HOW TO SPEAK THE LANGUAGE OF FIRE
talk as if your mouth is burning
fierce and ferocious like a lion’s roar
Bark orders with superiority like the wolf
pack’s leader
Command the troops like a general
Speak the language of fire.
Cameron Brock
Ashlyn
My best friend Ashlyn at school
sees me being goofy
She smells the sweet smell of pie
She hears the grumbling of
the pencil sharpener
She taste the bitter chalk
on her tongue
She feels her tutu
press against her
and always says Hi!
Daphne Delong
Things my mother never taught me
My mother never taught me
how to sleep, so I’m always
awake
My mother never taught me how
to listen, so I am deafened
My mother never taught me to
see, so I am blind
My mother never taught me
to speak, so I could never
respond to my friends
I felt like a waste of
time and space.
Jacob Blesingame
Untitled
The sky was blue and
the spider on the ground crawled with confidence.
The clouds in the sky were white circles,
and my legs were as white as the clouds.
Arkansas had many things to look at like birds.
Blue Mockingjays flew above my head into the trees.
The Mockingjay flew through the clouds like a hoop in basketball.
As I passed the blue spring water I knew
this was where I belonged.
McKenna Hodges
Construction
The orange construction sign was next to the worker
On it was a butterfly
Under the sign was a cone
The worker’s arm was on the cone
Arkansas has a lot of construction sites.
A hummingbird went past the big tractor.
The other three workers were playing football
the third worker was trying to find his
orange vest.
Teagan Young
A Day in the Life of a Deer
Oh my goodness! That car
nearly hit me! It’s a good thing I’m
a fast runner. We locked eyes as she
drove off. I’m pretty sure I’ve seen
her before. Maybe I have, maybe
I haven’t. Oh yea! I remember,
last week I ate almost all of her
corn out of her “might I say beautiful,
but not anymore” garden. I think she
may be a little mad at me. I’m not
hard to forget. I’m a lime green and purple
spotted deer! her garden smelled like
sunflowers? No, roses! Ya, roses. White
maybe red. I’m pretty sure they were
white. Well now she has no corn. My
sister at the other half.
Mykah Webb
Dreams
You will need unicorns, rainbows,
and smiles. Put your smiles in a
bit pot of sweet swirled lollipops.
Blend until chunky. Add the ocean and
let boil until shiny bubbles bounce to the
surface. Add a pinch of mouth-watering
rainbows and a teaspoon of kisses
and gently stir. When the pink magic
inside is done, sprinkle in some
unicorns. Pour into small pancake sizes o
on a 10×10 pan. Bake at 550°.
Watch your fears burn as
the sugary glimmer sweets.
Sherri Elliot
Untitled
In the Spring of 1985, a poor
Marine was walking by a gardner who
was planting gardens. “Tis a good day
to serve as any other.” “Tis also a good
day to put something in the dirt as
any other.” The Marine smiled and
continued walking home to his beloved
family. But the Marine said one word
to the gardner. “Pardon me but what
are you planting?” “I’m planning a new
life for this world, and I thank you to
protect these precious gifts on this planet.”
The Marine looked back and the gardner
disappeared but there stood a lovely
Apple Tree where the gardner had plan-
ted the plant.
Donovan Shepard
Midnight
Midnight. Quarter moon shining down on Heber Springs.
One car here and there but not often. Until 7:00 a.m.
Cars rumbling. Traffic jams. It is like a constant
noise going around your head, and then it ends…
Peace. Quiet. Until 3:00 p.m. School gets out. Cars
honking. People ready to get their kids that is
what it is like on West Front Street. It is really never
Calm in Heber Springs, Arkansas.
Evan Moore
President/April Fool’s
It is April 1st and presidents
Obama and Bush sue over
5,000 people for throwing
Pies at them, egging them, throwing
Water balloons at them, and the
Invisible rope trick. Beware not
To prank these people because
They can’t take a joke
Dayton Houvener
Recipe for Sadness
You will need tears and a heart that is
capable of being broken. First get your
heart and blend it up. Boil and melt
your dreams. Combine that with sobby
tears. Use 2 pounds of happiness
and deep fry it until it’s gone and never to return.
Beat all good things and bake forever
at 350°F.
Mary Katherine McKenzie
Traveling to Saturn by Elephant
As the elephant’s massive grey
Body pounds along the cracked
Dry ground of a desert I
Violently shake. I am traveling
To Saturn by an elephant.
We reach a big problem about
Halfway there. I remember
Elephants can’t fly. I tell him
“Hey Waldo,” “Ya” he says
Nonchalantly as if he really didn’t
Care. “Can you fly?” I asked.
“Well sure,” he said as if it
Were the dumbest question he ever
Heard. So we are in space, and
Wouldn’t you know a tollbooth!
So I never did make
It to Saturn’s glorious rings.
Garrett Brady
Winter
The warm chicken soup
Running smoothly down my throat
Soothes my deathly cold
Blake Eddington
A Wounded Warrior
I look into the mirror and see myself.
Weighed down by a Kevlar vest and gear.
I hear gun-shots in the distance.
the ground shakes form the impact of mortar shells as
I make my way to safety in my Humvee.
I look in the mirror and see a long dusty road.
We are making good progress in our Humvee.
I see a large mound of dirt in the middle of the road.
It’s too late to warn the driver.
I look in the mirror and see half my body in a cast
staring up at the ceiling,
gripping the sides of the bed trying to make
the pain go away
I look out the window and see myself standing
in the yard playing with my dogs
knowing I’m safe without a worry in the world
Ethan Cresswell
Anna Karenina’s Haiku
He brands me his wife
I am the first but not last
Secrets in Russia
Sara Ann Kelly
Black Hole
My friend sits in darkness
Invisible to everyone
None want to approach him
Because he sucks
He hides in the middle of our way
He was once warm and nice
He stretches things long and thin
Even the brightest can’t run away
he’s always got a lot of space
Sean Peele
Eclipse
Black night air
darkness
light burnt out
nothing
burnt out
Abby Duncan
Afraid (The Walking Dead)
The sun peaks while
I run through the woods knowing
they are close behind
Keegan Hazlewood
Searching
Pacing through the streets of New York
glowing advertisements everywhere
honking of car horns in my eardrums
crowding the streets like fire ants
I discover my way to the subway.
Hayden Dearmond
Heber Springs Middle School
Heber Springs, AR
Dates of Visit: November 29 – 30, 2012
Faculty Sponsor: Mary Propes
Grade Levels: 6, 7, 8
Appx. Number Students Served: 400
Visiting Writers: Megan Blankenship, Aran Donovan, Adrian McBride, Alice Otto, Hung Pham, and Rodney Wilhite