Speak Your Mind & Shape Your World 2013 - Issue 9

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Speak Your Mind &Shape Your World

Issue NineSpring 2013

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All Rights ReservedCopyright© 2013 Speak Your Mind & Shape Your World

Petit Printing, Buffalo, NY

ISSN: ####-####???

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2012-2013 Masthead

Student Editorial Board

Danni Jo BechtoldTapestry Charter School

Vianca MoralesRiverside High School

Andrea PauseCity Honors High School

Hector TiradoMcKinley High School

Cover Art WorkJournal: “Self with Balloon” by Mercedes OlmstedGrade 12City Honors High SchoolTeacher: Cheryl St. George

CD: “Homeward Bound” byDanni Jo BechtoldGrade 9, Tapestry Charter High SchoolTeacher: Joe Bieron

Music Provided By:The UniTones Karen WilliamsUniTones Director

Staff and Supporting Members

Roni HydeProject Coordinator

Kerri SpullerStudent Editorial Board Assistant

Joe BieronStudent Editorial Board Assistant

Dr. Mary Ellen MulveyProject Supervisor

Leona SouleAdministrative Assistant

Steve AnsellLayout and Graphic Design Consultant

Professor Courtney GrimArts Consultant

Professor Mark LavatelliVisual Arts Committee

Professor Ted PeltonLiterary Arts Committee

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Acknowledgements

The SYM staff and student editorial board would like to extend our gratitude to the many Buffalo high school teachers, administrators, principals, Medaille faculty and staff, and the community partners who supported the Speak Your Mind Project this year. We thank you for your dedication and continuous support- you make a difference in the lives of students and families across our city. Thank you for making this project possible!

The following teachers submitted work to the journal this year:

Joe Beiron, Tapestry Charter High SchoolDanielle Collier, McKinley High SchoolRebecca Dame Seidler, Leonardo DaVinci High SchoolKathie Eizenger, Bennett High SchoolJessica Gilmartin, Lafayette High SchoolJackie Hart, McKinley High SchoolErin Kaminski, Riverside High SchoolVeronica Kruger, South Park High SchoolRosemary K. Lyons, Riverside High SchoolLinda Norton-DiCanio, Leonardo DaVinci High School

Craig Puffer, International Preparatory SchoolSeana Root, City Honors High SchoolMelissa Meola Shanahan, Lafayette High SchoolCheryl St. George, City Honors High SchoolJill Stiller, Burgard High SchoolEdie Syta, East High SchoolJane Van Deusen, Lafayette High SchoolSabrina Vircillo-Franke, City Honors High SchoolNate Zappala, Burgard High School

Sarah Zimmer, Burgard High School

Thanks to the following Buffalo Public School administrators for their continued support:

Michele Agosto, Supervisor of Curriculum in Art EducationJulie Romain, Supervisor of English Language Arts

2012 Speak Your Mind & Shape Your World Major SponsorsMedaille College Buffalo Public Schools FoundationBuffalo Public Schools WNY AmeriCorps VISTA

Additional Partners & Supporting OrganizationsJackie Albarella

Architecture and Design Academy (ADA) at PS 198 International PrepTony Caferro and Deep Thinka Records/DTR Studios

Medaille College Office of AdmissionsPetit Printing

Tops Friendly Markets

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Introduction

Hello, dear reader! What you hold in your hands is the 2013 publication of Speak Your Mind & Shape Your World, the ninth edition of the literary and visual arts journal for Buffalo high school students. As we round the corner to nearly a decade of publishing some of the most innovative, moving, and creative pieces our city’s youth have to offer, our student editorial board has lovingly packed this issue with a broad selection of works that we hope you will find compelling and thought provoking. We have been impressed by, and thankful for, all the students and teachers who submitted work this year as well as the family, friends, educators, and others who encourage our youth to pursue their passions and push them to achieve.

Though our student editors spent many long hours poring over and thoughtfully discussing the technical quality of submissions, we spent even more time engaged in conversation about the deeper significance behind the submitted works. We unpacked meaning, pulled back layers of truths, tangled ourselves in philosophical debate, and reveled in raw experience. It is an honor for us to represent the work of students throughout the city and provide a platform on which others may let their voices be heard, see their ideas acknowledged, and their talent and dedication recognized.

We strive to craft a patchwork of visceral experience and insight, and offer you a vast array of voices that you may find speak to you on a personal level, and perhaps spark thought on social issues and the world around us. We ask you to listen closely, look carefully and take in as much as you can.

We hope you enjoy!

Roni HydeProject Coordinator

2013

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Artist’s Statements

“Self With Balloon” -- Journal Cover Art

After I developed the idea for this piece, it translated completely differently onto the taskboard, but I was okay with that - it’s a large part of the reason I decided to make it the first of a series. Initially, this piece was intended to communicate a mood of serenity and calmness, yet as it revealed to be a much darker representation, teeming with chaos, I realized I liked it much better that way. This work represents a detachment from reality that can be identified by anyone, it symbolizes an alternate essence of the human perception of what reality is and could be.

- Mercedes Olmsted

“Homeward Bound” -- CD Cover Art

I took the image “Homeward Bound” in my hometown of Gallatin Gateway, Montana in the summer of 2012. In the background, you see the beautiful Rocky Mountains, a range I always associate with home. It was taken on the highway right off the dirt road of my childhood home.

The concept of this picture came from the idea of being a small town girl and the universal feeling of wanting to break out and start a new life. There’s something to be said about the time in a teenager’s life when they’re ignorant of life outside the outskirts of town. There’s beauty in the unknown. This photo will always remind me of that time in my life when I was young: Infinite and crazy and reckless. That feeling was fun. And free. And a little dangerous. Driving around late at night on roads I had known my whole life, but somehow feel so different when you’re behind the wheel, controlling the fate of the car, is a feeling I’ll never forget. I hope this image captures how small I felt, like the toy car in this picture. I was easily crushed in the real world, but still brave enough to keep on driving, because that’s all I knew how to do. I didn’t know where I was going, but I was rushing there 90 miles an hour, young blood coursing through my veins.

So here’s to the brave and courageous, young and unafraid.

