Dusk Literary Arts Magazine 2023-24

The Dusk Literary Arts Magazine Blake Middle School Hopkins, MN Published April 26, 2024 2nd Edition Front cover art by Natalie P. Back cover art by Josie H. Art from Canva unless otherwise noted

Senior Editors Junior Editors Special Thanks Madelyn F. Ada F.

Audrey C.

Sophia W. Lilly T. Olly B. Teaghan S. Sam C.

Lena V. Lily G.

Special thanks to Ms. Derricott for guiding us through the process of creating this magazine

The theme for the 2023-2024 edition of Dusk is...

Under the Sea

Zones and Descriptions

SUNLIGHT ZONE The Sunlight Zone is the warmest zone and receives the most sunlight, Many fish can be seen frolicking in the zone’s comfortable embrace. The works in this chapter exhibit the warmth and comfort of the most friendly zone in the sea.

TWILIGHT ZONE The Twilight Zone is the middle child of the sea, It’s not as warm as the Sunlight Zone but not as eerie as the Midnight Zone. Feel free to explore but don’t get lost, Strange things lurk in unexpected places. The works in this chapter explore how thoughtful the middle of the sea can be.

MIDNIGHT ZONE The Midnight Zone is at the bottom of the sea, This mysterious zone is home to many strange fish and has barely been explored. Beware of what curiosities lurk below. The works in this chapter display the sea’s capacity for scares and thrills.

Be warned.

Table of Contents

SUNLIGHT ZONE

Mr. Krabs - Al S. (7) Sand Dollar - Anonymous Goldfish in the Waves - Ada S. (6) Riddle - Anonymous Untitled - Vivienne S. (6) Sands of Serenity - Theo G. (8) Turned to Mist - Aurelius B. (7) Seashell - Ben P. (8) Southern California - Mr. Somerville Dear Global Warming - Anonymous Sea Somersault - Lilly T. (7) Watching - Leon T. (7) Longing - Madelyn F. (7) Riddle - Madelyn F. (7) Perler Bead Wave - Ellie S. (6) Mimi B. (6) & Hali L. (6) Under the Sea - Gabriel S. (6) Pirates - Anonymous The Show - Emma B. (6) Where You’re From - Sabiha K. (7)

Table of Contents TWILIGHT ZONE Community Art Turtle - Blake Students Alone With The Waves - Anonymous Twilight Zone - Anonymous Sunken City - Finn P. (8) Contemplative Koi - Jules S. (6) Reflective Kelp - Caroline W. (7) MIDNIGHT ZONE Welcome to the Sea - Anonymous The Unknown - Teaghan S. (7) Angler Fish - Olly B. (7) Diver - Ro AF. (6) A Nice Juicy Bite - Rowan L. (6) Deforestation Ascends - Naitik A. (7) Falling - Aanika G. (8)

Sunlight zone THE 1ST ZONE

Mr. Krabs

By Al S. (7)

Sand Dollar

By Anonymous I am from ocean floors, from washing up on shores.

I am from salt and sea, from stars reflecting at night.

I am from being picked up, from being in collections in rooms.

I am from being counted, as if I were a real dollar.

I am from the sea.

I am from the sand.

Goldfish in the Waves Ada S. (6)

Riddle

By Anonymous Fast as a hummingbird Fin on back Nickname Spindlebeak Fastest fish in the sea My favorite food is Tuna What am I? Answer: Sailfish

By Vivienne S. (6)

Sands of Serenity

By Theo G. (8) Lapping ocean waves crash against the boat. Salty ocean water on my lips. The breeze running through my damp hair. A mural of fluffy white clouds painted onto the sky. Beachgoers become tiny colorful dots planted on the sand. And the blue of the sky melts into the blue of the ocean.

Turned to Mist

By Aurelius B. (7) Where did all the water go, where are all the seas

Where did all of the Mer-people go

Where did all of the H20 go

With tails that glimmer

I think it is hiding from me

Under the moon, light shines down

Where has it gone

On a glimmering sea

It has been missing for so long

A sea of blue

Oh water where are you..

