EVERYTHING IN THE WINDOW
POEMS & STORIES BY CHILDREN FROM ELLA AUSTIN COMMUNITY CENTER IN COLLABORATION WITH GEMINI INK WRITERS | READERS
Gemini Ink’s work at Ella Austin Community Center and this publication were made possible by the Najim Foundation, Tax Increment Reinvestment Zone–City of San Antonio, and the Texas Commission on the Arts. Laura Healy, Dexter Gilford Writers-in-Residence Jen Knox Writers in Communities Program Director, Gemini Ink Sheila Black Executive Director, Gemini Ink Student work has been edited as lightly as possible in order to honor the original voices Book design by Anisa Onofre © 2016 by Gemini Ink
INTRODUCTION After a long day of sitting at a desk and doing schoolwork, you wouldn’t think that kids would be willing to spend an afternoon sitting around a table, listening and writing stories and poems, but that is exactly what these kids did. Not only that—they wrote from their hearts! It was both a pleasure and an honor to be there to witness it. —Laura Healy, Writer in Residence
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS Gemini Ink is proud to bring the voices of Ella Austin Community Center’s 3rd, 4th, and 5th grade classes to the literary stage with Everything in the Window. To our Writers in Communities instructors, thank you for sharing your love of literature and writing. Special thanks to Dexter Gilford and Laura Healy, who led fiction and poetry workshops with the students on Tuesdays and Thursdays that included innovative and interdisciplinary lessons bridging the worlds of literature to music, art, and theater. Thank you also to our visiting artists: Viktoria Valenzuela, Dr. Kamala Platt, and Cris Bazaldua, each of whom brought their own unique insight and experience to the project. Thank you to everyone at Ella Austin, including Linda Cherry and Carolyn “Lenny” Scott, for working with us to bring these workshops to these amazing young writers. —Jen Knox, Writers in Communities Director, Gemini Ink
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EVERYTHING IN THE WINDOW
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A DREAM I dream of a red bird in my house. I dream of Sophia the First. I dream of Doc McStuffins. I dream of SpongeBob. I dream of doing something awesome. I dream of a diamond in the sky. I dream of my team, the Spurs. I dream of a singing bridge. I dream of a picture of my Dad. I dream of a picture of my dogs, Rocky and Cassidy. Jade
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SOUNDS Laura says giggle giggle giggle pickle pickle pickle grumble grumble grumble. Splash spash splash flash flash flash crash crash crash. What is she talking about? Jade
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WE LIVIN’ IT I live in the renegades. My name is Kevin Gates. Sophia the First, she is the worst. She just stole your mama’s purse. I like my work. I don’t twerk. I do my homework. I love dinosaurs and raptors. These are my chapters. I flip the pages. These are my stages. I love the doctor cause he’s the caboose. He looks like a moose. Oooh dab um mm. Ms Laura got some new shoes. They on fleek. That dictionary look bog like your wig. Oh YOLO. Mr Dexter looks handsome like David Robinson. Change will not come if we wait for some other time. We are the ones we’ve been waiting for. We are the change we see. Madison
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HATER My name is Sophia the First. I am the worst. I stole your mama’s purse. I got a dog. His name is Bob Marley. I have a cat. His name is Harley. I love the Spurs but I hate Ginobli. I love my babe but you callin’ him ugly. Like you ain’t got one. Like mmm you write my name down but ooh I’m scared. I’m not yours. You’re such a baby. You can’t do nothing like me cause you’re too ugly. Madison
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ODE TO A BEAN AND CHEESE TACO I like it because it’s tasty and it has beans and it’s cheesy. They wrap it up good. I hope you like it too! Maria H.
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LISTENING TO MUSIC It sounds like somebody is conducting the person who is playing the violin with the others. And people are playing music for President Obama. Maria H.
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I JUST DON’T I just don’t want to die. If I was a raindrop I would fall from the cloud but I don’t want to fall because I will not evaporate again. Arieanna
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I WISH I wish I could run faster than anybody. I wish I could be a grown-up already, so I could get my nails done. I wish it would rain tons of food so that you could wish for anything you want. I wish that I could help people and also be a teacher that helps little kids learn every single day when they don’t know nothing. Lakseisha
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ONE DAY One day, a girl was not focused on her test ’cause this boy was talking to her while the teacher was out of class. She did not know how to focus back on the test. This was the biggest test. She will not pass and she will get in big trouble. Lakseisha
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MY NOISE: SONGS I hear my favorite song, “The Hills.” I feel happy because I like that song. Kaelee
THE WOMAN The building is like a tree. The art is like the sky. The woman is like a flower. Kaelee
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I USED TO BE BUT NOW I used to be a heart but now I am a rose.