-Danni Jo Bechtold

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Contents

Asli Ali The Story of Us………………………………..…..18 The Climb………………………………………....20 Nonviolence……………………………………….27Tazira Allison-Johnson Ambition…………………………………………..21Ninoshka Aluarez Wild Zebra………………………………………...53Luis Arroyo Buffalo Historical Society……………………….100Anthony Avery A Growing Man………………………..……..........14Ledeebari Banuna I Carry Your Words on My Back………………….55Mandie Baptista Spirit House…………………………………..........49Zerrick Barlow Forms of Picasso…………………………………..38Samantha Baumer All You Need is Love……………………..……….75Paige Beal Girl Kissing………………………………………..18Danni Jo Bechtold High School Lessons………………………………38 Untitled (You Took a Piece)……………………….43 Our Energy is Everywhere………………………..46 Untitled (Sock Monkey)………………………..…61 Untitled (Ferris Wheel)…………………………….68Ujma Begum Girl from Bangladesh……………………………...31Phedra Benoit Matesprites………………………………………...66Kaylie Benson Forest Lawn Cemetery Gate……………………...101David Bierman Untitled (Field of Flowers)………………………..60Katelyn Book Demon Guardian…………………………………..24Chelsey Borkowski I’m Brightest in the Darkest Places………………..88Aniyah Brown Illusions…………………………………………....54 Today’s Ideal Woman……………………………..72Kara Brown Red Rose…………………………………………..52 Diptych Blue Tree………………………………....62Iviangelisse Carino Mi Novio y Yo…………………………………….81 City Hall………………………………………….104Elliott Carlson Untitled (Beatles Forms)………………………….95Carlon Carter Alicia……………………………………………....63Sam Chen Mao Ze Dong is the Never Setting Burning Red Sun

in Our Hearts……………………………………….97Marisa Constantino The Great Bridge…………………………………..89Ariel Cunningham The Frog Prince Spirit House……………………...49Jonathan Davis Jonny Cakes Spirit House………………………….49Jose Diaz Untitled…………………………………………….53Michael Edwards Design for a New House in Buffalo……………….51

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Karissa Farrell North Park Theater……………………………….102Leah Ganey Self Portrait in Glass………………………………59 Skull Vanita……………………………………….84 Bird in Flight………………………………………98Margaret Gelen John Lennon……………………………………….95Ethan Haynes The Game………………………………………....91Oscar Heard III A Bird Perspective………………………………...61JoAnne Hussey Flower of Hearts…………………………………..19Isnino Iffin Getting the Mind to Think Positive……....……......69 Oh, How I Cannot Be Without My Mother………..85Jerad Ithavong Design for a New House in Buffalo……………….51Shaquille Jackson Only Him…………………………………………..25 Invisible and Soundless You……………………....39Aleena Jafri Hijab……………………………………………….34 Celestiality: Female………………………………..64 Celestiality: Male………………………………….64Jahlil Jones Shinji……………………………………….……...35 Untitled (Shadows on House)……………………..42Ezana Kahsay Design for a New House in Buffalo……………....50Brigid Krause War………………………………………………..29KayLeigh Kubiak Desire……………………………………………...15 Fire………………………………………………...74 What May Be Said………………………………...97Charlotte Kuhl Poverty…………………………………………..22Blandine Kwizera The Tiger…………………………………………..87Gensis Laboy The Eye………………………………………….....78Anthony Laureano Fear…………………………………...…………....23 Trust………………………………..………………75 Fear…………………………………...…………....23Hanna Lezan Peace of Mind……………………………………..82Zamyiah Lynch You Again…………………………………………19Eden Mack-Hardiman Enter the Void #1………………………………….40Daja Mangum Why Violence in Our Community?........…….........71Min Min Maung Pyramid…………………………………………....58Aye Cha May A Fall Night………………………………………..57Ruby Medina-Rivera Snowy Day………………………………………...96Thein Soe Moe Island………………………………………………52 Blossoming Almond Tree………………………....55Vianca Morales Float On…………………………………………....33 Untitled (Transcend Reality)………..…..……........41 Flying……………………………………………98

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Michael Murchison Listening to Art……………………………………37Dominique Murray Lazy Duck Day…………………………………….57Phaw Mu Nar My Name………………………………………......32Christian Ndagano Just Another Guitar Storm…………………………58Kinkosi Dorcas Nsumbu Classtime………………………………….…….…60Michael Rivera Ocasio My Name………………………………..…….......86Tah Oo Time for Tennis…………………………………....70Ryan Ork Bob Marley……………………………..……........28Andrea Pause Addiction………….………………………………43 Murky Waters…………………………………..…56 Shadows………………………………..………….93Nathan Pena-Rivera Them Birds…………………………………….….56Destiney Plaza Persistence…………………………………….…..36 Heart…………………………………………….....44 The Ocean is Crying for Me……………..………..84Elizabeth Podgorny Skeleton……………………………………………47 Dyslexia……………………………………………99Marissa Polovnuk Hot Pink Swans……………………………..……..15Shaqri Ransome 4th of July……………………………………...…...90Jennifer Ray Still Life……………………………………………86Samekh Harris Reed Daddy Who?.............................……........................79Brian Rosario Design for a New House in Buffalo………………50Brenda Sams Field Mouse……………………………………......17 Alice……………………………………………….73Ninoshka Santiago Spirit House…………………………………..…...49River Saxbury Bridges………………………………………......24 Éros…………………………………...…………....67Lakari Smith Night Time in Winter……………………………...76 After School Snack………………………………..77Tatiana Smith Boys & Girls…………………………………….....65Dreizka Sostre-Robinson Winter Barn at Night………………………………...62Shawna Stalikas Tragic Bloom………………………………………54Fadi Suboh Personal Essay……………………………….........30 The Other One……………………………………..80 A New You……………………………………...…90 As I Walk Out……………………………..……..105Christian Taylor Open Them……………………………………...…91Checolathiwot Teraga Why Am I Mistreated by You?.....……...................94Liam Kham Thang Parrot……………………………………………....57 The King…………………………………………...60

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Hector Tirado Untitled (Every Day I Sit)………………………....67 America……………………………………….....82 Untitled (As My Mind Runs)………………….…..88Yesenia Torres Diamantes Fashion Design…………………….….63Brian Trinh Ben…………………………..……………….........14 Another Day in Class……………………………...39 Burning Tree…………………………..……...........74 Buffalo……………………………………………103Carlos Williams The Gardener and the Rose………………………..16

Mistress of Ribbons…………………………..........45 Jesus……………………………………………….83 Mistress of Loneliness and Lust…………………..92

Dae’ja Williams March……………………………………………26

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Speak Your Mind &Shape Your World

Issue NineSpring 2013

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“Art is the most intense mode of individualism that the world has known.”

-Oscar Wilde

“The role of a writer is not to say what we can all say, but what we are unable to say.”

–Anais Nin

“This world is but a canvas to our imagination.”-Henry David Thoreau

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A Growing Man…Anthony Avery

My life is a story that is often misunderstood, only to be understood by people that can relate.I’ve been through the most frightening things; just thinking about it gives me the shakes.As I grow older I realize that these are the things that made me who I am… A man.Not caring about the handicap of not having my father by my side…Instead I’ll fill my mother’s heart with joy at graduation, walking across the stage with pride.It’s funny how things flow together when you’re blessed.Actually writing this poem helped me get some things off my chest.Now I can stretch, inhale and exhale; I can breathe at last.I think my future is getting built by the things I’ve been through in my past.On the highway to success, I just pray I don’t crash.My mama told me only the strong survive, and only the realest ones last.

