’clock and I shot awake. My feet sprang into action, carrying me to Rose’s room. I try my best to carry on the stupendous storytelling my dad brought upon our family. I pulled her favorite book, The Eighth Wonder, off the tilting tangerine shelf. I dragged a tufted stool up to her bed. Immediately, all eyes were on me.
Once I opened my mouth, my lips spurt words. “Once upon a land in the clouds, made of marble, yet light as a feather. Not humans on Earth or the rest of the world have set eyes on such a spectacle. The floating city is an innovation that’s only known to a small civilization. Only birds could admire the place in the cloud. The people were even more amazing than the city itself.
One day, the warriors of the sky pondered if there is anything beneath them. Few people believed the madness until the day. . .”
The clock struck midnight and I slammed the book shut.
Another repetitive day came to an end. I sat down on the tufted stool once again and opened the book to resume the story. Something was different. The pages felt like marshmallows; in fact, the pages smelt of marshmallows as well. My fingertips tingled and my cuticles buzzed. A beam of impenetrable sunshine pierced through the parchment. A cool breeze danced through the room, shortly followed by a bird spontaneously gliding through the pages. It swooped and dipped all around the room and concludingly perched atop Rose’s head. I shut the book, not believing what I had just witnessed. Rose stayed silent with awe.
Refusing to believe this madness, I opened the book again to only find the same beam of light. Inside myself I was conflicted. ‘What should I do? Should I go in? Will I fit in? That was a pretty small hole. I really shouldn’t have had those Twinkies yesterday. I guess I could try. But what if. Anything could be through that hole. Huh. I’ll just let Rose decide. Okay.’
I sighed out my worries as well as the words, “What do you want to do you want do?”
Just then I heard our parents call our names. I couldn’t hold in my emotions any longer. Every teardrop was like a waterfall cascading down my fuchsia cheeks.
Rose’s glazed over eyes met my damp ones and we instantaneously made a decision. I pressed the glistening pages to the ground, hoping I would fit. Rose sat down, slowly gliding herself in as if it was a pool. When she finished, I backed up and dived into the gaping seam.
We were falling in midair. Falling and falling. Then . . . SPLAT! We landed right onto the back of a bird. Long, majestic, and swooping. I closed my eyes and spread out my arms. I’m flying. Rose could not help but laugh at the sight of my cheeks touching my ears. I could’ve glided for hours. We eventually dove onto a pillow of clouds to find the Eighth Wonder.
A detailed spectacle just as the story described. We admired the city in awe, until we heard them. Again. I ran and ran only to find two parrots. They repeated our names time after time, like a broken record. The only thing that was left of them was mom’s coral apron and dad’s favorite hat. I spun and spun and spun. Then it all went black.
I woke up in our small, yet bright, living room. “Brooke, woo who. Are you awake?”
I sat up. “Where are the birds and the clouds?”
She answered me with, “You must have had a dream, silly. “
I remarked “But it felt so real.”
Questioningly, I lay back to ponder my “dream”. I never forgot that dream. Still, to this day, I believe The Eighth Wonder lies inside that book.
WOODEN SCULPTURE, PAINTED AND DECORATED
Santiam Crossing
NOTHING MATTERS TO A SHATERED SOUL
Prose Poem by Shakira
Nothing matters to a shattered soul. No one prepared me for this heartbreak. It took only seconds for my heart to break into thousands of little fragments. Like a broken glass, the pieces of my heart lay before me in small jagged shards, cutting my hands as I race to put myself back together. It was pointless. For without love to glue the pieces, they remained separate. In my mind’s eye, I could see myself falling into unfathomable darkness, into the agony that was sure to claim me the moment I could breathe again. My heart beat in irregular thuds somewhere in my chest, just when I thought I could no longer feel its steady rhythm. As I took in a ragged breath, my heart began to beat as though I had run for miles. I could taste the bitterness of the bile in my stomach, and as if I drank bleach, my throat burned from my breath. Silent screams filled my ears as bitter tears rolled down my cheeks onto my lips. I gave you my heart, and you took it greedily. My vision blurred with the constant tears, and I could only see your retreating figure. I was as alone as I felt. And it all happened, in only seconds.
