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THE DEEP END 2026

The Woodstock Academy’s Literary & Arts Magazine

“October Northern Dawn” by Adian Newall-Vuillemot ‘28

The Deep End Staff

Avery Nielsen ‘26

Chris Bourdeau ‘26

Kyrialis Rivera ‘26

Dakota Joseph ‘26

Kaylyn Hall ‘26

Ryan Yang ‘26

Zeo Fish ‘27

Kealyn Lamarche ‘27

Adian Newall-Vuillemot ‘28

Autumn Hill ‘29

Lilliana McCormick ‘29

Advisors

Madison Millar

Samantha Romero

“Where The Sky Opens Up” by Erika Yeliguo ‘27

Dear Readers,

It is my pleasure to introduce to you this year ’ s issue of The Woodstock Academy’s Literary & Art’s Magazine: The Deep End! We are so excited to share the hard work of students at The Academy. Our club has worked super hard and poured all of our energy into this edition,

All of the submissions were beyond amazing, and we struggled deciding what to put in the magazine. The talent and effort of the students at The Academy is clear in the amount of submissions alone! We would like to thank everyone for submitting, and congratulations to all the students who made it into the magazine.

We encourage you to submit next year so we can keep making this awesome magazine.

We hope you enjoy!

Zeo Fish Senior Editor

Dear WA-

The reason I write to you today Is to share things

I’ve learned from all of you

And to give you some reminders

We all need to keep in mind:

If someone wants to sit with you on the shuttle

Consider it a honor, not a trouble

That someone trust you enough

To sit with you on the chaotic bus

A grade is a letter, not your worth

So if you get a B, don’t let it hurt

Hold the door, don’t slam it in someone’s face

They will appreciate that you wait

If you mess up presenting just laugh it off

They all know you try to apply what you are taught

Everyone you meet is dealing with a conflict

So give them and yourself a break

You can say no, it’s not against the law

But please don’t let your yes totally stop

Know hard things happen

But things get better

A teacher is a person not a servant

So be nice, they deserve it

Beauty isn’t a trip to Ulta

It’s a mix of Jesus, love and good character

Words don’t always make sense

But actions show what was meant

There’s a reason for everything

Don’t jump to conclusions please

If you can, say “thanks” to a custodian

They do a beautiful job cleaning what we can’t

Be careful when you are using your phone It’s honestly impossible not to doom scroll

Strange is typical and typical is strange

If they are a human being, love them well

Don’t change yourself for anyone

You’re enough the way you are

I tried being a different someone

And I didn’t get very far

Asking for help doesn’t make you weak

If anything, it makes you wise

Never be afraid to speak

If it fails, at least you tried

Always be kind even when it’s hard

Love other people with all your heart

Finally always remember You are incredible, beautiful and loved beyond measure

Betrayal of the Masked Youth

Excerpt from Autumn Hill ‘29

Although to my surprise, the outside world was different. Instead of an abandoned and overgrown cityscape in the distance, left to rot into nothing, I was met with color. Buildings of every material rose proudly in the distance. Skyscrapers disappeared into the transparent clouds above, their jagged silhouettes mirrored across the river. My boots were misted from a collection of nighttime dew on long blades of meadow grass. Every step I took fireflies spun around me, their blinking lights giggling at me from their abdomens. The once bland and black nighttime sky was now painted with Vincent van Gogh’s brightest colour palette. Sapphire blues, golden yellows, and emerald greens gracefully danced and twirled around as if welcoming me back into the beautiful past of six heroes, powerful deities remembered for giving our ancestors th i With t th it would have been wiped away

“NewYork City” by Elina Makarenko ‘27 “Ring of Fire in the Ring of Fire” byAdian Newall-Vuillemot ‘28

Guarded FlowerGuarded ﬂower, Covered in thorns

What are you Hiding for?

You blend in pretty well

With other ﬂowers around you

Concealed with leaves

That all surround you

At ﬁrst glance

You can’t tell the diﬀerence

From you and the other plants

a clue

But I do know, it draws me in too

Guarded flower, Covered in thorns

The one everyone adores

Do you ever get tired in there?