I used to be pink but now I’m purple.
I used to be a rose but now I’m a teddy bear.
I used to be a heart but now I am candy. Kaelee
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I HAVE, I LIKE I have a thousand dollars. I have a strawberry. I like whipped cream. I like cherry. I see a witch. I broke my TV. I am a bore. Chrisshonda
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A CHRISTMAS POEM Sad skies. Cold nights. No present and tons of coal. Nothing to be happy about. Santa’s not coming to town. Natalie
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WINDOW I see a window big and bright. I see a family tight and strong. I see a painting colorful and abstract. I see a garden green and leafy. I see everything in the window. Natalie p15p
THE LONELY TREE The lonely tree was a troublesome sight. The lonely tree was a total fright. The lonely tree was lonely and scared, because he had no friends or family to spare. The lonely tree would stay in a forest day and night, and nobody would look at him, not even a mare. So the lonely tree sat there, and sit there it might, But it would never escape a lonely night. Until one day when the stars were alight, it was cold and dark with nobody stirring. But one soul was the only one awake and everyone else was asleep, no mouse was squeaking so light and furry. Natalie
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NOTHING’S FAIR IN FIFTH GRADE Listen kids—nothing is fair in fifth grade. Kids are annoying, teachers are mean; they give you too much homework and you get lunch detention for no reason. Lunch ladies start being strict on you about your manners even though it is worthless and people expect too much of you. Everyone is bullying each other. You have to get a’s and b’s and you worry too much if your teacher is going to bang the wall and make you blink. You’re expected to wear perfect clothes. You take too many tests and when you study you think you are all that. And then it hits you in the head. You didn’t study so you don’t know how to figure out the problems and the teacher makes you stand in the front and go to the problem and you feel so stupid because you don’t know what to do so the teacher times you, and if you still don’t get it you have a conference with the teacher and your parents. They decide to ask about some random thing like, “How does she react to conflicts?” or “Does she pay attention?” So they go through all of that and you are grounded for life. P.S.—Teachers are really good at this, and that, my friends, is why nothing’s fair in fifth grade. Tilyn
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HUNGRY Once upon a time there was a little girl in the woods named Kyma. She was in a wheelchair because she could not walk. But she really wanted to walk and she had dreams about walking. While she was in the woods, she saw a piece of fruit that she had never seen before and did not know if it was dangerous or not. All she knew was that she was hungry and what attracted her most was that it was big and juicy, so she went along towards it and she took a bite. Nothing happened, it seemed like‌or did it? Little did she know, in that part of the woods was a magical plant that could grant wishes. So she headed back home to her parents, ate dinner and went to sleep. The next morning she went to school and it was a bore to her. She had to go to math class, reading class, science class, and gym class. Then she had lunch. She brought her own lunch because she never p20p
really had the appetite for the school lunch. At lunch recess she sat in her wheel chair for a whole 30 minutes watching kids play. And I mean, playing fun games. So she whispered to herself, “Man, I wish I could walk,� and from these few words, Wabam! Nothing happened. At the end of the day she rode her wheel chair all the way home and went straight to bed! In the morning, Wabam! Something happened, because when she got out of bed she noticed she was walking on her very own two feet. She did not understand what had happened. To be continued. Tilyn
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BROKE EVERYTHING I had ridden straight through it and water splashed all over me and it had gotten in my eyes and I couldn’t see at all whatsoever and apparently I did not see the rock in front of me and I ended up crashing into it. I broke my everything. It was just horrible, my arms, my leg, my knee, my ankles, my foot and my fingers and my wrist. I also fell asleep so I was pretty much unconscious. I woke up in the hospital room with a full body cast. From that point on I knew that my running life was over. When I got to school everybody was asking me if I got hit by a bus. I could not even eat my own lunch without people feeding me with my spoon. It was the worst two weeks of my life. Tilyn
