The Cottager

The Cottager Pitman High School Literary Magazine Volume V, 2024 1

Pitman, NJ 08071

Editorial Board

Staff

Ella Everwine

Aly Geyer

Megan Mazzola

Devin Rovetto

Editor-in-Chief

Rebecca Mazzola

Advisors

Mrs. Collum

A fresh and plump plant

Colored with sunshine on it’s rind

And a taste that stings your cheeks

AlysonGeyer

Grade11

“forgiveness”

I’m trying to forgive my friend

It’s hard sometimes to Leave the past behind And block out their words. I think and I think About the people That seemingly care But I take one more look And see what was never really there.

BeccaMazzola Grade11

When you stop and think, “Wouldn’t it be nice to love and not hate?”

Every action has a consequence Which could affect one’s confidence. Whether good or bad, Happy or sad.

Let us stop the hate, Why don’t we lock it in a crate?

Hide it far far away, Leave it there for another day. When a heart is hard like a stone, I must say I do not condone. Now let us break the silence, Let us stop the violence. For why can’t we all smile, Maybe we would be happy for a while. For love is great, It will overcome the hate.

HudsonRue

Grade11

“flowers”

Cymbidium hybrid and dendrobium hybrid

How your color light up the room

And your petals reach up to the sky at full bloom

Everyone stares at your beauty

And they admire you from afar

Your beauty and body

Has been studied by the greats

And yet, they still don’t know

How one flower

Can be so ethereal

BeccaMazzola

Grade11

Living

I hear a lot more than I speak. It’s not something that upsets me, I prefer it this way. But I only hear more. I don’t listen as much.

Listening is typically a good thing. I listen to passion-filled rants, melodies that range from tapping on the table to overwhelmingly catchy beats, the dramatic rise of background music during a really good part of a show. I listen to the very tippy top of a ferris wheel, to the taste of my favorite food, to how pretty my favorite color is.

There are things I shouldn’t listen to, of course. A lot of them. Most people have learned to not listen, to ignore. But if there’s the good and the bad in listening, there’s a fortunate and unfortunate to people. There will always be, I’ve learned. If there were only two humans on this Earth, there would be a disagreement. If there were one, there would be a disagreement.

People could try to fix it. They can’t succeed. Make it a little more tolerable, sure, but there’s no fixing to this flaw. It’s in our nature. Even if the impossibility of world peace found its way into our world, the thought of its result doesn’t excite me. It just makes me wonder how dangerous it could become. All humans, uniting for one cause… What could that cause be?

I listen a lot more than I speak. I hear a lot more than I listen. Sometimes, I prefer it this way.

VincentMcCrady Grade10

Past love, my love

When he was younger

He would take pictures of her

To kiss when she’s gone.

OliviaWeng

Grade10

OliviaWeng

Grade10

White was currently residing in an apartment, struggling to power the TV on with his ghostly fingers. If only he could get a grip on the remote. “Aren’t I made of electricity or something?” The pale male asked himself, almost looking down at his own hand before startling at a sudden entrance.

Bustling into the room like a tumbleweed was Jay, the bubbly ginger that White—the adult version of a troubled teenager—had known for longer than he often wished. There was nothing wrong with her, but there was nothing wrong with her and White’s favorite pastime is picking out things wrong with people. Mainly because White doesn’t have much else to do, as he is a ghost. A shadow of sorts. Whatever fate has turned him into after “his unfortunance”, which is just what he likes to call his passing, real word or not. Point is, there is nothing FUN to do. Besides observing people, or making fun of them, or disagreeing with them even if he could care less.

Jay, trotting into the living room, gave White a shout, “Hey, Danny—” that is not his name, “I hope you don’t mind my intrusion, I forgot my keys here.”

White considered she meant someone else, but knowing Jay, she was just messing with him.

“Jay, you can’t drive.” He pointed out after processing what the ginger actually said. “They’re still my keys~!” She answered, with more alacrity than ever necessary. At least what White expected. “They are after today, at least!” Jay added.

“Well, counterargument: this isn’t my house.” White also pointed out, ignoring the growing questions he had regarding the entire situation. He held a furtive gaze on Jay, as if he expected her to spontaneously combust, or as if he expected himself to spontaneously combust because of her.

“Oh!—” Jay grinned, her tooth gap practically aiming itself at White as she turned to look at him. She held up the loud pair of keys, which were attached to an Army Rangers keychain that said Pedro. “—Here they are.” She exclaimed, followed by a mumble of “told you they were mine”.