HARU
Art by Desiree, Albany Library Anime Club
GET OUT OF MY HOUSE
Story by Devin, Grade 8 NAMS
Pitter patter, pitter patter the sound of the rain worried Michael, for it might drown out his plans. His pale skin flooded with goose bumps as the icy air picked at his rather large body. He stood by the window in his room, observing all the shapes the water makes as the cars disturb their otherwise peaceful puddles. As he nervously waited for night fall to arrive, when he could leave the house undetected, the minutes seemed to get longer and longer. About 15 days ago, Michael and some of his friends had discovered an old abandon house that looked as if it had not been used for many years.
His big master plan was to sell all of the valuable items in the house and use the money towards fixing up the house after he had cleaned it up. It could then be turned into his hangout. Maybe he could make it cool enough to charge people to get in; only time would tell. However there were a few road blocks that continued to get in his way; for example; his parents, the rain, and there was an annoying neighbor across the street from the house that didn’t like their idea; he wasn’t that big of a threat unless he called the cops. However to his friend’s knowledge, this wasn’t illegal if no one lived there.
Before it was too late he devised a rather clever plan. He would call his friends to show up at his house “unexpectedly” and ask him to come down to the park with them. Michael’s mother didn’t like to say no to his friends, especially to their faces. And to boost his chances even more, it had stopped raining for the moment! However this did not stop him from worrying.
“What if it doesn’t work?” He thought aloud to himself while no one was there. “What if my friends can’t come, or the house is being destroyed, or something just goes wrong?” he felt a little ridiculous talking to himself like this, but it calmed him down. He searched through his contacts rapidly, disregarding anyone he didn’t trust with the secret. After all, he didn’t want anyone telling everybody or taking all the stuff. He finally decided to have Dylan and Patrick come down to his house. Not only did his mom like them the best out of all of his friends, but they already knew about the house. Also, they lived decently close so they could get over there in a flash.
“Hey Patrick, come down to my house. I need to get out of here.”
“I’ll see if I can but I might need to do my chores. I’ll get back to you on that” replied Patrick, he sounded totally swamped.
“Alright” said Michael with a sigh. “Well I might be down there with Dylan waiting at the house.”
“Okay I’ll be down there A.S.A.P.”
Michael hung up and prayed that Dylan could make it. He dialed his number in a hurry almost causing the phone to fly out of his hands. But this time he didn’t want a conversation.
“Hey Dylan, get up to my house so we can go to the park” he barked at him
“Okay, okay chill out I’ll be there in a second” he said, obviously tired of his tone.
“Good” Michael said relived. He hung up and slid down his wall relieved. He whistled for his dog so he could have something to do while he waited for his friend to show up. He sat and wondered how long he would have to wait. BAM he heard a violent pounding on his door. That must be him he thought to himself. He hopped up, grabbed a soda and headed for the door. His mom showed up just as he was opening it.
“Hey Patrick what’s up” he said pretending to be surprised.
“Oh what’s he doing here Michael?” asked his mother in a sweet tone.
“I came to see if Michael could come down to the park with me Mrs. Multch” replied Patrick, rather politely.
“Well, I guess for a while, but be home in two and a half hours boys” she said letting out a sigh.
“That’s all the time we need mom” exclaimed Michael happily. “See you in a while!” He yelled as he ran out the door. The rest of the way there they didn’t speak a word to each other. Not even a cough. Then Michael made what he believed to be a mistake of trying to start a conversation. “When we get to the house, let’s start to split the profit and the items that we decided to keep” Michael spoke slow and shy, almost as if he was afraid to talk to Patrick at the time. Patrick didn’t reply for some time and seemed to just disregard the rest of the world and he seemed to study whatever was in front of him. Eventually, he’d have to talk about something, most likely the house once they got there. At the next block, he prayed he wasn’t lying to himself.
“Ok Patrick, we’re here. Now say something, dang it!” he slugged Patrick in the arm hard enough to topple a bear.
“What was that for?” he screamed at him. Michael flinched just from hearing the anger in his voice.
“You were spacing off and it was starting to piss me off. Now hand me the key.”
“Fine.” He smashed the key into Michael’s hand. “Now open the door before I decide to hit you back.” Michael slid the key into the lock. As he tried to turn it, it wouldn’t budge. So he turned it a little harder, and harder, and harder. “You’re going to break the key! Stop and lets just go around the back.”