Grade 12Burgard High School

BenBrian TrinhGrade 11Leonardo DaVinci High School

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DesireKayLeigh Kubiak

Why are moths drawn to a flame?

Are they truly unable to tell that the light they desire is burning them alive?

Is the power of what they confront so far beyond their comprehension that they have no choice but to be consumed?

Or are they the only creatures brave enough to embrace the truth; that death is the only goal worth pursuing in life?


Hot Pink SwansMarissa PolovnukGrade 11Riverside High School

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The Gardener and the RoseCarlos Williams

A rose and her thorns circle all around.But her beauty irresistible, like the sweetest soundShe was placed in a land, where the soil was too dryHer past gardeners so heartless, they left her here to dieI push through thorns, and walked right into her heartAnd I saw the problems I faced, and couldn’t wait to startI wanted you slowly, like a lover’s passionate kissThen tended to your needs like a satisfying blissI cleared away your thorns, so everyone could seeThat you are a blossomed rose, my sweet lady.And when the storms, like arguing words came to blow you awayI dropped in front of you, put my pride aside, hoping you’d stayWhen the sun tried to dry you, I gave you the water I needAnd I looked at myself to find, that I bleed.Then your thorns grew, like a maidens tears as she cryI watered her with my blood, as her thorns piercing my thighSo you said my blood can no longer be your waterYou sent me away, to try to love anotherAnd when that other tried to tend to your tender, tending, he went awayAnd though you told me to go, I felt a need to staySo I return to my lovely rose, and I called for the rainRipping the thorns away, who are as a girls stabbing painMy arms covered in your thorns blood and water creates a seaIn the end it’s the gardener and the rose, who will always be you and me


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Field MouseBrenda SamsGrade 12South Park High School

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The Story of UsAsli Ali

We started out like every love storyInseparable and soaking in our morning gloryThe things we planned, Promises we madeTogether forever, for that I prayedThe thought of you used to take away my breathNow all I’m left with is a painful heart and painful regretsAs I look back on all our memoriesThe good, the bad and the uglyEven though we ended I’m glad it happenedBecause you have taught me many valuable lessonsNow I’m more careful with my heartAnd I’ve gotten better at hiding my scarsBut don’t worry I don’t hate youBut by no means do I love youNow you’re just somebody that I used to knowWe started out like every love storyBut for how we ended. I’m sorry.

Grade 10Riverside High School

Girl KissingPaige Beal

Grade 12City Honors High School

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You AgainZamyiah Lynch

I never thought I’d see you againYour laugh, your smile, your eyesI see you in my dreamsThough you never look my wayI don’t think you see meEven if I call your nameAs you walk awayI try to get your attentionTo make you stay with meWhen you’re gone I wake in a cold sweatI cry out your name as I begin to cryBecause I know in my heart thatI will never get to seeYou again.

Grade 10Early Middle College High School

Flower of HeartsJoAnne Hussey


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The ClimbAsli Ali

They say what doesn’t kill you makes you strongerBut I don’t know if I can endure this any longerThe ladder to success isn’t an easy climbAnd I fear I’m running out of timeI know I want it with all my heartBut how do you know where you’re going when you don’t even know where to start?Sometimes I wonder if it’s worth it at allMaybe I should just stay down after every fall?And then I rememberIt’s because I want my tomorrow to be better than my todayAnd I know dreams just don’t come true, you have to pave the waySo I’ll endure it a little longerAnd hopefully it does make me strongerCause I’m already halfway upAnd I’ll keep climbing to the top


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AmbitionTazira Allison-JohnsonGrade 10Leonardo DaVinci High School

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PovertyCharlotte KuhlGrade 11City Honors High School

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FearAnthony Laureano

What is fear?Is fear real?Is fear inside or in our heads?Fear is us?We are the monsters.Living in the shadowsWe are the ones we’re afraid ofBut we can’t handle thatFear holds us back1 word 4 letters 1,000 meaningsHow can one word have so much effect on usWhat is fear?Is fear inside or in our heads?


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BridgesRiver Saxbury

Don’t feel bad for me, I’ve done all of this to myselfI now swim in the smoke of the flames of all the bridges I have burnedSoaked in gasolineAll so I could throw the match and watch it all go up in flamesMaybe the bridges were never supposed to be builtIs that why it’s so easy to just walk away?Well enough is enough, I’m leavingSetting fire to every bridge I crossThey say you can’t turn backBut now I’m stuck here all alone with nowhere to go


Demon GuardianKatelyn Book

Grade 11Leonardo DaVinci High School

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Only HimShaquille Jackson

Who knows what goes on inside?Who knows how many tears you dried?Who knows what the real world is like?Or where you’re going when you lose sight?

The mortal world is to human flesh,As his spirit and our heart connects.You will find if you take the time to seek,He will help you break the muzzle and speak.

His grace, his love, his forgiveness, and all.He hears your cries and he hears your calls.When you move out of man’s sight,It’s still in his vision; it’s like the light.

Who knows what goes on inside?Who knows how many tears you dried?Who knows when your life’s light getting dim?Who knows and controls it all,Only him.


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MarchDae’ja Williams

Grade 12Bennett High School

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NonviolenceAsli Ali

I look around and I see a world of falling apartAnd it truly is none other than our own fault

The forceful destruction is one we’ve brought on to our selvesWe have embedded it into every aspect of our lives

We’re violent with our words and violent with our mindsMaybe the sword has become mightier than the pen

Why is it that we instantly assume fighting for what you believe,Means someone has to bleed?

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. said “nonviolence means not only avoiding external physical violence but also internal violence of the spirit. You must not only

refuse to shoot a man but refuse to hate.” Martin Luther King was one of the greatest civil rights activists and a role model to people everywhere but he never

lifted a hand on another manYet his actions were legendaryActions that inspired so many

Fights break out everyday because someone said something about someoneAlways quick to get angry yet never stopping to reflect on all the wrong we’ve done

Anger is heavy on the heart and a poison to the soulLike an endless sea it swallows us whole

We try to display our strengths with heinous acts of violenceWho ever can do the most harm is the strongest

That the message that imprinted in the minds of youth todayThere was a man who was and still is a role model to people everywhere

He said “power consists not in being able to strike another but in being able to control oneself when anger rises.”