Oh water where are you

Where did all of the fish disappear to

Where did all of the monsters go

Turtle swimming by

Lurking in the reservoir

Swimming through coral

Man-made … poisoned Reused … recycled

Living their life searching for the moral Murky, from sewage Of the No longer blue Deep blue sea

Seashell

By Ben P. (8)

Southern California

By Mr. Somerville

Dear Global Warming

By Anonymous Dear Global warming You are the reason it’s hot And the reason it’s cold We wanna lock you in a pot I hope you’ll simmer down We will figure it out We will figure out the lock and we will find the key To seal you shut To stitch up our cut

We can put together Together

Sea Somersault

By Lilly T. (7)

Watching

By Leon T. (7) Watching the clock Watching one hand slowly pass the other Watching it feels like an eternity Watching the birds jump from branch to branch Watching as the leaves fall from the tree Watching the snowfall Watching flowers bloom Watching them die Watching the time fly by Watching kids play at the playground Watching them get older Watching them get jobs Watching the minute hand pass the hour hand Watching new children play on the playground Watching the people who were playing on this playground years ago Watching

Riddle

By Madelyn F. (7)

Longing

I reflect like a mirror I’m contained but free

By Madelyn F. (7)

And always ready

I feel the sand beneath my feet

To transform

The trail ends so I look east

But I’ve had

This leads to a sea

The same amount

And to some degree

Of me forever

What am I? Answer: Water

This place feels incomplete

Perler Bead Wave Ellie S. (6) Mimi B (6) & Hali L. (6)

Under the Sea

By Gabriel S. (6) There lies…

Fields of sand, the remnants of once powerful structures, guiding the world as we know it Beneath the sand, there lies…

Dirt, rock, fossils, powerful with the force of nature, with the force of aged stone Beneath the rock there lies…

Clay, full of possibilities and strength, waiting to be unleashed, Beneath the clay, there lies…

More rock, burning with the intention, striving to come up, to show its true self, Beneath the rock there lies…

A creator, hot with power, the creator of the most precious things on earth, Beneath the creator, there lies…

A destroyer, a destructor, an uncontrollable beast, hotter than anything above it, Beneath the destroyer, there lies…

A beast, calm, but more powerful than the destroyer above it, brighter than anything in existence, Beneath the beast, there lies…

The key to the world, to beings, the start of everything that exists, more intention than the rock, more powerful than the creator, hotter than the destroyer, and calmer than the beast.

It remains untouched, too special for human eyes.

This is what really is under the sea.

Pirates

By Anonymous

The Show

by Emma B. (6) My mom and I arrive at the theater mid morning, and it’s exactly how I remember it like the night before, except now it’s the show, my first, happening very soon. We walk up the stairs to the building that looks like it was a giant's house for performing arts. My little feet go up them one by one. When we get to the front desk I see my friends and their parents waiting for me.

The brick walls surrounding us in the little entry way for performers. Maybe it’s not a giant house after all. “¿Hola, cómo están?” I greet.

“Good,” Maren respondes.

“Bien,” Camila says.

As we check in, the lady with long, blonde hair, asks, “Is this your first performance?”

“Yes it is,” I say happily, with a big grin on my face.

“Wow, first performance at the Ordway! Break a leg,” she says in amazement, smiling back.

We all walk up the stairs to the dressing room, the moms trying to figure out where it is on their phones, until we finally end up at a door in the middle of the brick walls. As we open it I see other friends, bustling around getting ready for the show.

We go in and start bustling around too, trying to wet my hair, get it tied back in a bun, getting my skirt and blouse on, chatting with friends as we go and eating lunch. Marta, my dance teacher, is telling the chaperones and everyone else when to go on stage for most of the morning.

Then it’s time, and I’m ready.

As we walk down stairs, I feel so happy, proud, and excited, for what’s happening here today during the shows. You've come so far, from practicing at home, to classes, and dress rehearsals. And now I’m here, I am going to share what I’ve learned, and all my friends are here to do it too. We walk into a room painted mostly black with some lights backstage.

“Break a leg,” Mom says beaming. “You’ll do great, I can’t wait to see you onstage.”

I say excitedly, “See you soon Mom, you can watch me from this side.” I wave goodbye, and head in a single file line at the back of the curtain, to the other side. I feel a small smile on my face like I won something, and I did, just not something, not something I won way more than that, and I can’t wait. Monica, the chaperone, lines us up across from our partners, though we know what to do.

“Aren’t you supposed to be back there?” Sarita asks someone else in our line.

I’m feeling some nerves, not too many but some. Don't worry, I’ve been practicing, I know the steps, and I got this. It’s going to be great, and I’m showing them what I learned and sharing part of my culture. I take some deep breaths quietly. It's going to be okay…not okay, but…great! Yes, I’m ready, bring the show on.

I watch Marta, the dance teacher, go onstage in her yellow and black skirt, blouse and hat, giving a speech about the group and telling a kind of a joke. “It’s Colombia not Columbia!”

I ask Monica, “Are we ready to go onstage?”