“Fine! But it wasn’t me it was the old rusty lock that must’ve been messed up.”
“Sure it was buddy,” smirked Patrick. Let’s go. About half way to the back of the house, Michael stopped and got a sudden chill down his spine. “Michael? Why did you stop?”
“Nothing… I just, got a feeling. It’s no big deal just keep walking.” So he did. And what a mistake that was. As they arrived to the back door Michael wasn’t about to try the key and feel stupid again. So with all his strength he grabbed the handle of the sliding glass door and nearly pulled his arm out of his socket until he heard a defined crack! And the door flew open. “Who needs a key now…” he whispered under his breath and he pounded his feet into the house. He immediately walked to the front door and unlocked it. Without speaking the two boys walked into separate rooms and continued their search of the house. But something didn’t feel right this time. Michael wondered if Patrick was feeling the same way. “Hey Patrick, check out what I found!” he yelled as he ran through the door way to Patrick holding some kind of shining object.
“GAAAAH!” Patrick screamed so loud it could be easily mistaken for a bloody murder. “God give me a heart attack will you. Chill out and tell me what you found” he was panting and holding his heart to attempt to regain his breath.
“Ha-ha sorry I got a little exited. But I’ve found a hand full of keys and I have absolutely no idea were any of them go, so we’ve found something to do when were done searching.” He talked rapidly and Patrick could tell he was running out of breath. “Well anyway I’ll leave them here in the hall and keep looking.” He walked out of the room in a hurry and set the keys down. He headed for the first floor when suddenly he got another chill down his back. But this time it forced him to drop to his knees and let out a loud “Ouch!” Patrick ran down the hall and flew down the stairs.
“What happened? Are you hurt?” he asked and seemed genuinely worried.
“Nothing I just got a strange chill down my spine and I fell. I must’ve tripped over my own feet!” he knew that wasn’t true but he didn’t want to worry his friend and he especially didn’t want to leave the house.
“Ok that’s good. But now that you mention it, I’ve been getting a weird feeling this time to. But like you said, we’ve been here before nothing is going to happen” he helped Michael to his feet. C’mon we are sticking together for the rest of the time now.
“Boo!” A big white figure launched out of the doorway and caused both of them to fall over yelling loudly. “Ha-ha I got you guys good!” Dylan pulled off his white mask and old white bedspread.
“We’ve had enough scares today. Not a good time dude!” Michael was about to tell Dylan off when Patrick grabbed his shoulder and began shaking his head. “Just come with us.” Michael got up and left without either of them. Then something very weird happened, the floor started to make cracking noises and break up beneath his feet. If he had noticed before it was too late, maybe I’d like to tell this story. It’s too bad he didn’t. The floor suddenly opened up beneath him like a black hole devouring everything in its path. He wasn’t sure how long or how far he fell, but he was yelling the whole way until suddenly he heard a loud splash, and a dark cold liquid over-ran his senses.
He began flailing his arms and legs to move him upward, his lungs screaming for air. Once he broke the surface of the water, he nearly launched into the air he was moving so fast, but in his desperation for air, he hadn’t noticed he was moving left… rapidly. He did, however, notice it. It was just a tad too late. As he regained his breath he noticed the water pulling him to the side, right to a cliff. He couldn’t see how steep the cliff was, but he wasn’t thinking of that while he was busy swimming away as fast as he physically could.
It didn’t matter how hard he swam, the current was too fast. He was constantly being pulled with the current. So quickly and half witted, he swam to the side and began clawing at the wall for anything he could hold onto to resist the current. He caught something sharp and painful with the tip of his finger but desperate to avoid falling to his death he gripped it with all of his might. The sharp pain in his hand seemed to spread through his body like some kind of chemical, slowly and painfully eating away at his insides. Until at least he couldn’t withstand the pain anymore and he let go, he knew what would happen next. Or at least he thought he did.