This man was my prophet Muhammad (S.A.W.)Revenge has become a way of life

We feel that if wrong has been done to us than we must retaliateSo violence becomes a never ending cycle

To the point where everyday becomes a struggle for survivalMahatma Gandhi said “an eye for an eye will make the whole world blind.”This man freed his country from the oppression of another country but never

resorted to violenceViolence is an earthquake so devastating its damage takes a millennium to mend

It happens in the blink of an eyeYet its effects last longer than a lifetime

We’re unconscious of the harm we’re doingWe’re violent with our deeds and violent in our speech

This forceful destruction is one we’ve brought on to ourselvesAnd it truly is none other than our own fault

Because when I look around I see a world falling apartGrade 10Riverside High School

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Bob MarleyRyan OrkGrade 10City Honors High School

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WarBrigid KrauseGrade 10City Honors High School

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Personal EssayFadi Suboh

My name is Fadi Suboh. I’m a student at City Honors High School, I am from Palestine, the Middle East, and I feel that growing up in the neighborhood that I did for 13 years shaped me to become the unique person I am today. I moved to the U.S. when I was about to enter ninth grade. I lived in the lower west side of Buffalo for two years, the part of the city where many refugees are placed, and continuing my life in the U.S. made me immersed in a melting pot of culture and language, whereas back in my hometown it was all just one culture, one language spoken at home, and one type of people.

I feel that moving to the U.S. completed and filled up the empty parts of my unique portion of my personality. I was able to observe and appreciate other cultures. However, when I was younger I always felt left out. When you’re a child making friends isn’t so difficult, all you have to know how to do is share a ball, catch, hide or seek, or play hopscotch in the streets. Although, it can be frustrating not being able to communicate effectively when there is a misunderstanding. In the U.S., it was appealing to gravitate towards kids who spoke my own language “Arabic,” but I would get lonely seeing as most of my schoolmates didn’t speak it. I sometimes felt like I was being suffocated by the language barriers.

I figured that the lack of language I had was all what separated me from people outside, I resolved to fix that problem, and learned the languages that surrounded me, such as English, Spanish, French, Chinese, Urdu, Bengali. Trying to learn these languages might have started as a child’s habit, but it became my passion. I can deeply appreciate the complexity and beauty of language. No, I can’t yet communicate in any of these languages articulately what so ever, maybe I can say a couple words or an incoherent sentence, but I have something to work towards. I am fluent in three of them, though, Arabic, English and French. Although I still have my goal; to study the structure of engineering and be able to speak many different languages, it is no longer specifically to settle disputes over “whose ball is whose”. It is to be able to help the world, because everyone can benefit from a greater understanding. I have a deep desire to come to understand, and be understood unlike anyone else. I’m not saying that I’m better than anyone else on this planet, nor am I saying I’m ethnocentric. I have a deep desire to major in engineering. I’ve wanted this knowledge my whole life, and I will strive to meet the goals I set for myself at a young age. My drive to reach the goals set for myself will set me apart from others in a college community. When I set my mind to something I will work for it, even if it will take a lifetime, which perfecting any goal will and I am up for that challenge. All I am saying is that we’re all equal here but each one of us has a unique way to live his/her life.


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Girl from BangladeshUjma BegumGrade 9Burgard High School

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My NamePhaw Mu Nar

My name means “night flower” moonIt’s like jasmine but smallerWhen dark comes through, it starts to bloom.

My name is bright like a full moonWhite and yellow added togetherHas light to go through when it is dark.

My name sounds like birds singing In the morning on the treeFlying around up to the skyI feel like I fly with them.

My name smells like fire worksWith dinner my mom has cooked. My name smells like Thai foodIt makes me so hungry when I think.

My name feels like I sleep on the bed.My name is Phaw like a flower.

Grade 11Lafayette High School

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Float OnVianca Morales

It’s always sunny in this internal worldeven when it rains.Darkness lurks every step, every turnthough this light remains the same.Light or dark, I can’t differentiate.Truthfully, society is still blindedit’s all just different shades of gray.To give or to not give a damn?But what truly is a damn?Contradictions all on this Earthnew ones still unheard.To understand it allis to grasp the concept of nothing.Because there is always conceptually something.Happy people are deceiving themselves.The sad, denying themselves life.The angry, misunderstood.The numb forgetting feeling.What is perfection?I wonder what is really right and wrong.What is truly poor and whether the wealthy are really rich.Controversial issues will never be solved.People always deciding other peoples’ fate.Life just works that way.

So I float on.


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HijabAleena Jafri


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ShinjiJahlil Jones

Grade 10East High School

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PersistenceDestiney Plaza

The moment, You thought you lost everything in the blink of an eye, Where your right doing had no effect,Then your wrong doing drifted you further…Drifting, until you see it disappear into the horizon.

Persistence can retrieve it.It persuades what was lost to return. Persuading so that it irritates what was lostCausing such irritation so that it has no choice but to come back. It is not until that extent that you realize the value of persistence. You have to crave it.You have to be desperate.You have to starve and be dying of thirst.Persistence is that drop of water that you need to survive.It is not until that level of dehydration, Where you can obtain what once was yours.


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Listening to ArtMichael Murchison


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High School LessonsDanni Jo Bechtold

The one thing I’ve learned about high school so far is simple: Screw it. Do whatever the hell you want, Because no matter who are you,How you act,What path you take,Someone’s not going to agree with you.You’re not going to like everyone.In fact,There will be very few peopleYou Sincerely enjoy.Treasure them.Keep them close. Laugh too loud in classAnd come up with dances to your favorite song. Have hot dog eating contests in the cafeteriaMake paper hats out of failed testsAnd vow you’ll study harder next time.Make memories andStories to tell.Become close with the people around you,Because they Make high schoolWorth it.

Grade 9Tapestry Charter High School

Forms of PicassoZerrick Barlow


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Invisible and Soundless YouShaquille Jackson

One time shall I see your face?My heart shall jump for joy.It will feel like I won a raceOr a poor boy’s first new toy.The sound of your voice which shall river flow through my ears,Will trigger the memories of the years you were here.The fun and good times not the sadness and fear.A new memory with you I want to appear without tears.Your touch and your appearance created a home in my heart.Your smile and your laugh became a resting spot in my mind.When you became invisible and soundless I got bit by a shark.The pain is stuck here because you on earth, I can not find.


Another Day in ClassBrian Trinh


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Enter the Void #1Eden Mack-Hardiman


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UntitledVianca Morales

Transcend realityI want to be pushed to insanity.Imbalanced, to be manic.Tension hanging heavy.Everything electric.Every atom of my being to be burning.Hell with romance and passion.What I want surpasses this.Bright colorsReds, oranges, yellows, purples, pinksSurround the palette that is my body.Painting all I see, swirling.While the sun showers,Blades of grass tickling skin.The universe slowing; “now” is never ending.Two melts into oneAs neurons explode.We’ll sink into the earth.Let a crazed lover grow beautyFrom the roots to the leaves.

Once unleashed love is inexhaustible.I am inexhaustible.