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I WISH I wish the skies would get darker and the stars would get brighter and the whole sky would sparkle like diamonds. I wish I could be that particular girl that no one’s ever seen do something extraordinary, like invent a moving picture. I wish I wish I wish I could be that perfect little girl with that curly hair and that evil glare with a pretty pretty smile with that crazy face and that untied lace. Just that perfect perfect girl. Tilyn
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ISABEL IS GOING TO BE PRESIDENT One day at school Isabel was sitting at her desk and her teacher said that they were going to have a class president at school. Isabel wanted to be the president but Jay wanted to be president too. The next day Isabel gave a speech to students about what she would do if she were president. While Isabel was giving the speech, Jay interrupted her and started giving out cupcakes. Isabel said, “Oh, you want to play that game? Okay.� On Wednesday, it was time to vote and Isabel and Jay had the same number of votes. It was a tie. In the end, what Jay did not know was that Isabel left her phone on in class and it was recording because during class she was recording her friends and while it was recording they said Jay rigged the votes. In the end, Isabel won the election and was the class president. She was so excited. Isabel
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President I had imagined if someone wanted to be president when he was young he always dreamed of doing it, but thought he could not because he was blind. But still, nothing stopped him. He still kept trying his best. He kept on giving speeches and kept trying. And then one day he stopped trying because this kid told him, you can’t be president because when a robber or someone who does not like you tries to hurt you, you won’t be able to know it. So later that day he went home and told his mom what had happened and she told him that every president has a bodyguard to protect them, and that there is nothing wrong with being a blind president. Isabel
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MY LIFE When I was one or two years old I lived in this house. My friends lived right next to me. We loved to play hide and seek in the back yard. When I was five we had to move. We moved to a white house—it was so huge to me. My mom and dad bought a car. It was black and awesome. Maria M.
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THE GIRL WHO FELL IN THE POND I once fell in a huge pond and it was a little deep. I was scared because I opened my eyes and I saw a lot of fish and the water was dirty. There was also big fish and frogs swimming in the water. I came out of the water and hugged a lily pad. And there was a frog on top of my head. It jumped off my head. I ran out and I got my bike and went to school and all the kids saw me soaking wet so I got mad. Maria M.
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ELIJAH Elijah Muhammad is the Son of God. He owns the F.O.I. He has a wheel. He Will crush the world. Isiah
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SONG When I see your face it’s not a thing I would change ’cause girl you’re beautiful just the way you are, and when I see your smile, it’s like the whole worlds stops and stands for a while ’cause girl you’re beautiful just the way you are. It is me, or his fancy but whatever, I want to marry you. Isiah
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THE FRIENDLY LION One day a lion was born. “Let’s name him Lenny,” said Mama. “Okay, whatever,” said Papa. This lion was not like the others. He had a big heart and a big mind. He was kinder and more loving because his Mother told him one thing always. “Treat others the way you want to be treated,” she’d say. Then it was time for Lenny to go to school. “Be nice and kind,” his Mother said. “And make some friends so you aren’t lonely.” “Okay, bye,” said Lenny. As he entered the school building he saw other lions like himself staring and laughing at him. “Hey, are you the nice Lenny?” the leader asked. “Yes. How’d you know that?” Lenny answered. “Well, all I know is that you’re setting a bad example for us lions. We have a reputation as fierce and strong…you’re nice and puny,” he said. The bell rang for their first class to start. “Bye, Lenny the Girl,” the leader said, teasing Lenny. p30p
As the day passed Lenny only felt sadder and sadder until he heard a loud “Bbbrrrriiiinnnngggg, please evacuate the building! Fire! Fire!” They all rushed out of the building. “Where is that lion that was bullying me this morning?” he said to himself. Then he had a flashback—he was in detention and he knew that they didn’t have any speakers in the detention room. He snuck back to the detention room in the blaze searching for the boy. He found him sitting in the detention room listening to music with his headphones on. “Get up, we have to go…the school is on fire!” They got up and ran out of the building together to safety. Once they got outside, the lion said “Thanks, I guess we can be friends.” “Oh, by the way, my name is Leonardo, not bully or kid, just Leonardo,” he said. “Oh, okay.” And they were friends forever. Stephanie