As he drifted to what appeared to be his end, he whispered his final prayers and braced himself for death. As he reached to edge he could sense it, and then he fell for only about a second before hitting water that was maybe an inch deep. He stood up and inspected his hand. It was brick red and all the skin up to his elbow was blood coated. Like caramel in chocolate. He held his wrist tightly as he dealt with the pain that still seemed to spread through his body. But Michael decided to just deal with it and be a man. As he wandered blindly through the dark, slimy and mysterious place he ran all the possibilities of where he could be through his head. “Most likely the sewer…” He whispered to himself. Doing that always made him feel stupid but it helped him get through the scared feeling he had so he continued to do it anyway. He heard echoing coming from in front of him, he couldn’t quite make out the words, or if they were even words at all, but he took his chances to get out of there. Another bad idea.
As he ran toward the strange noise coming from the other end of the tunnel, it was too dark to be entirely sure what he was chasing, but it somewhat resembled a human. As he got closer he was sure it was another person. Only he wasn’t talking, he was moaning. And from the sound of the deep voice it was a man. “Hey! Can you help me get out of here?” In looking through the house, he had found a picture of the owner. There was no record of him being dead, but he had been missing for about 40 years. The wife had gone missing to. He started to remember this as he saw another figure lying on the ground near the man. She was dead; lifeless and cold. “Hey what happened? Can I help?” he still got no response. The man stood there as if Michael didn’t exist. He ran up behind him swinging him around and screamed “Hey I’m right here!” but when he turned him, he saw something that he thought only happened in books or movies or maybe an old folk tale.
The man had only one eye, and it was rotting and black. His flesh was decaying from his body and he only had skin left on his left cheek and part of his nose. And the way he groaned… it wasn’t human. He let go and slowly backed up and the monstrosity stood there and stared at him. He took a glimpse at the girl lying on the floor. A chunk had been bitten out of her neck and blood ran down her body. That was when the strange pain he had in his hand came back again. He fell to the floor in agonizing pain and tears and looked at his blood soaked hand. But it didn’t seem to be blood anymore. It had begun to turn green and slide off his hand. As he looked up the abomination, the accident of nature, was limping towards him. He tried to get up, but he had lost all feeling in his legs. After that no one knows what happened. Because after that, the rest of the story… had been burned.
His big master plan was to sell all of the valuable items in the house and use the money towards fixing up the house after he had cleaned it up. It could then be turned into his hangout. Maybe he could make it cool enough to charge people to get in; only time would tell. However there were a few road blocks that continued to get in his way; for example; his parents, the rain, and there was an annoying neighbor across the street from the house that didn’t like their idea; he wasn’t that big of a threat unless he called the cops. However to his friend’s knowledge, this wasn’t illegal if no one lived there.
Before it was too late he devised a rather clever plan. He would call his friends to show up at his house “unexpectedly” and ask him to come down to the park with them. Michael’s mother didn’t like to say no to his friends, especially to their faces. And to boost his chances even more, it had stopped raining for the moment! However this did not stop him from worrying.
“What if it doesn’t work?” He thought aloud to himself while no one was there. “What if my friends can’t come, or the house is being destroyed, or something just goes wrong?” he felt a little ridiculous talking to himself like this, but it calmed him down. He searched through his contacts rapidly, disregarding anyone he didn’t trust with the secret. After all, he didn’t want anyone telling everybody or taking all the stuff. He finally decided to have Dylan and Patrick come down to his house. Not only did his mom like them the best out of all of his friends, but they already knew about the house. Also, they lived decently close so they could get over there in a flash.
“Hey Patrick, come down to my house. I need to get out of here.”
“I’ll see if I can but I might need to do my chores. I’ll get back to you on that” replied Patrick, he sounded totally swamped.
“Alright” said Michael with a sigh. “Well I might be down there with Dylan waiting at the house.”
“Okay I’ll be down there A.S.A.P.”
Michael hung up and prayed that Dylan could make it. He dialed his number in a hurry almost causing the phone to fly out of his hands. But this time he didn’t want a conversation.
“Hey Dylan, get up to my house so we can go to the park” he barked at him
“Okay, okay chill out I’ll be there in a second” he said, obviously tired of his tone.
“Good” Michael said relived. He hung up and slid down his wall relieved. He whistled for his dog so he could have something to do while he waited for his friend to show up. He sat and wondered how long he would have to wait. BAM he heard a violent pounding on his door. That must be him he thought to himself. He hopped up, grabbed a soda and headed for the door. His mom showed up just as he was opening it.
“Hey Patrick what’s up” he said pretending to be surprised.