Practically impossible to get a breath of air

But you still grow in your place

All your colors taking shape

Everyone comes to see you

But no one can seem to get through

The briars that protect your petals

The defense that’s supposed to help

Guarded flower

Covered in thorns,

You deserve far more

Than what your boundaries have to offer

“Mother Nature” by Juliette Bernier ‘28

Connecticut ByZeoFish‘27

Theweatheriscoldhere,butithelps

Ihaveneverwonderedwhythough

Maybeittakesawayallthestress

Oreventhepressuretobethebest

Whateveritmaybe,therural,coldstatebringsme comfort

Thekindofcomfortyoucanonlyexperienceby beingthere

Likethehugfromarelativeorthewarmthofafire

Iwouldn’ttradethisforanything

Thiscomfortismyhome

Connecticutismyhome

“By A River” by Ryan Yang ‘26

“Sky’s Tint” by Ryan Yang ‘26

Comparing Woodstock To Alaska

(An

Essay Excerpt) by Anonymous

I had moved schools once before. I still remember the aching loneliness that clung to me like glitter on my skin I remember the desperation I felt, watching friends talk loudly at lunch while I sat by my lonesome I remember begging with my eyes for just a scrap of attention from someone my age I remember fantasizing about my old friends bursting through the door and announcing they are a new student at the school. Nevertheless, I wanted to do it again. I wanted to feel alone in the world. I wanted to rebuild my reputation starting from the bottom. I wanted to walk the halls, knowing no one could judge me because no one knew anything about me worth judging I guess, in a way, I was like Chris McCandless, a man who went to Alaska to tear apart the strings tying him to society and reattach them to the mountains Like McCandless, I thought the change would heal me And like McCandless, it really did

Fossils to be Foretold

By Piper Moore ‘29

Hiding away all this time

Most by now covered in grime

Forgotten yet larger than life

Holding secrets of there life

I often wonder why

How many never got to say good bye

The cry ’ s, whines, and screams

All silenced by one scene

It wasn’t fair

The living nightmare

The blood, the loss of breath

The impact and regret

Searching high and low

Looking for the truth, still untold

Determined death

Never left to rest

Archeology, paleontology

All things I dream to be

Searching to uncover you

Wanting to show everyone the proof.

“Lonely Little Birds” by Juliette Bernier ‘28

“Mountains of New Hampshire” by Zackary Tegtmeier ‘29

Juliette Bernier ‘28

Humanity -A.N.

It’s strange, isn’t it?

Things are changing all around us

Some good, some bad

But the weird part is, In the middle of the chaos,

People are celebrating the misfortunes of others

It seems the only times we can agree Are when the nation as a whole is placed under jeopardy.

How are we meant to be strong collectively

When we smile as someone dies?

When one of us has fallen?

I’d say that’s inhumanity. No matter who the person is,

They’re a person, just like me and you And whether you agree or not Is entirely up to you

I just ask for you to have some sympathy -

One human to another -

For at least everyone directly affected Who suffered at the terrors.

“Calming Beach” by Juliette Bernier ‘28

“Spectre Seconds” by Ryan Yang ‘26

Here I am again

And frankly I’m embarrassed I come here in the evening

With barely any exceptions I come here pretty often

But I’m not too sure why

When I come here

I don’t expect anyone to walk by It doesn’t make sense, yet here I am I wonder if this is apart of God’s plan

Everyone comes here for a reason

Making decisions, lamenting seasons

The list could go on

And likely beyond

As I sit in my chair I notice the people

Comparing their image to mine

I just come off as feeble

My eyes trail to a guy across the room

Hair cut, cologne, all with a suit

He has his hand locked with a girls

As they move through every compact hurdle

They arrive at a table

My heart starts to tear

As I watch him pause And pull out a chair

She turns and says “thank you”

Like she was planned to

They talk for hours

Their voices getting louder and louder

I am happy for them

Really I am

But I’m trying as hard as I possibly can

Not to lose faith

Not to leave this place

And it’s not hard to tell I care

When I can’t find my person anywhere

Is he out there?

do I know him, Is he alright?

Why do I always hold on so tight?

You say to hold on

But it has been so long

And if he’s here I can’t say anything

So what’s the point?

No! No! This is not how this ends

Not torn or on the fence, truly I’m all in

So I will decide to sit and watch the pictures lay out on the ceiling

While I wait for God to restore back my feelings

In the meantime, I;ll wait and this joy I will keep

And I will save him an extra seat

“Good Morning Sunshine”” by Juliette Bernier ‘28

“A

God's Goodbye” by K. Rivera (Pt 1)

To love is to be mortal

Love as a concept is fluid It ebbs and flows, moving with the passage of time, shifting and swirling through the sky and stars

To be loved by a mortal is to be loved like a mortal

Mortals love like time is short, showering their lovers with everything that they have during the time they are together.