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THE LITTLE DUCKLINGS FIND A FRIEND One day a duckling named Rufus was looking for a friend. He couldn’t find a friend because when he was born the webs on his feet hadn’t developed. Rufus started to name the reasons why he couldn’t find a friend. “I can’t swim, I’m not fully developed, and my feathers are gray instead of white, green, and brown,” Rufus said. Then all of a sudden Rufus bumped into another duckling about his age. His beak was kind of misshaped and his feathers were black instead of white, green and brown. “Sorry, my name is Danny. What’s yours?” “My name is Rufus.” What they both didn’t know was that they both were looking for a friend. Danny had red eyes from crying and being rejected asking for a friend. Rufus had been crying too. “Would you like to be friends?” Rufus asked, digging his foot in the ground and looking down towards the ground.” “Sure,” Danny said excitedly. And they were friends forever after. Stephanie
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THE LITTLE BABY BIRDS HATCH One day Mother Blue Jay was sitting on her eggs. Then all of a sudden she heard a crack. “What was that?” Mother Blue Jay asked. When she looked down she saw five baby Blue Jays looking up at her. “My babies have hatched,” Mother Blue Jay said. Mother Blue Jay was so happy that she told Mrs. Robin who was her next door neighbor. Mrs. Robin then told Mr. Woodpecker, and so on and so forth until it reached Mr. Hawk, a nasty, manipulating slippery and thieving type of bird. Mr. Hawk smiled with glee when he heard the news. “I know what I’ll do, I’ll catch the little birdies when Mrs. Blue Jay is sleeping and then I’ll cut a hole at the bottom of the nest. They’ll fall right into my stomach. I might even get the mother in it if I can just find a way to make the father leave,” Mr. Hawk thought to himself. So he thought and thought until he couldn’t think anymore. Then suddenly he heard a knock, knock at his tree. “Who is it?” yelled Mr. Hawk. “M-m-m-mail, bird,” stammered Mail Bird. “Well, what is it that you want?” yelled Mr. Hawk. “You’re invited to a party, sir,” said Mail Bird.
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“Well, then put the invitation on the porch, please.” Mail Bird put the invitation on the porch where Mr. Hawk had told him to. Back at Mr. and Mrs. Blue Jay’s nest they had gotten an invitation too. “Hey, look Karen, they are having a bird festival this evening,” Mr. Blue Jay said. “They are, huh? Well, you can go. I’ll have to take care of the babies.” “But we can let Mrs. Robin take care of the babies,” said Mr. Blue Jay. “But then I won’t have enough time to name the babies,” said Mrs. Blue Jay. “We can name them after the bird festival,” said Mr. Blue Jay. “But I want to name them now,” Mrs. Blue Jay said. “All right, but when I come home with twenty necklaces you’re not going to get a single one,” Mr. Blue Jay said. “Okay, let’s go and let Mrs. Robin take care of them,” Mrs. Blue Jay said. Listening in the dark shadows was Mr. Hawk under the tree branch hearing the news, he said, “This will be great.” p34p
Later that day Mrs. Robin came to take care of the baby Blue Jays. Mr. Hawk was in for a big surprise— he tried to steal the baby Blue Jays, but Mother Blue Jay went to her nest to check in on them and saw Mr. Hawk, so she called the cops. Mr. Hawk was then arrested and the baby Blue Jays never had to worry again. Stephanie
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BLOODY NIGHTMARE Once upon a time there were three boys named Christian, Jercori and Israel, and they found a dead dog hanging upside down with nails in its neck. Israel screamed, and the other two boys passed out. The boys went and told their parents what they saw but when their parents went to go see it for themselves, it was gone. Dad got Jercori’s rifle and went in the house. One night Israel was walking in the dark when the dog’s dead body that the boys had seen killed him. There was blood on the streets and everywhere. Israel’s mom called the police. At 9:00 Jercori and Christian heard Israel’s voice. He said to them, “both of you are going to die.” Jercori and Christian ran home and told their parents what they had heard. Jercori
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HALLOWEEN NIGHT Costumes are put on a body. Candy is related to the mouth. Monsters relate to Halloween. And Halloween is related to fun and having a good time.