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UntitledJahlil JonesGrade 10East High School

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UntitledDanni Jo Bechtold

You took a piece of me a long ago that I cannot seem to recreate. And I’ve been looking for it in all the wrong places: The bottom of beer bottles, anonymous cities, other people’s hearts. I’d like to be my old self again, but I’m still trying to find her.


AddictionAndrea Pause


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HeartDestiney Plaza

There are things, my child, that in life you must keep safe in your heart, Where nobody can find them,Unless they have the key… But don’t let the heat of your heart destroy them… Rage, the hottest of them all, will melt them.Hate, like liquid nitrogen, freezes them. Betrayal is acid bitterness and causes them to deteriorate. Note, if any of these are released, you will lose what is inside. Rage spills, causing it to disperse the melted content which, later, will evaporate. Hate shatters at impact when released. Betrayal acts like dust when released and will disintegrate in the ground. But Love my child, yes Love, Love will comfort and protect.Love is the safest, making it indestructible. It creates a force field making it impenetrable. As all the forces go against Love, like the superhero, Love remains victorious. If what is kept within your heart has been fed Love,My dear child, nothing bad will destroy it. When released, its shield will protect it,Making it land safely; therefore, it will live, my child, It will grow and create an indescribable beauty able to stand on its own. A blossoming flower Or a butterfly leaving its cocoon.Love, yes Love,Love is what should surround whatever you keep safe in your heart. Where nobody can find themUnless they have the key…


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Mistress of RibbonsCarlos WilliamsGrade 12Burgard High School

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Our Energy is EverywhereDanni Jo Bechtold

There are so many things I do not understand in this life I’ve been given, but there’s one lesson that will stick with me always:We are made up of so much more than skin and bones. We are composed of cells, of memories, of constellations. We are living matter and proof that life is worth living. Our life is contracted of loves, losses, and the people we’ve met. We are a melting pot of strange and beautiful things. Everything we’ve touched, everyone we’ve spoken to, all the footprints we’ve laid down will forever affect anyone who’s ever walked in the same direction. Our energy is everywhere.


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SkeletonElizabeth PodgornyGrade 12City Honors High School

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Project Home at Riverside High School – Spirit Houses(page 49)

This year, students at Riverside High School are using their creative talents for a cause. In addition to building their skills as artists and creative thinkers, they are learning about giving back to their community. Art students in Mrs. Lyons’ classes used found materials collected over the summer and fall to craft decorative miniature houses called “Spirit Houses.” The students have decided to sell the Spirit Houses and donate the proceeds to Compass House, a local safe-haven for runaway, homeless and at-risk youth. The following page features a sampling of these carefully and beautifully crafted Spirit Houses.

Teacher: Ms. Rosemary K. Lyons

The Architecture and Design Academy at International Prep (pages 50 & 51)

Founded in 2010, the Architecture and Design Academy at International Prep (A.D.A. @ IPrep) was started as a way to interest more students in pursuing careers in architecture and design, (such as product design, interior design, communications design, fashion design and game design), and enable them to do so, while increasing the diversity of people working in those fields.The stated goals of the A.D.A. are to get students into the colleges of their choice, on scholarships, and to provide them with the skills they will need to succeed in both college and in their future careers.

The A.D.A. program is open to students from across the district; students can apply from 8th through 11th grades. The program is designed to take four years, (grades 9 through 12), but can be compressed into fewer years, depending on the circumstances. Although the emphasis is on the design process and its related fields, the knowledge gained will be useful in any career the students pursue: the courses involved will give them a solid grounding in problem solving, creative thinking, critical thinking, and presentation, as well as a number of valuable computer skills.

The A.D.A. @ IPrep is affiliated with the University at Buffalo’s Department of Architecture, as well as the Western New York chapter of the American Institute of Architects, and makes use of the rich architectural heritage of Buffalo.

Teacher: Mr. Craig Puffer

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Left: Spirit HouseMandie BaptistaGrade 11Riverside High School

Right: Jonny Cakes Spirit HouseJonathan Davis


Below: Spirit HouseNinoshka SantiagoGrade 12Riverside High School

Above: The Frog Prince Spirit HouseAriel CunninghamGrade 11Riverside High School

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Design for a New House in BuffaloBrian RosarioGrade 11International Prep

Design for a New House in BuffaloEzana KahsayGrade 11International Prep

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Design for a New House in Buffalo

Jerad IthavongGrade 11

International Prep

Design for a New House in Buffalo

Michael EdwardsGrade 11

International Prep

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IslandThein Soe MoeGrade 9McKinley High School

Red RoseKara Brown


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Wild ZebraNinoshka Aluarez


UntitledJose DiazGrade 11South Park High School

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IllusionsAniyah Brown


Tragic BloomShawna StalikasGrade 11City Honors High School

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Blossoming Almond TreeThein Soe Moe

Grade 9McKinley High School

I Carry Your Words on My BackLedeebari BanunaGrade 12City Honors High School

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Them BirdsNathan Pena-RiveraGrade 9Riverside High School

Murky WatersAndrea Pause


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ParrotLiam Kham ThangGrade 12Lafayette High School

Lazy Duck DayDominique Murray


A Fall NightAye Cha MayGrade 9Riverside High School

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Just Another Guitar StormChristian NdaganoGrade 10Riverside High School

PyramidMin Min MaungGrade 12McKinley High School

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Self Portrait in GlassLeah GaneyGrade 12City Honors High School

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A Bird PerspectiveOscar Heard IIIGrade 12McKinley High School

The KingLiam Kham ThangGrade 12Lafayette High School

ClasstimeKinkosi Dorcas Nsumbu


UntitledDavid BiermanGrade 11South Park High School

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UntitledDanni Jo BechtoldGrade 9Tapestry Charter High School

A Bird PerspectiveOscar Heard IIIGrade 12McKinley High School

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Winter Barn at NightDreizka Sostre-RobinsonGrade 12Bennett High School

Diptych Blue TreeKara Brown


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Diamantes Fashion DesignYesenia TorresGrade 11Burgard High School

AliciaCarlon Carter

Grade 9Bennett High School

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Celestiality: FemaleAleena Jafri


Celestiality: Male

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Boys & GirlsTatiana Smith

The attraction so strongIt’s only logical and physicalWhen a girl longs for her first kissThe boy dismiss herBut in the mist of his heartHe longs to be with herLike Romeo and JulietBut the twist is in the beginningAnd never gets to the endIn and out of love they goThey think there is loveBut truly, they don’t know how spell loveBoys and girlsJust childrenCan’t wait to becomeMen and Women


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MatespritesPhedra Benoit


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UntitledHector Tirado

Every day I sit in a cluster of thoughts wondering when I’ll stop thinking but with every second counting my mind travels to places I’ve never been, waiting for my break; reason in silence. When does the fairy tale ending happen, where we all go, to a place called home sweet home?


ÉrosRiver Saxbury

I never knew there would be a better tomorrowBut you’ve come into my life and taken all my sorrow.