“Oh what’s he doing here Michael?” asked his mother in a sweet tone.
“I came to see if Michael could come down to the park with me Mrs. Multch” replied Patrick, rather politely.
“Well, I guess for a while, but be home in two and a half hours boys” she said letting out a sigh.
“That’s all the time we need mom” exclaimed Michael happily. “See you in a while!” He yelled as he ran out the door. The rest of the way there they didn’t speak a word to each other. Not even a cough. Then Michael made what he believed to be a mistake of trying to start a conversation. “When we get to the house, let’s start to split the profit and the items that we decided to keep” Michael spoke slow and shy, almost as if he was afraid to talk to Patrick at the time. Patrick didn’t reply for some time and seemed to just disregard the rest of the world and he seemed to study whatever was in front of him. Eventually, he’d have to talk about something, most likely the house once they got there. At the next block, he prayed he wasn’t lying to himself.
“Ok Patrick, we’re here. Now say something, dang it!” he slugged Patrick in the arm hard enough to topple a bear.
“What was that for?” he screamed at him. Michael flinched just from hearing the anger in his voice.
“You were spacing off and it was starting to piss me off. Now hand me the key.”
“Fine.” He smashed the key into Michael’s hand. “Now open the door before I decide to hit you back.” Michael slid the key into the lock. As he tried to turn it, it wouldn’t budge. So he turned it a little harder, and harder, and harder. “You’re going to break the key! Stop and lets just go around the back.”
“Fine! But it wasn’t me it was the old rusty lock that must’ve been messed up.”
“Sure it was buddy,” smirked Patrick. Let’s go. About half way to the back of the house, Michael stopped and got a sudden chill down his spine. “Michael? Why did you stop?”
“Nothing… I just, got a feeling. It’s no big deal just keep walking.” So he did. And what a mistake that was. As they arrived to the back door Michael wasn’t about to try the key and feel stupid again. So with all his strength he grabbed the handle of the sliding glass door and nearly pulled his arm out of his socket until he heard a defined crack! And the door flew open. “Who needs a key now…” he whispered under his breath and he pounded his feet into the house. He immediately walked to the front door and unlocked it. Without speaking the two boys walked into separate rooms and continued their search of the house. But something didn’t feel right this time. Michael wondered if Patrick was feeling the same way. “Hey Patrick, check out what I found!” he yelled as he ran through the door way to Patrick holding some kind of shining object.
“GAAAAH!” Patrick screamed so loud it could be easily mistaken for a bloody murder. “God give me a heart attack will you. Chill out and tell me what you found” he was panting and holding his heart to attempt to regain his breath.
“Ha-ha sorry I got a little exited. But I’ve found a hand full of keys and I have absolutely no idea were any of them go, so we’ve found something to do when were done searching.” He talked rapidly and Patrick could tell he was running out of breath. “Well anyway I’ll leave them here in the hall and keep looking.” He walked out of the room in a hurry and set the keys down. He headed for the first floor when suddenly he got another chill down his back. But this time it forced him to drop to his knees and let out a loud “Ouch!” Patrick ran down the hall and flew down the stairs.
“What happened? Are you hurt?” he asked and seemed genuinely worried.
“Nothing I just got a strange chill down my spine and I fell. I must’ve tripped over my own feet!” he knew that wasn’t true but he didn’t want to worry his friend and he especially didn’t want to leave the house.
“Ok that’s good. But now that you mention it, I’ve been getting a weird feeling this time to. But like you said, we’ve been here before nothing is going to happen” he helped Michael to his feet. C’mon we are sticking together for the rest of the time now.
“Boo!” A big white figure launched out of the doorway and caused both of them to fall over yelling loudly. “Ha-ha I got you guys good!” Dylan pulled off his white mask and old white bedspread.
“We’ve had enough scares today. Not a good time dude!” Michael was about to tell Dylan off when Patrick grabbed his shoulder and began shaking his head. “Just come with us.” Michael got up and left without either of them. Then something very weird happened, the floor started to make cracking noises and break up beneath his feet. If he had noticed before it was too late, maybe I’d like to tell this story. It’s too bad he didn’t. The floor suddenly opened up beneath him like a black hole devouring everything in its path. He wasn’t sure how long or how far he fell, but he was yelling the whole way until suddenly he heard a loud splash, and a dark cold liquid over-ran his senses.