Stephanie
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DU’JUAN’S WORLD: THE BOY THAT SAW DEAD THINGS One Halloween night, a kid named Du’Juan was walking through the woods behind his house to get to another neighborhood to go trick-or-treating. On his way he met a ghost and a zombie. When Du’Juan walked up to the zombie its arm fell off from the rest of its body and then the rest of its body fell apart. There were also a lot of weird bracelets that fell from his body. The bracelets were alive. There was another creature named Pumpkin Head but Pumpkin Head died. Someone got hurt and aliens took over and then everybody died except Pumpkin Head’s mother who was still alive. Whatever happens to Pumpkin Head also happens to his mother. One night on Halloween, the bracelets hung Pumpkin Head from a tree because he was being a bully to them. But Pumpkin Head came back to life and put the zombie back together again. And then the bracelets were nice. Madison
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JACK FACE One day there was a guy named Jack Face. His name was Jack Face because he did jacked up things and his face was so bad. He was so scary‌ He was ugly and had scars and cuts on his face. He cut up bodies and put them up like decorations. One day he hanged himself and now he is a decoration every Halloween! Madison
THE HALLOWEEN CURSE It was the night of the Halloween curse and the night was dark. We stayed up for the Halloween candy but there was a problem because the curse had already started and they were all cursed except me. I moved out of town but it was just the beginning of the curse. The curse spread everywhere. The curse spread and went to the Headless Horse Man and the ghost named Jolly because when he was alive he was a jolly person. I solved the curse because I told the people to stand in line so they would tell the Headless Horse Man and the ghost they were sorry. I gave Jolly candy so now everybody was nice and good. And every Halloween was nice and perfect and everything went back to normal. Domanique Cano p40p
HALLOWEEN NIGHT A black cat is like a dark shadow. A witch is like a green wizard. A zombie is like a man rolled up in toilet paper. A skeleton is like a pile of bones. A wolf is like a hairy man. Kaelee
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THE NOISES IN THE ROOM Once there was a little girl who moved into a new house with her dad and her little sister. The little sister was easily scared. Then she heard something but she thought it was nothing. Then she went to bed. Then she woke up to use the bathroom and heard something again. So she rushed back to bed. When she got into the bed, she heard it again. So she then went to her dad. She tried to tell him but he did not wake up. So she tried to tell her sister. She tried to shake her but she did not wake up either. Then she pulled the sheet off but her sister was not there. So the little sister went looking for her all over the house. Then she heard the noise again. It was coming from the closet. So she went to go look in the closet and her sister yelled “Boo!” Her sister started laughing. The next night after that she thought of something. After everybody fell asleep, she snuck out of her bed… To be continued... Kaelee
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THE THIRTEENTH FLOOR Once upon a time on one cold and dark and mysterious night there were three girls; their names were Makaya, Joleen and Eurydice. There were also two boys; their names were Leo and Martin. All of them had slept over at Martin’s house. They had planned on going trick-or-treating. Makaya was dressed as a black widow, Martin was dressed as a zombie, Leo was dressed as Spider Man, Joleen was dressed as a nerd, and Eurydice was dressed as a teacher. So when they were getting dressed and were walking out the door, the door slammed on its own and they were horrified. So they went trick-ortreating that night. When they got home the boys put their candy all together and they had 1234 pieces of candy. Then the girls put their candy together and all together they had 13467 pieces of candy and they won the candy competition. Makaya
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GHOST–AH! Ghosts are scary. I hate them because they’re not real. Only spirits are real but…
Hosts are scary spirits. they’re bad and ugly.
Ooh, I’m scared a lot. I’m gonna cry Boo-hoo, Boo-hoo, Boo-hoo-hoo.
So scared. You go. I double-dog dare you to go on the 13th floor.
Too scary! Booooooo! Aaaaah! Ah! I’m so scared. I will scare you. I’m gonna get you!