My days of sadness are a thing of the pastI have found true love at last.

My days of emptiness are gone for goodYou fill a void in my heart that you should.

You’ve opened a windowYou’ve shown me the light

My love for you will continue to burn bright.


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UntitledDanni Jo Bechtold


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I might not know how to rhymeor combineall the things on my mindso I am going to say, what I need to sayExpressing things in my own way

I encourage myself & others to speak outwe are humans made with two ears & a mouthfor the reason to speak out & to be heard

I encourage myself & others to be leadersto lead others to a positive wayNo hatred & no violenceBut have patiencefighting & killing is not a positive solutionIt makes us inhumane and even less civilizedthen we are.

I encourage myself & others to struggle hard to find easeEven though we are far from perfectionWe are made with a complex mindFrom the DivineFrom it we can finda solution for:

The threat of a gunThe suicide of a personThe pain of a sharp knife thrown in the heartThe food of a child in starvation

a country in need of peacethe terror & pain seen around the world.

I encourage myself & others to envisiona better future for ourselvesNo pollution no wars & no divisionWith peace & tranquility everywhereA world full of happiness and cheering facesThat’s a future way beyond

I encourage myself & others to look down onviolence & swearing— And all the killingLook for a positive role modelA person with morals & influential to the worldstop encouraging the bad & the worstgiving them our mind & full attentionThey live shameless and carelessnot offering a penny for the homelessMorals are what we need in a society likehonestly, kindness & caringWhich is: felt by the heartunderstood by the mind& needed by the soul

We are all under so much stressLet’s just try to expressOur dreams & our desiresBefore they expireAnd before we are silenceto showour intelligence


Getting the Mind to Think PositiveIsnino Iffin

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Time for TennisTah OoGrade 9Riverside High School

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Why Violence in Our Community?Daja Mangum

Why is violence in our community out way of solving problems?There is no way logic in the activities of a gun.

You shoot a person down someone’s daughter or son,No reason why just the sound of a gun.

It may be hatred or just because,Did people honestly forget about brotherly love?

What is the need for fights and guns in our community?We are killing our own, the precious young.

Oh, I get it; you want to be “cool”.Cool is not the word the word should be FOOL!

Because what you’re doing is childish, all of it is just NONSENSEWhat’s the reason why you want to shoot someone down?

In your own COMMUNITY?As if they were a piece of meat lying on the ground.

Is it their clothes? The way they dress?How they style their hair, or the color of their skin?If they like to draw, or if they like reading a book

People in our community have forgotten what we stood for…Black people as union, we can rule the WORLD!

Did you forget President Obama is African American?The first black man in office, and he’s in control.Before you pick up a gun, pick up some sense!

Think about who you are, and what you can accomplish!

STOP THE VIOLENCE IN OUR COMMUNITY!

McKinley High School Grade 11

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Today’s Ideal WomanAniyah Brown Short skirt, seven inches above the kneeLong Acrylic nails with pedicured feetHalf shirt top, exposing of the breasts,Just covering the face up with makeup, not caring about the restWelfare? Indeed, it goes to the dressSometimes the nails, or maybe a hair press.Child support? Definitely, it goes to her too, But not the baby who’s sick with the FluLiving with a man, giving all of herself,Who gives her nothing but broken bones and bad healthNo respect for mom, not even for her race,Giving herself everyday to men, just to see Washington’s faceNo high school Diploma, blame the guyOnly eighteen years old, struggling to get by.HIV Positive, with a life aheadLucid of happiness, accepting pain insteadThis is how our women are todayShall we strive and try to make this changeLong skirt, three inches below the knee,No acrylic nails, nor the pedicured feetFully dressed, no welfareEmbracing her beauty, embracing her nappy thick hairWithout child support, no need for that,Married happily, indeed a fact,Happy child in good health,With a mother who obtains respect for others and herselfHigh school diploma and PhDA well paying job, no HIVLiving up to her mother, honor and respect,Pride in her heritage with no regretsTaking what life gives,Learning, flourishing from it,That’s how you become an Ideal woman


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AliceBrenda SamsGrade 12 South Park High School

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FireKayLeigh Kubiak

Down the oceanBy the seaIs a placeInside of me

Up the cloudsBy the skyIs a placeWhere I hide

By the park, in the treesIs a placeWhere you’ll findAn emotional wreckBursting into flames

That represents a coldFrightened, angry meThe ocean pullsThe sea pushesThe clouds comfortThe sky lets goThe park crowdsThe trees coverAnd the emotionsAre confusedAnd the mind dysfunctional

That is why flamesRepresent meFor they are neverConsistentForever in motionAnd warm yetStill frighteningAnd always angry


Burning TreeBrian Trinh


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TrustAnthony Laureano

Trust…T… R… U… S…T… Trust…Hard to get easy to be broken…Not everyone gets it but everyone wants it…Trust is like glassOnce you have broken it you can fix itBut you can still see the crack…


All You Need Is LoveSamantha BaumerGrade 10Leonardo DaVinci High School

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Night Time in WinterLakari Smith


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After School SnackLakari SmithGrade 11East High School

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The EyeGensis Laboy


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Daddy Who?Samekh Harris Reed

Somewhere in my heartthere is a place where your presence resides.Quiet just as you are.I sometimes forget you are there.I’m afraid to let you know somewhere inside,My heart is already aching, no need for further impairment.Wrapped around by chains and locked with a bolt,You need a key,This is not regular heart; it’s like a vault,I don’t think there’s anything inside that’s valuable enough for you to see.Locked inside there are memories,Private yet displayed for my heart to feel,Dragging my mind down an unwanted journey,Down memory lane, it all seems surreal.I remember Birthdays when you visited with a smile,I remember hugs where you held me tight,Your absence was regarded with disdain; Vile,You started leaving me more and more; it didn’t seem right.I remember being held in your arms,A memory flashes; being carried off to bed,I let myself remember and feel a bit more, what was the harm?After all you will never know my true feelings; this is all in my head.So many memories dance across my vision,Teasing me with their whispers of past sweet times,

I hear the words “I love you”, or was that my imagination?I want to reach out to them, but I can’t reach them, no matter how hard I try.I feel my heart racing; trying to run away,I can feel the water gathering in my eyes, I’m becoming dizzy on my feet, I start to sway,But I won’t fall to my knees; big girls don’t cry.Your voice, I can hear it so clearly,These memories are becoming too much,I have to abandon these memories and return to reality,These memories are useless; they are nothing but a crutch.My hands won’t release them memories yet,They refuse to cast them into a dark abyss,Don’t they understand you’re the boogeyman, a threat?I don’t want to remember anymore, I want serenity.My hands turn the key,Setting the lock back in place,I’m a caged bird, longing to be free,My shoulders bear the burden of the memories, the impractical weight.This emotion; you can never know,This pain; I will ignore and play the fool,The lock does a great job of stopping the memories from an overflow,I won’t keep remembering forever, that would just be cruel.I’m going to forget, perhaps sometimes soon,The next time I see you, I wonder if I’ll say ‘Daddy Who?”