She replies, “Not quite, just a bit longer” So, I wait, I can’t wait, this is so exciting! I’m so ready, bring it on! and watch Marta, speaking out into the huge audience. So much anticipation and excitement run through me. I want to ask Monica again if it’s time to go on, but I decided not to. Just a bit longer, I tell myself. But at that moment she says it’s time to go on. I go onstage confidently, with a smile on my face in my blouse and long skirt.

As we enter I feel the warm lights on me, like a glowing sun. The audience listens in closely, watching all of us, about to see what we are going to share with them. Their eyes gaze up at us, in our red and white blouses, skirts, bags, and hats, ready to be taken to our lands of dance, to be transported by our magic.

This stage is big, gigantic, it feels so much bigger than before. I feel my heart fluttering, filling up with pride, happiness and joy. We wait a couple seconds longer, and I feel better, the magic on stage just makes me excited.

Then I hear the music, and we’re off to the races dancing. I feel myself up there smiling, my eyes are looking to see my family all the while. I do all the dancing without thinking, because I just know it by heart. The music leads me to the dancing like the instructions. I want it to last a while, it’s so fun, divertido! I do la mariposa, opening my arms with my red and white skirt wide while taking baby steps turning in my sandalias, uno, dos, tres, cuatro, cinco, sies, siete, ocho. This stage is like everything I’ve been through with this group, this stage connects us all. All of us our representing the same country and a part of our culture.

“Colombia tierra querida,” the singer in the yellow dress sings.

I sweep my skirt up into the air. I spin around, my long, flowy, skirt up in my arms while the band plays and the singer sings, “Su suelo es una oración y es un canto de la vida,” with enthusiasm and rhythm to the music. When she sings, “ Cantando, cantando yo ré Colombia tierra querida” all of us go into a circle moving our skirts and hats to the rhythm of the drums, piano, and all the music. This is amazing, I can’t believe this is really happening!

When the ending comes and washes over us, I dance up to the point where I’m supposed to pose, and when the music ends I spread my skirt wide, like my smile, and enjoy this moment of accomplishment and happiness. And I remember how far I’ve come in this dance group, from lots of practices, to this big show, in this theater, the Ordway, to this moment. Another big smile and wash of happiness goes over me. This is what Colombia Live MN is all about. I feel community here, friends, that I haven't had before, I haven’t had this type of community, and now I do.

Now, as I depart from the stage, I still feel the same way I did up onstage in my blossoming heart.

Later, that day once the whole performance was done, including other performers outside the group, I found my mom.

She says, “Great job, I saw you smiling and dancing up onstage with lots of enthusiasm the whole time!”

“Thanks, Mom. It was an amazing experience,” I reply.

“I’m so glad, and you have another performance this afternoon to look forward to.”

“Yay! I can’t wait for another performance, this one was so fun. Being up onstage is… it’s magical!”

I say delightedly.

Mom smiles, and I smile back, this is just the start of my journey in dancing, in this group, of this day, in this moment, and the moments onstage. Hard work really pays off, even if it means long hours of hard work.This is what dancing is all about.

Glossary Hola- Hi ¿Cómo están?- How are you? (plural) Uno- one Dos-two Tres-three Cuatro-four Cinco-five Seis-six Siete-seven Ocho-eight Cantando, cantando yo viviré Colombia tierra querida-Singing, singing I will live Colombia dear land Su suelo es una oración y es un canto de la vida- Its soil is a prayer and it is a song of life

Where You’re From

by Sabiha K. (7) Where you’re from The sea is restless The water always lapping upon your back Where you’re from The sand is constantly rustling And the sounds of seagulls make brief cameos between the waves Where you’re from The sun starts to set and the hustle and bustle dies down Where you’re from The moon comes out and the stars will make appearances Water as sharp as icicles sparkle over you and the night Where you’re from The sun grabs at the waves And the seagulls come out Rocks and sand shift beneath you Where you’re from Curious open eyes surround you Delicate fingers reach down to grab you into a bright orange bucket I’m from Reaching into that bright orange bucket and holding you to my ear I’m from Listening to the sounds of ocean waves and hearing what story you tell

Twilight zone THE 2ND ZONE

Community Art Turtle

By Blake Students

Alone with the Waves

By Anonymous People say,

Is me

“You will go places”

Alone

But the only place

And the crashing waves

My legs will take me

Against the shore

Is back to the

Me

Salty ocean

The only person

Water on my lips

In this tiny perfect

Breeze through my hair Sand on my skin And the only person

Little world

Twilight Zone

By Anonymous Twilight Zone Somewhere between 660 and 3,300 feet below sea level Is the Twilight Zone It is not thought of often Sandwiched between the daylight zone And the midnight zone Is a world of freezing-cold temperatures And pounds of water pressure There are Confetti Squid Angel Sharks Jellyfish Oysters Sperm whales Lobsters And krill Who call the Twilight Zone home Its neighbors are more well-known The daylight zone is filled with colorful wonders With dolphins and coral reefs And the midnight zone is like that of a fantasy world With animals that appear to be unreal And then there is the Twilight Zone It is fascinating to think A zone so ignored Yet so lively Slips from our minds

Sunken City

By Finn P. (8) Under the cerulean drink lies wonder Not seen from the surface, only found in the depths of the reef The place where the jellies dance And the fish stream, in rainbow lines, husting from one place to the next It’s a capital, yet a hidden one.