Howl! I will get you. Run, run, run fast! I’m gonna catch you. You’re gonna die tonight! Madison p44p
NIGHT OF THE KILLER WEREWOLF One day, the day before Halloween, there was a boy named Jack and he was a regular guy. He liked football and got good grades until the day that changed his life forever. Jack was so nervous because finals were coming up and he hadn’t studied like he usually did. His best friend Toby came up to him and said, “What’s wrong with you?” “Nothing!” Jack yelled. “Whoah!” Toby exclaimed. He said, “Okay, I’m just going to leave you alone.” Jack sat there at his locker for a while when he heard: BING! BING! BING! BING! “Oh no! he thought, I’m going to be late for class!” To be continued… Natalie
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APOCALYPSE HALLOWEEN A ghost is scary. A zombie is gross. A pumpkin is cool. A grave is horrible. A bone is bloody. Jercori
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THE PRINCESS LOST IN THE CASTLE Once upon a time there was a princess who got lost in a big castle. She tried, but she just couldn’t ever get out because she was lost. The only person who knew how to get out of the castle was her stepmom. There was a big royal ball that she wanted to go to but her step-mom wouldn’t show her the way out of the castle because one of the princess’s sisters told her step-mom not to let her go to the royal ball because they didn’t like her. They didn’t like her because she was so pretty. So the princess didn’t get to go to the royal ball and none of the people there got to see how pretty she was. A’morie
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IT’S ALL TRUE Once upon a time a little girl named Lusie was in her room. She heard a noise behind her wall. She called her older sister in and told her. Her sister said, “you little scaredy-cat, you’re just imagining things.” When she was just about to walk out the room Lusie said, “you can’t leave me, I can’t stay here alone.” Then she heard the thumping again. “Just go to bed,” her sister said. She then turned the light off and slammed the door. About two minutes later Lusie heard the thumping again. “Jasmine! Jasmine! I’m too scared,” Lusie yelled. Lusie then ran down the hall and went into her sister’s bedroom. Her sister said, “Aw! What do you want now, you big Baby!” “I’m too scared! There’s thumping in my room!” Lusie said. Her sister said, “Okay, we’ll go in your room and if I don’t hear thumping you’re going to be in big trouble, and I’ll know that you’re p48p
just imagining things.” Two hours later while they were in Lusie’s room, Lusie was asleep and Jasmine was asleep too. As Jasmine was slowly closing her eyes she heard the thumping again. She wondered if she was just hearing things because she was just sleepy so she pinched herself. But then she realized that she was awake and that her sister was telling the truth. She tried to wake up her sister but it was no use. It was a long night. Jasmine could not sleep at all. It was just too frightening. Lusie had gotten up and said she had to go to the bathroom too. Her sister Jasmine said, “okay, good let’s go.” As soon as they left the room they heard something fall to the ground. They quickly turned around. “Oh no!” yelled Lusie. She saw that her pink mirror had broken. But the thing Jennifer was worried about was how the glass somehow fell off the wall. It was really strange. “What am I going to do now?” Lusie asked herself. “My most prized possession is broken forever.” “Well, Mom and Dad will be here soon so we better get in bed, you know.” Lusie plopped into her bed and turned out the lights and Jasmine got into the bed. They both slowly fell asleep. The next morning, as soon as Lusie and Jasmine got up, they ran straight for the stairs, and headed into the kitchen. They saw Mom cooking and Dad reading a men’s magazine. “Mom! Dad!” Lusie and Jennifer said at the exact time. “You would never believe what happened last night.” p49p
Dad asked, “Well, what?” “There was thumping in my room and the pink mirror magically fell off the wall and onto the floor, broken! And, the worst part is that we don’t even know how it happened,” exclaimed Jennifer. “Wow, what a story,” Dad said. “But it’s not a story, it’s all true.” “Well, if it’s true I want to see the broken glass right this minute!” demanded Dad. They headed upstairs and into Lusie’s room. The mirror was back on the wall without a scratch. “But I know it was broken!”said Lusie. “No kidding,” said Jasmine. “You’re in big trouble for not telling the truth, so you’re grounded for a month!” Dad said. “But, but…” “See, you have nothing to say,” Dad said. To be continued… Tilyn p50p
JOHN’S INVISIBILITY FAILURE Imagine that you can become invisible whenever you wanted to? What are some things you would like to do? But one day John couldn’t change back. And on that very day he had a date with the cutest girl in school. And on that very day he had to go on an airplane for seven hours to visit Africa because he was going to help Africa with hunger. But then John thought about it and said to himself, “I can use my invisibility to rob a bank.” So the next day he robbed a bank. But when he did the cops arrested him. He was then taken to the lab in NASA for experiments to solve how to turn invisible in the U.S. Army because they were going to have a battle with Afghanistan. But after they had made an experiment they still didn’t find out how to turn invisible for the army. So the NASA scientist told the president they can kill him for his super ability. John was scared that he was going to be killed. Then the president told them some shocking news: Afghanistan is coming to the U.S.A. and they are invisible. Anonymous
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A LETTER TO MOM Dear Mom, I love you because you love me and I love you too. When I grow up I hope you are still alive. Please tell me that you will be here when I visit you. I love you, no matter what. Q’yree W.