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The Other OneFadi Suboh

Life does Not sweet to its past residence Nor goes backwardsYou are the bows and your children are the arrowsLet your twisting be between the hands of the wise archerWhen life makes you release your children with joy and pleasure.When time starts to lose its beat in a leisured conversationHold the bow in a complete measured concentration.A tiny archer takes his way intent, on mischief, which is his especial bentBut the other archer looks brand erected on the road to infinityAnd releases the arrow quick snipe-far-reaching to impress you by his abilityBecause as he loves the arrow that fliesAway like a broom as he standsSo loves the bow that is help in his handsAnd when days run by so fast in a calmative repetition,Scores are reached – and targets are hit – just like in a friendly competition.


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Mi Novio y YoIviangelisse Carino


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AmericaHector Tirado

It’s a shame to live like thisPeople with no classNo sense &No idea what it is to have a “family”All they know is the streetsThe welfare lineAnd their check dateSee they have it all confusedAmerica is land of the freeBut all you people have the wrong definition of freeIt’s not your moneyIt’s the tax payersThat’s why America remains the way it is; too generous.


Peace of MindHanna Lezan

Grade 12South Park High School

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JesusCarlos Williams


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The Ocean is Crying For MeDestiney Plaza

As if I were drowning, In the saltiness of the ocean, Extending my hand for somebody to grab me, I open my eyes to see where I am, Where to find my way out, But it just burns and I remain blinded. I scream for help and nobody hears me, Just a simple bubble rises to the surface, The tears go down just to blend in With the saltiness of the ocean.


Skull VanitaLeah Ganey


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Oh, How I Cannot Be Without My MotherIsnino Iffin

I am so in awe of my momShe is so mercifulShe is like Friday

From a long hard working dayI always look forward to seeing her

She is wise and strongShe speaks so wisely

And stands strong when raising meOh, how I cannot be without my mother!

Her mercy is like a cloud filled with waterShe strikes like lightening to protect me

Her words shape like the skeleton shapes the bodyHer nourishment holds me together like the muscles

That holds our bones togetherOh, how I cannot be without my mother!

She is understandingLike a best friend

She is patientLike a lion hunting a prey

I feel all grown but to her I am still a childEnduring with my annoyances, with all my problems,

Who will always be here for me?Oh, my mom

Oh, how I cannot be without my mother!


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My NameMichael Rivera Ocasio

My Name is the color orange because I am like a tiger…My Name sound long as the Titanic…

My Name smells like the summer peaches that I love to eat…My Name feels like the crazy boy I become when I do crazy things…


Still LifeJennifer Ray

South Park High SchoolGrade 12

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The TigerBlandine KwizeraGrade 12Burgard High School

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UntitledHector Tirado

As my mind runs in thought I lay here restless- my heart racing, my body slowly breaking down, the emptiness of my craving for happiness… when does my break come? Haven’t I been pulled through enough? I’m 17 living the life of an adult, chasing my dream with no motive. No one to live for, clustered my thoughts stick. Slowly killing me inside out until I rot, with nothing to lose and everything to gain. Slowly I see the light, until it smashes right before my eyes. Lay in ruin nothing but the past shall my future bloom like spring.


I’m Brightest in the Darkest PlacesChelsey BorkowskiGrade 12South Park High School

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The Great BridgeMarisa Constantino


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A New YouFadi Suboh

My people, My friends, Listen or thy tongue will make thee deaf.Every New Year has new fresh beginningThe fairest day that ever yet has shoneThat has for us so many wonderful thingsWill be when thou the day within shalt seeListen my soul to the glad refrainAnd, spit of old sorrows and older sinningThe fairest rose that ever yet has blownFollowed by forecasted troubles,When thou the flower thou lookest on shalt be,And a great possible pain;Why don’t you move ahead with thy new clef?Open thy heart on this new day to start all over againMaking Love, peace, and living a happy new yearThat will bring in thy eyes happiness and no tear.


4th of JulyShaqri Ransome


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Open ThemChristian TaylorGrade 12City Honors High School

The GameEthan HaynesGrade 10Leonardo DaVinci High School

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Mistress of Loneliness and LustCarlos Williams

She’s so beautiful, but inside there is nothing to be desiredShe touches me, her poison spreads, and my skin is as flames of fireI fight her attraction, but no one else is here for me, but empty spaceAnd her dark eyes are as the loneliness of my black heart I’ve seemed to misplaceShe comes to my ear; with every breath chills hit my spineShe whispers her name, dragging every word like drugs to my mindSaying“I’m lonely lust stay with me. Me, you and nobody the way it will always be”Unable to find anything else true, I give in to her kissFill of sorrow and bitterness, a heartless abyssI embrace her still, and caress her curvesWith the bit of her lip, she frozen all my nervesHer cold arms unable to subdue my painNo love in making love, and even that’s a gameBut she’s here and only her, no one else for milesAs I step outside into the real world trying to make a smileThis loneliness like my mistress underneath the sheetsBut my love is frozen, a heart unable to beatSo I move close to her to feel her cold breathBecause when I look for anyone else there is no one left


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ShadowsAndrea PauseGrade 12City Honors High School

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Why Am I Mistreated by You?Checolathiwot Teraga

Does my LIFE have a VALUE?How are we DIFFERENT from one another?Were we not all born by a MOTHER?How am I different from you?Is it the color of my SKIN that’s an issue?Or is it the way I DRESS that made you CONFESS to INSULT the way I carry MYSELF?

WHY is VIOLENCE your way of solving PROBLEMS?WHY can’t we get along like BROTHERS and SISTERS?WE can DISCUSS our issues with kind WORDS.HELP each other when PROBLEM occurs.There are other ways of solving problems in our COMMUNITYbesides VIOLENCE.

It’s so SAD that Stabling a BROTHER in the dark alley has become our new influential ways.WHY does a MAN have to DIE for one to feel PRIDE?Our COMMUNITY should be a place to be viewed in GRACE.

No BROTHER or SISTERShould FEAR another.PEOPLE should go from place to place filled with CONFIDENCE.Let us not break the Mother’s Heartby causing all of this VIOLENCE in the COMMUNITY.The VIOLENCE is UNIMPORTANT.I BEG you to STOP all this VIOLENCE,So we can CHANGE the WORLD and make a DIFFERENCE.


