swinging on a branch

the energy of a child

fills my veins

a great time to be a leaf.

up and down

fluttering in the breeze

admiring my shape, my brownness

in the mirror of a sky,

proud to be free

and proud to be brown.

lying on the ground,

one of many just like me

as children giggle,

jumping into the pile one by one,

crumbs, red dust

mingling with the soil,

no longer a leaf

just a memory.

I'm waiting for inspiration for a poem. I guess I could post one of my old ones, but it's hard to be confident about my old work. Oh, well, I'll find one to put  up.

i'll always remember our walks in the field

we'd spill our hearts to each other.

your shoulder would be wet with my tears,

you'd hold me for eternity, it seemed,

you'd smile all the while,

glad to be of help.

i'd call you,

“i'm scared, there's someone outside.”

five minutes later, a red F-150 would

speed into the driveway.

those crazy rides,

laughing, speeding down 41.

you're a legend in my book.

you ask us what we think,

we think it's a pain

you ask us why we go,

we go because it's mandatory

what do we think of the teachers?

the teachers are ridiculous

why do we listen?

mostly we don't.

sometimes we do to pass,

only to pass.

if that's what we're here to do,

to pass,

only to pass,

what's the point?

are we not here to learn?
to make the best of it?

maybe we should skip math today,

skip the language arts,

skip science,

skip everything.

maybe we should take the day off.

better yet, take the year off.

why not?

we're only here to pass,

passing gets you nowhere if that's all you're here to do.

teachers have given up hours to help us

all we want to do is pass.

maybe they should skip math today,

skip the language arts,

skip science,

skip everything

because they care

and all we want to do is pass.

sitting on the lake's shore

fish eggs between my toes

in my hair, too

too dirty to sit around

too peaceful to do anything

other than sit on the lake's shore

digging my toes into the wet sand

moonlight beaming across the water

family

telling embarrassing stories and jokes

laughing till tears stream

they have to brace themselves

to stay out of the fire

sitting on the lake's shore

no happier feeling

I was assigned a book to read over the summer and nineteen questions to answer. I have to say the book wasn't bad, but it was a bit like a history book. It was interesting, but it wasn't what I'd call crazy good entertainment. It's called The Road from Coorain by Jill Ker Conway. Read it if you are a feminist or interested in Australian history.

I waited this long to do it, but it was better than doing it right at the beginning of summer. If you think about it, you're all pumped up to get out of school for three months or so, but then a couple of weeks before you go back it's all you think about. Might as well do the work when you're about ready to go back anyway.

Of course, it isn't my place to complain. I signed up for the class, an AP class, mind you, so I shouldn't have the slightest problem with it. I don't anymore, now that it's overwith. It probably took me about thirty or so hours to do, though.

Have a great rest of the summer if you aren't back in school yet!

Summer goes by so fast, I hate to think about going back to school in about ten days. Summer was definitely worth it, though... I didn't waste away my summer holidays even though I did sleep in the majority of the time. I live in an area where you can go swimming in Lake Superior, so it was great fun this summer. Saunas are a part of my heritage in the Copper Country, so I did sauna and swim a lot.

Speaking of saunas, I have a funny story. A boy in one of my drafting classes last year experienced this. He was on a trip somewhere down south, and was at a hotel. They had a sauna by where the pool was, so he naturally went sauna-swim. He was in the sauna, and put water on the rocks of the electric stove. The people in the sauna were all scared-saying things like, "What? Are you nuts putting water on an electric stove?" Of course, he busted a gut laughing at this. For anyone who doesn't know-water on the rocks of an electric sauna stove does not harm it or start a fire.

Have a great time back at school, everyone who has to go like me.