Silence is Agreement
I am told my heritage is dangerous.
But I don’t remember anything dangerous about the way my Aubelas warm smile lit a room
Or the way, my papa always picked me up and spun me while I cooed
The American pride never wavered in their eyes
As this was a place of refuge during falling times,
Nothing felt wrong when they loved with a soul of mercy,
Unshown of the same compassion
A flag does not waver; it’s people who do
I cannot see a symbol of strength in a place of weakness
Your veins are cold as ice
Your power wavers,
Stealing the innocence of hearts too big to withhold
A compassionate person you cannot take,
Nothing is stronger than a heart with an unwillingness to break
You can murder my people with chilling hate
But you cannot silence the soul
That burns with a never-ending fire
That follows us far beyond the pain
You cannot break those who the journey has broken
Land of the free
Free we shall be for as long as the people will not let silence bestow upon our voice
Freedom will once ring
Your ice will melt
The match that is our voices
Will set your hatred on fire.
-Jemma Rubalcava, ’27
A Part of Nature
Afraid of the dark?
how silly, why be,
a little girl used to be.
More silent than the night.
But twinkling lights flicker
like a candle, so many
you can’t count them all
on your fingers.
Isn’t it breathtaking?
As they dance around
a point in the sky.
Pondered why I’d have to wait
to only see them at night.
Don’t have fear,
Don’t have worry,
Just look up.
Flooded with feelings,
trees reached for the sky,
they had something to say.
We hear them breathe
as leaves rustled carefree.
But trees still stay silent.
She stayed silent.
What would they say?
Anything at all? Everything?
She was never sure.
Cold crisp air arrived,
trees lost their colors,
trouble arose,
and she lost her colors, too.
All around, white sheets of snow,
everything blank.
Trueself was hidden,
under layers of snow,
but the day came when
green patches returned.
Heavy clouds migrate,
as a group of colors
paint the ground not just green,
but many more.
A flower opens and blooms
Once again,
as so do her eyes,
And she’s Beautiful.
-Bre Hoff, ’27
A Dream
A Dream
Last night I dreamt that I could fly
Soaring near and far
Freely riding winds on high
Amongst the clouds and birds
But dreams are merely that, dreams
Which we must keep in mind
We can do so many things
But none of us can fly
-Elliott Zrudsky, ’26
The Man the Addiction Stole
TW: Abuse
I learned early on
That love can bruise
The man I once knew
No longer portraying the soft and gentle soul you once showed
I braced myself
Wondering which version of you I would see walking through the door
I watched your addiction build like the walls I built around my heart
To protect myself from whatever you threw my way
There’s a vast space between us now
Silent and awkward
Wishing you could see that I didn’t want to hurt you
I just wanted to help the man who once made me feel like the luckiest girl in the world
I wish you knew that I’m learning to love you without losing myself
And that letting go of your chaos
Doesn’t mean I’m letting go of you
But I’m learning to finally hold on to me
-Ella Stolba, ’27