It’s hard to find among the reef Which is bursting colors on its own Funny how it stays hidden But you can thank the depths for that Yet the warm sun still reaches the sea By day, a bustling city By night, a collection of dark, mysterious stones.

Perhaps it’s something left behind Could be that of what tried to find this hidden place Maybe it’s the gem, glimmering purple, yet just another beauty Or it’s the place itself Forests of kelp stretching across one part of the sea Reef and stones across another A deep trench across a third part All underwater glory Just waiting to be found.

So, where is it?

Who knows Seems like a forgotten place We don’t know how we know of it We just do Just goes to show how you can always dive a little deeper You never know what you may find.

Contemplative Koi Jules S. (6)

Reflective Kelp

By Caroline W. (7)

(Continued on next page)

Midnight zone THE 3RD ZONE

Welcome to the Sea

By Anonymous We watch the big metal thing as it sinks, down, down, down.

Then it’s gone, but we still feel it.

Its sound, Slicing through the water.

Deeper and deeper, it crawls along the ocean floor.

Sending a beam of light, into the pitch, black.

The Unknown The lifeless grasp

By Teaghan S. (7)

Of the murk below Never felt so…

Warm And I fear without the gaping jaws Of the endless depths, My tightly wound yarn ball of Anxiety and nerves would unfurl.

Then I would have to start all over.

She said we had come So far.

Not far enough I take it.

Never far enough I make it.

Because all of these Unmanageable emotions are to blame for my current Unmanageable predicament.

Oh! how I long for the days when I could float in the deep blue sea and not feel so Scared.

What lurked below never scared me.

I quite honestly believed that what was below Feared me more than I did it.

Why should I fear something that fears me just as intensely as I once did it? the truth is,

I fear The Unknown For I am what I have always feared.

I no longer know myself.

I am scared of what horrors I hold inside.

Never letting go.

Hidden within me.

They make me who I am, But they are still So So So Unknown to me.

But not forever.

One day, when the placid waters can No longer Calm my restless mind, I fear I will finally plunge below the surface.

Maybe then I will feel truly at peace.

And maybe then, I will fear nothing.

Not even The Unknown

Luring Anglerfish

By Olly B. (7)

By: Ro A.F. (6)

A Nice Juicy Bite By: Rowan L. (6) I was swimming in the ocean, as happy as can be.

When a person came up, and bit me.

I was in pain from an urchin.

When I got bit by a person.

My life flashed before my eyes.

When he told me:“You is going to dies,” Lily said, “That's great Rowan…”

And I said, “k.”

Deforestation Ascends

by Naitik A. (7) So fast, so low, the trees go, We don't even see where they go.

They come out of meadows, They go to land, They are made in an enclosed box, Which we live in, and, Is it necessary to cut so fast, We don’t even think before we react.

Try to stop or else the forest will vanish, It is important to know what will happen, Our lungs won’t be able to take in air, All of the air will be gone, so much despair We won’t have shade when an electrical storm strikes, We’ll just get soaked in the rain, living our peasant lives, So try to stop, before it is too late, We still hear Mother Earth faintly You got to try, don’t quit so early, You have to act before you react!

Falling

By Aanika G. (8) I fall into you, as deep as the ocean and as shallow as the sky The sea creatures looking at me with wide and innocent eyes

As I sink, I watch the light trickle away like my memories I reach for the surface because I don't want to lose myself in this but maybe I already have The soothing silence as deafening as white noise I think I could rest here

Ghosts of those taken from those dear to them and by forces greater than them Coming to say a friendly “hello!” because no one ever leaves this place of nothing and yet everything

This place some sort of purgatory from the horrors of the world above that I used to be a part of This place so dark and unexplored Not unlike the human brain

I know I'll be the one to orchestrate my downfall into the deep blue that never ends After all, I am the one that jumped

It gets darker and darker in this abyss this creature devoid of any emotion that is so desperately hungry for something new after laying here for eons at a time I guess I’m its sustenance for the next few The sea creature blinks open its eyes and opens its gaping maw that seems to hold the entire universe in it I take what I know is my last breath