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John LennonMargaret GelenGrade 10City Honors High School

UntitledElliott CarlsonGrade 10City Honors High School

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Snowy DayRuby Medina-RiveraGrade 12Bennett High School

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What May Be SaidKayLeigh Kubiak

The benefit of writing a poem of your ownWhether the words are fact or fictionWill never be known

You can write out your soulHidden is the source of eloquenceAdmitting you to write upon the scroll

Do the words come from experience?Or just curious wondering thoughtsThat is creating the beautiful cadence

The truth may even be bothWondering at how things have changedThrough the times of hardship and growth

Of the meaning in each phrase-What is to be perceived?Maybe that’s the point of a transcribed maze


Mao Ze Dong is the Never Setting Burning Red Sun in Our HeartsSam ChenGrade 10

City Honors High School

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FlyingVianca Morales

Just yesterday a gun went off in my head.Making my word slip awayas I spiraled down, pushed by gravityinto a room of no light or life whatsoever.A hell in itself.Running around, yet I keep hitting walls.Can’t see them, where are they coming from?Somehow blood red is spilling from me.I am the artist; I am always the canvas. I’m the paint too.Dark art, tortured soul, my life and drawings are seen in gray.Screw it.My work isn’t good enough.Livid? I am.Douse it all in alcohol or something.burnburnburn. Scarlet slips away.I slip away.Woke up this morning, it was all the same.

But I’m flying today. For now.


Bird in FlightLeah Ganey


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DyslexiaElizabeth PodgornyGrade 12City Honors High School

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Buffalo Historical SocietyLuis ArroyoGrade 11Riverside High School

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Forest Lawn Cemetery GateKaylie BensonGrade 12Riverside High School

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North Park TheaterKarissa FarrellGrade 12Leonardo DaVinci High School

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BuffaloBrian Trinh

It’s true, for the eye, it cannot lie.For the reasons to why the brothers leaveWhen all you hear is the people’s cry,of the blood in hand, to the family’s grief.They said it is run by greed.The facts, it hurts, but I just agree.

But I love my city, from where I grew.From the homes to the roots it was built.The place is great, as I’ve always knew.For the worst that thousands have felt,That drove us to the city we know,A place full of love, and full of snow.


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City HallIviangelisse Carino


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As I Walk OutFadi Suboh

As the light walked barefoot, and parted those tree branchesYou, and a dry breeze Both swept up a lot of shattered dreams.Life was pure and all it had was just vagueness –The coldness erasing the warmth, the tears erasing the pictures.

The piece of wisdom we didn’t know is that “fate is fate”.Troubles ran like rivers, flowing through my life.I got on my knees, picked up the broken pieces,And helped myself through my strife.

With tender care, added comfort, warmth,And images that line up on bright walls,I look upon those troubles fondly, bringing forthA strong sense of satisfaction that walks with me in these halls.


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Editor Biographies

Hector TiradoHector is currently a senior at McKinley HS, who often reads and writes almost every day. He is a strong believer that strives for success and will be very sad to leave the editorial board this year after given the opportunity 3 years ago. Hector is a great deal of fun and an adventurous person who loves life.

Danni Jo BechtoldDanni Jo Bechtold, 15, was born and raised in rural Montana. In November of 2011 she moved to Buffalo, New York, with her father and two ridiculous dogs. She is currently attending Tapestry Charter High where she plans to graduate from in June of 2016. After finishing high school, she plans on attending a university in Europe where she will double major in English and World Religion. She will then join the Teachers Without Borders program and work on constructing

her first novel. She wants to write and take pictures for the rest of her life-that’s what she was built to do. See her complete body of work at: Portraitofayounggirl.tumblr.com.

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Editor Bios, Continued

Andrea PauseAndrea Pause is a senior at City Honors, and this is her second and last year as an editor on Speak Your Mind. She is a doodler extraordinaire, a lover of pillow forts, an expert in the fine cuisine that is macaroni and cheese, and a devourer of books--figuratively speaking, actually eating books would be weird.

Vianca MoralesVianca Morales is a sophomore at Riverside High School. This is her first year as an editor for Speak Your Mind. She is 15, her zodiac sign is Scorpio, and she is known for being free-spirited. You can find her anywhere there is coffee, writing poetry, seeming to be in her own world. She enjoys riveting conversation, and manic fun adventure. Vianca plans on going wherever her heart takes her. Writing poetry, maybe a novel, possibly tattooing. Times are tough for dreamers, but her optimism won’t fade. Her goal in life is be completely happy.

“Thomas Edison’s last words were ‘It’s very beautiful over there’. I don’t know where there is, but I believe it’s somewhere, and I hope it’s beautiful.”

“We need never be hopeless because we can never be irreparably broken.”

“If you don’t imagine, nothing ever happens at all.”

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Advisors to the Editors

Joe BieronJoe is an Americorps ABLE member who is currently serving at Tapestry Charter High School. He enjoys working with the extremely talented and artistic youth in Buffalo, and hopes to some day teach.

Roni HydeRoni was lucky enough to wander in to Buffalo in time to work with a group of fabulous students, teachers, administrators and community members to assemble the Speak Your Mind project this year. She is grateful for the opportunity and all the fun along the way. She is an AmeriCorps VISTA member and enjoys a good adventure.

Kerri SpullerKerri Spuller is an AmeriCorps VISTA for the Medaille College-Riverside High School Partnership, and is happy to be working with the Speak Your Mind Editorial Board for her second year. Kerri loves reading, drawing and spend quality time with her cat.

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Petit Ad

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Need more SYM journals, spoken word CD’s or artist notecards?

Published students and BPS teachers receive a free copy of SYM materials.

2013 Journal: $12Past-edition journals: $8

Spoken Word CD: $5Single Notecard: $0.50

5 Pack of Notecards: $2

SYM BUNDLE: $152013 Journal, CD and 5 artist notecards

Contact our office and let us know what you need!

Call 716.880.2817 or e-mail at:

[email protected]

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Want to be a Speak Your Mind Editor?

Join our team and go behind the scenes of this creative project: Learn what it’s like to create an art and literary magazine, gain leadership skills and have lots of fun while making new friends from across the city.

You should join if….• You have an interest in or passion for art,

writing, editing or just want to share your creative genius!

• You can dedicate time to the project• You’re looking for a fun activity that will

also boost your resume

What to expect:• Weekly meetings from January-May• Dinner provided at every meeting, reimbursement

available for bus/metro fare to attend meetings• Learn how to critique art and literature, gain valuable

leadership skills and editorial board experience, attend workshops by guest speakers

• Create the next SYM!

We are taking applications from BPS students enrolled in grades 9 -12 for our 2014 student editorial board.

For more information or to apply, contact us at 716.880.2817, or by e-mail at [email protected].

Educators are welcome to nominate students!

Student EditorsDanni Jo Bechtold

Vianca Morales

Andrea Pause

Hector Tirado

Documents

Speak Your Mind & Shape Your World 2013 - Issue 9