Missed Days

O the days I miss! O the days I miss!

The cotton-candy clouds, colored bands around my wrists; The cookies and the cut-outs, wishes trusted in the stars, When the problems that I faced weren’t all-out internal wars; The childhood adventures, raucous ruckus but no risk; It seemed everything was perfect in those days I missed.

In the days I miss, when I laid among the grass, With the drifting dandelions who would smile as I passed, When rain was an adventure, buckets turned mud into pie; When sprinkler spray made rainbows as it streamed toward the sky I was too young to know better, they said “ignorance is bliss,” And I had plenty of it, in those days I miss.

O the days I’ve missed! All the days I’ve missedThe melancholy hollow that came as I reminisced; The wistful worn-out outlook that I used to see the worldThe second- and third-chances, accidentally ignored; The promise of the present, and my future life dismissedFor I found I was too focused on the days I’ve missed.

Healing Sunny Shen

They say blue is the color of sadness

The color children use for tears

(Streaky crayons

On a shaded cheek)

They say blue is the color of sorrow

The color painters use for water

(Oceans so big

They swallow you whole)

The curtains are blue

When the artist wants melancholy

The curtains are blue

When the writer wants grief

But blue is sky

Aquamarine on a walk home

Quiet after a hard day

But blue is night

Indigo that stretches and fills

Our looming silence

But blue is healing

A turquoise box of candy

A navy ribbon around roses

A sorry

And an I forgive you

Overcooked Rebecca Liao

Your fingers fumble ove and buttons of your con vision blurs from eyes s hard in laughter. You ca screen or where your ch character is among all t family members’ motion brother’s reindeer chef comical smacking sound the speakers of the TV a rescue a soup from burn

It is made apparent that you aren’t the only one who was knocked aside in his rush because your mom emits an enraged squawk. “Who just hit me?!” she yells, her little man chef disoriented from being hit.

“Argh! So annoying!”

Your brother just lets out a mischievous chuckle as he takes the only slightly burnt soup to the serving area. A satisfying ding rings out at having successfully served it, accompanied by a tip. This doesn’t aid in curing you from your current fit of laughter, and you struggle to help chop ingredients for the next order. Your dad merely sighs with exasperation as his wheelchair-bound raccoon retrieves more onions, surely thinking about how your mom is not helping you all to three-star the level. The music speeds up as there are only 30 seconds remaining on the timer. You quickly scan the screen, eyes now wide open to see the progress on any current soups and how many more orders you can complete.

“Okay, we can do two more!” you shout. You press the bottom button to boost your character’s movements, rushing to help complete the soups.

The music continues to accelerate, and as the seconds tick down, you stand ready with a plate to get the last soup once it’s done cooking. You feel yourself sweat a bit, poising your finger to speed over to the serving location. The timer starts beeping as there are three seconds left…two seconds…one… Ding! You serve the dish just as the round ends. Cheers erupt all around as a grin explodes over your face. “We did it!!” you shriek as the victory sound comes up, along with three shiny golden stars. You laugh as the pain and chaos from the last four minutes washes over you. No matter the struggle to win though, the fun of having done it with your family was worth it.