They shower you with gifts of any kind, extravagant bouquets filled with flowers from across the world, or small trinkets that remind them of you. They shower you with time, spending every waking moment by your side, creating memories that will last for aeons beyond their time. They shower you with words, their compliments dripping a saccharine sweetness when they grace you with their kindness and compassion. They shower you with their touch, holding you close, covering every piece of skin with a kiss or a touch of nothing but adoration They shower you with service, making you food that you ’ re not quite sure you need, cleaning the space they grace you to share

A god’s love is nothing close to what it is like to be loved by a mortal

To be loved by a god is to be risen, treated as a prize or a trophy that is won A god’s love is tainted by immortality, as they feel they have until the end of time to prove themselves worthy To be loved by a god is to be loved by a being above time, one that feels decades pass on like seconds, blurring the seasons together into moments that are blown away by the wind.

A god’s love is temporary. A mortal’s love is forever.

To be loved by a mortal is to be loved by a poet, as their words are told with the same grace as a poet writes about the stars.

To be loved by a mortal is to be loved by an artist, as to them, your image is of one painted in the ancient murals of the cities, a statue carved by the hands of Earth herself to create the perfect being

By Autumn Hil

A God's Goodbye by K. Rivera (Pt 2)

To be loved by a mortal is to be loved by a chef, as the meals they create are made with more care than talent, but taste better than any food received elsewhere

To be loved by a mortal is to be loved by a being so pure in intention that it tastes sweeter than a nectar from the divine

The love given by a mortal is more powerful than any gift that could come from the divine.

And to you, it is everything that I cannot give.

To you, my light, I cannot love you as you love me

The divine power I hold pales in comparison to your sheer will

You are the reason I have not fallen from grace, and to bring you into this world with me would be a fate worse than death.

In death, you will live on in the memories of thousands.

In life, you would fade to time.

I cannot love you as you love me, and for that, I can only apologize

The distance I keep from you hurts more than you can imagine, but if I reach any closer, I won’t be able to leave

I love you like a god, and you love me like a mortal.

And a god cannot love a mortal. Not in the way you dream.

So I must say goodbye, no matter how much this pains us both.

I love you, my light

But the sun must fade eventually

By Autumn Hill 29’

“Small Kindness” by Alana Maiullo ‘28

“Wavy Shores” by Zeo

“Dragons

in the Mountains” by Dakota Joseph ‘26 “Hummingbirds in Bloom” by Avery Schaefer ‘27

Fish ‘27

by Juliette Bernier

“Trust” by Anonymous

Trust the process. It is not easy, nor is it hard. Everything is meant to be the way it is. Though it may not seem that way. You fall down to learn. You make mistakes to grow. Take the hard route, Even though you may not see the path. Follow your heart and soul. You deserve the challenge The most important person to trust, Is the one staring you back in the mirror. Trust the process.

‘28

“First View” by Adian NewallVuillemot ‘28

by Adian Newall-Vuillemot ‘28

“Cacti Sunset 2" by Lupulella

“Rule the World”

If the Ocean is our friend, Then why are we betraying it?

If the Sky is our protector, Then why are we destroying it? If the Earth is our sanctuary, Then why are we fighting in it?

If the Fire is a threat, Then why are we fueling it?

If the Animals were here first, Then why do we keep killing them?

If the Inventions are harmful, Then why do we keep using them?

If the Trees are keeping us alive, Then why do we keep cutting them?

If the Structures are overpowering, Then why do we keep building them?

If the world was made long before we existed, Then why do we think we rule the world?

by Juliette Bernier

“Voyage

‘28

to the American Dream” by Ryan Yang ‘26

“Lanterns Over Downtown”

by Erika Yeliguo

‘27

By Elina Makarenko ‘27

“Ocean View”

by Juliette Bernier ‘28

By Elina Makarenko ‘27

“Mathematics” by Heath White ‘27

From integrals to derivatives Whom create infinite initiatives Tackling problems none thought possible And solving for the optimal Mathematics, invented before time Mathematics, the count that makes thi rhyme Mathematics, the science and a Mathematics, what makes ones ’ heart

But truly, the Beauty the Elegance

Stems from its innate relevance So nebulous, encompassing endlessness As inventors like Daedalus Bring us that much closer to the Sun

Math is the future and the past Like Ebenezer Scrooge it should be broadcast As it stands unsurpassed In its use, philosophy, and perspective And it IS for everyone