He began flailing his arms and legs to move him upward, his lungs screaming for air. Once he broke the surface of the water, he nearly launched into the air he was moving so fast, but in his desperation for air, he hadn’t noticed he was moving left… rapidly. He did, however, notice it. It was just a tad too late. As he regained his breath he noticed the water pulling him to the side, right to a cliff. He couldn’t see how steep the cliff was, but he wasn’t thinking of that while he was busy swimming away as fast as he physically could.
It didn’t matter how hard he swam, the current was too fast. He was constantly being pulled with the current. So quickly and half witted, he swam to the side and began clawing at the wall for anything he could hold onto to resist the current. He caught something sharp and painful with the tip of his finger but desperate to avoid falling to his death he gripped it with all of his might. The sharp pain in his hand seemed to spread through his body like some kind of chemical, slowly and painfully eating away at his insides. Until at least he couldn’t withstand the pain anymore and he let go, he knew what would happen next. Or at least he thought he did.
As he drifted to what appeared to be his end, he whispered his final prayers and braced himself for death. As he reached to edge he could sense it, and then he fell for only about a second before hitting water that was maybe an inch deep. He stood up and inspected his hand. It was brick red and all the skin up to his elbow was blood coated. Like caramel in chocolate. He held his wrist tightly as he dealt with the pain that still seemed to spread through his body. But Michael decided to just deal with it and be a man. As he wandered blindly through the dark, slimy and mysterious place he ran all the possibilities of where he could be through his head. “Most likely the sewer…” He whispered to himself. Doing that always made him feel stupid but it helped him get through the scared feeling he had so he continued to do it anyway. He heard echoing coming from in front of him, he couldn’t quite make out the words, or if they were even words at all, but he took his chances to get out of there. Another bad idea.
As he ran toward the strange noise coming from the other end of the tunnel, it was too dark to be entirely sure what he was chasing, but it somewhat resembled a human. As he got closer he was sure it was another person. Only he wasn’t talking, he was moaning. And from the sound of the deep voice it was a man. “Hey! Can you help me get out of here?” In looking through the house, he had found a picture of the owner. There was no record of him being dead, but he had been missing for about 40 years. The wife had gone missing to. He started to remember this as he saw another figure lying on the ground near the man. She was dead; lifeless and cold. “Hey what happened? Can I help?” he still got no response. The man stood there as if Michael didn’t exist. He ran up behind him swinging him around and screamed “Hey I’m right here!” but when he turned him, he saw something that he thought only happened in books or movies or maybe an old folk tale.
The man had only one eye, and it was rotting and black. His flesh was decaying from his body and he only had skin left on his left cheek and part of his nose. And the way he groaned… it wasn’t human. He let go and slowly backed up and the monstrosity stood there and stared at him. He took a glimpse at the girl lying on the floor. A chunk had been bitten out of her neck and blood ran down her body. That was when the strange pain he had in his hand came back again. He fell to the floor in agonizing pain and tears and looked at his blood soaked hand. But it didn’t seem to be blood anymore. It had begun to turn green and slide off his hand. As he looked up the abomination, the accident of nature, was limping towards him. He tried to get up, but he had lost all feeling in his legs. After that no one knows what happened. Because after that, the rest of the story… had been burned.
A MODEL
Art by Mickey, Albany Library Anime Club
HOW I FEEL WHEN I'M RIDING MY BOARD
Poem by Bree
With peace and love, sprouts happiness.
Think about this for a minute.
The way we live,
as people,
how we run our daily lives,
what we eat,
and how we dress ourselves.
The way we speak;
To each other
The way we look;
At each other
And did it ever occur,
that maybe,
just maybe. . . .
we as PEOPLE,
are doing something wrong?
That maybe,
this is NOT the way to life?
Something’s got to be out there, something more! A way of life maybe?
A simple way of life.
We had it,
sure. At one point.
But, thru the years of us
‘building’ our “civilization”
we’ve somehow lost our way.
But how,
you might ask, how should we live?
I don’t know exactly,
except,
with peace,
and love.
With that, happiness will come.
And a better way of life will sprout up.
SETHES
Art by Mickey, Albany Public Library Anime Club