“...Those aren’t your keys.” White said, a realization dawning on him. He wished he didn’t care—he normally didn’t, but something about Jay’s mischievous, almost alarming grin set him off.

“After today, they sure are.” Jay reminded him, with a tone so sinister it could pull someone out of a lull. “Anyway,” The bubbly criminal began for the door, “it was nice seeing you, but you know me. Always busy. So maybe I can explain another time.” With that, Jay was out the door, shouting a “Buh-bye!”, muffled by the walls of the house that White did not own.

White was almost abashed by how confused he was. It’s like someone interrogated him, and he didn’t study for any answers. Maybe he doesn’t want to study. Some things are better left unsaid. For example, literally anything Jay is ever involved in. Unfortunately, for as long as Jay lives, White will have things he needs to avoid. He doesn’t expect Jay to leave, one way or another, anytime soon. White considers the possibility that he may pass before she does.

White is so busy being beside himself—confused—that when the television flashes on, it’s like he’s been flashbanged. With a wince, he raised his hand over his vision. “What is wrong with—” He began to complain, only to stop himself from asking an inanimate object a question. He returned his hand to his lap with a sigh, his breath mixed with exhaustion and relief. Because, he truly will never know what is up with Jay, but at least the television has finally powered on. And he can watch the finale of the Golden Bachelor.

VincentMcCrady Grade10

DevinRovetto Grade10

DjunaJohnson Grade11

Disobedience

In history class, students are taught about troublemakers. They learn the names of all of the people that went against the grain and how that affected the world that one lives in today. Christopher Columbus sailed an unmarked sea in search of land that most people told him was non-existent. Amelia Earhart flew a plane and became a pilot even though it was not a place for women. George Washington created an army of patriots in order to overthrow the British government and kick them out of America. The idea of disobedience is one that has long existed since man’s first breath. Oscar Wilde admitted this fact in his thought about the importance of disobedience to society, progress, and man. Wilde was correct in assuming that disobedience is a valuable human trait that changes the world.

First, examples in history can lead people to the conclusion that disobedience causes change and brings value. For example, the newsboy strike in which children were being abused by newspaper corporations was a rebellion, as they stopped working until children became protected under the law of labor. Because of the newsboy’s volume and outspokenness of their cause, their disobedience forced the government to acknowledge the climate of child labor and address the situation, changing how society and the economy would continue in a positive and dutiful way. Also, it is evident in modern society that disobedience is a valuable way to make change in the world. When Roe v. Wade was overturned, or when George Floyd was murdered, people protested and got loud, promoting disobedience to the current environment of the social and political world. By standing up and speaking out, the atmosphere of these issues changed, moving in a positive and progressive direction.

In addition, disobedience promotes education within members of society. For instance, by a child choosing to stay out past curfew or not turn in an assignment, they are faced with consequences that cause them to progress into more mature and tactful individuals.

Because they learned the lesson first hand, the moral of their disobedience was questioned and the average person would refrain from making that same mistake again, increasing their responsibility as a citizen of America. Secondly, when one person is disobedient and speaks out on any issue that is buried or not talked about, people are enlightened to know what is happening within this issue and how (if they so choose) they can stop it. By humans having a rebellious nature, society is better because they become privy to information that would have never been known had the person conformed and not spoken out, educating a town, city, state, or even nation with information they think is important for the public to know.

On the other hand, some might say that disobedience causes chaos and anarchy wherever it travels. However, the question is now posed: is the second of chaos worth it for the overall betterment of society? For example, The American Revolution was one of the biggest wars in the country. The war, and all of the ideas that followed, were created from people rebelling against what they thought was wrong. Should they have just sat on their hands and allowed Britain to abuse them over and over again because they were worried about a little bit of chaos? Change is not something that is easily obtained or achieved. It takes work, bumpy roads, and a lot of discourse. If one feels truly passionate that they wish to change an aspect of society, should they conform or use their birth-given right of freedom of speech and protest to voice their opinions? No.

In the end, disobedience is woven throughout every aspect of human life, history, and society. Leaving the classroom without permission, reading ahead in a novel you were assigned, running a stop sign, and footing a campaign against a politician are all examples of disobedience that is seen everyday. One can not allow some disobedience without welcoming it all.

Society is supposed to change as the years go on, that’s the basis the entire theory of society was built on. Without disruption and without a little bit of chaos, how are humans to live to the fullest if they fear speaking their mind in a herd that disagrees?

BeccaMazzola Grade11