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LETTER TO MY FUTURE SELF Dear David, Whatever you do, don’t be a bully. When you drive your dad’s car, don’t crash or go too fast. When you get a job, don’t be lazy. When you get to learn the trumpet, get your own trumpet and practice for an hour. Make sure you keep playing Minecraft and make sure you do not summon Hero Brine. David O. p53p
LETTER TO MY FUTURE SELF Dear Q’yree, When you grow up you will tell people who bully other people to stop before you make them cry. And, if you don’t, you will tell instead of hitting or putting people in their place. You will tell the office and you will get suspended from school. They will tell your mother and your mother will deal with you and the other people will not do anything and tell when you get bullied and just be calm. Sincerely, Q’yree W.
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LETTER TO MYSELF Dear Jonathan, When you were in the fifth grade you thought freckles were angels’ kisses. Please make sure that you have a lot of friends and be nice, and write about cookies, and shoes, and go to the library, and tell good jokes like, “What do you call a bear with no teeth?… A gummy bear!” Truly yours, Jonathan
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FUTURE JOSE Dear Future Me, I don’t know what you are going to be, but you will be great, good, and brave. Good luck and in 3rd grade you were on “A” and “B” honor roll, and smart. Future Me, don’t forget these things: red and black are your favorite colors and remember to take care of Mom and Dad, and you hate the word “Coconut,” and your favorite game is Minecraft for X-Box 360. P.S. The reason you hate the word “Coconut” is because Mom, sister, and you had a dog named Coconut and she died. Don’t forget to give me a call. P.P.S. Don’t mess around a lot—and get 100%, not 90%, okay? Be prepared for high school like your sister. Truly yours, Past Jose
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FUTURE A’MORIE Dear A’morie, It is so much fun to play with my friends. I like to play tag and hide and seek. I don’t like polka dots and I don’t like the color red. Only put on blue beads because it is my favorite color. I don’t eat nothing red except watermelon, strawberries, and Takis. I only wear blue and not red and I eat healthy. Sincerely, A’morie
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ANONYMOUS Never tells a secret Anonymous is in sight Tells the truth A good person Likes reading Like many things Eats pizza— Who am I? Natalie
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Writers in Residence Bios Laura Healy is a poet who lives and writes and watches the birds in San Antonio, TX. As an undergraduate she attended Stephen F. Austin State University and the University of Houston. She received her MFA from the University of Maine. Dexter Gilford, formerly a practicing attorney of nearly 20 years, returned to graduate school in 2012 to pursue his passion for reading and writing fiction and poetry. He will graduate from Our Lady of the Lake University in the fall with an M.A. in English. Dexter currently teaches criminal law and criminal justice at San Antonio College. He is currently working on a collection of short stories, a cycle of poetry, and a collection of essays on race—all of which have been “in progress” for far too long.
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Author Index A’morie, 47, 57 Anonymous, 51 Arieanna, 7 Chrisshonda, 13 David O., 53 Domanique Cano, 40 Isabel, 24, 25 Isiah, 28, 29 Jade, 1,2 Jercori, 36, 46 Jonathan, 55 Jose, 56 Kaelee, 11, 12, 41, 42 Lakseisha, 8, 9 Madison, 3, 4, 39, 40, 44 Makaya, 43 Maria H., 5, 6 Maria M., 26, 27 Natalie, 14, 15, 16, 45, 58 Q’yree W., 52, 54 Stephanie, 30, 32, 33, 37 Tilyn, 19, 20, 22, 23, 48
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Gemini Ink helps people create and share the human story Writers in Communities (WIC) sends professional writers into diverse community settings to work alongside students of all ages, needs, interests, and abilities in free workshops based in oral traditions, reading, and creative writing. Autograph Series presents writers of national and international stature— many of them recipients of major prizes such as the Pulitzer or National Book Award—in free public performances. We offer three semesters of fee-based Creative Writing Classes and reading groups, and also many free literary events, all led by professional writers, scholars, and interdisciplinary artists.
Contributions and donations of time and resources are gratefully accepted.
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GEMINI INK 1111 NAVARRO ST SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS 78205 210.734.9673 GEMINIINK.ORG
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