┍━━━━━━━━━━━━━✁━━━━━━━━━━━━━┑ Praise for Previous Issues “I personally feel like the whole magazine was amazing.” —Shianna Charles “I ju�� wa�� to s�a�t off b� sa���g I re���y lo�� t�i� ma����ne so fa� an� I’ve on�� re�� �w� �e��r��e �t���e�.” —Day� “The visual and written pieces tell a story.” —Jada Taylor “ “ I I “I “ “I “ t t h h th t th t o o ho h ho h u u ou o ou o g g ug u ug u h h gh g gh g ȵ ȵ hȵ h hȵ h y y o o yo y yo y Ⱥ Ⱥ oȺ o oȺ o g g u u gu g gu g ɖ ɖ uɖ u uɖ u Ȯ Ȯ ɖȮ ɖ ɖȮ ɖ ' ' p p i i pi p pi p e e ie i ie i c c ec e ec e e e ce c ce c Ȯ Ȯ eȮ e eȮ e w w e e we w we w r r er e er e e e re r re r v v e e ve v ve v r r er e er e ɖ ɖ rɖ r rɖ r m m e e me m me m a a ea e ea e n n an a an a i i ni n ni n n n in i in i g g ng n ng n f f gf g gf g u u fu f fu f Ƕ Ƕ uǶ u uǶ u ” ” — — J J a a Ja J Ja J n n an a an a i i ni n ni n a a ia i ia i ǝ ǝ aǝ a aǝ a B B “I definitel� pla� o� readin� mor� of B� �� Rainbow i� th� �tur�.” —Ka� “ Everyone's voice was heard and everyone expressed who they are in their writing. It was well explained.” —Shianna C. “I'm �e��l� ��p�e�s�� ��t� �he ��� t�� �ag����e la���� is an� ho� e�c� pa�� ha� it� ow� si���fic��� de���n.” —Ya b��i ��� e�� ┕━━━━━━━━━━━━━✃━━━━━━━━━━━━┙ ┍━━━━━━━━━━━━━✁━━━━━━━━━━━━━┑ Be e Rainbow, Issue 4 2022 Lit Mag Staff Melech Benshimone, Managing Editor Javontae Broomes, Staffer Kashif Bryant, Staffer Dayanara Collado, Event Planner Marcus Cuevas, Chief Morale Officer Kumari Hassell, Webmaster Jada Lloyd, Publicist Isabel Martinez, Layout Designer Sam Quiroz, Fundraising Coordinator Fish Reyes, Branding Designer Aaliyah Valcarcel, Art Editor Freelance Editors Alisha Ayala Limaysha Gonzalez Omshanti Limbu Advisors Molly Cavanaugh Takaya Yamazaki This magazine was produced by students at Bronx Arena High School, Bronx, NY. We thank our school community and our generous GoFundMe donors for their support. ┕━━━━━━━━━━━━━✃━━━━━━━━━━━━┙ Table of Contents Letters from the Editors v Greedy for Love By Omshanti 1 Light VS Dark By Nai 2 The Wild Outback By Shianna Charles 4 Dasia By Daya 8 Powerful By Daya 15 The Eye By Gia 16 Urban Photography By Jason Lipsett 17 My Surrender By Omshanti 19 Our lord of Ash and Bone By FISH 22 The Original Story of Shot Clock By Skippy and Long Legs 23 Black Lives Matter By Isabel Martinez 28 The Power of Growth By D’Asia M 29 Barbie Girl Reinvention By Sam Q 30 Evaluation of Capstone Reinvention By Sam Q 32 BLM Poster By Sam 34 She By Arson 35 Making a Move By Michael Molina 36 THINKING By Ice 38 Black Lives Matter Anthem By LiL JUJU 39 Global Equality By Kay 40 Generational Wealth By Shianna C. 41 Lucy By Arson 42 Untitled By Des 45 Once Upon a Time Stories By Lit Mag Staffers 46 Love is love and love wins. By JAY 49 Earth's light By Arson 50 Word you rather got me like <3 BY LIYAH <3 52 Outworldly War By Gia Reyes 53 Untitled By Jade F 56 BLACK LIVES MATTER POSTER By Shianna C. 57 Computer Art By islam z. 58 Vision of the Nation By Joshuan 59 Of all the days By who knows 65 No Fun By Johnathan Gallo 66 Consequence By Ritesh 69 A Love Not Here Yet By Arson 71 Untitled By D.D. 72 Untitled Drawing By Jason Lipsett 75 Love on the brain By E.N 76 Untitled By Jade F 78 Author & Artist Bios 79 Call for Submissions 82 < < 3 3 3 H H e e y y y , , y, y y, y a a w w aw a aw a e e we w we w s s o o m m e e r r e e a a d d e e r r r. r r. r W W e e We W We W l l c c o o m m e e t t o o m m y y y my m my m L L E E T T T T E E R R H H o o p p e e y y y o o yo y yo y u u e e n n j j j nj n nj n o o y y y oy o oy o i i t t A A h h , , l l i t t m m a a g g W W h h a a t t at a at a c c a a n n I s s a a y y ay a ay a a a b b ou ou t t l l i t t m m a a g g ? ? W W e e l l l l f f or or s s t t a a ta t ta t r r t t e e r r s s l l i t t m m a a g g i s s a a g g r r e e a a t t at a at a c c l l a a s s s s t t o o b b e e i n n i f f y y ou ou ou w w a a n n t t t t o o w w or or k k on on y y ou ou r r s s e e l l f f f. f T T h h i s s c c l l a a s s s s t t e e a a c c h h e e s s y y ou ou t t h h i n n g g s s b b a a s s e e d d on on Y Y OU OU R R p p os os i t t i on on i n n t t h h e e l l i t t m m a a g g Y Y ou ou ou e e n n d d u u p p l l e e a a r r n n i n n g g s s o o m m a a n n y y n n e e w w t t h h i n n g g s s S S e e c c on on d d l l y y ly l ly l , , y, y i f f y y ou ou w w a a n n t t t t o o w w or or k k on on y y ou ou r r p p e e op op l l e e s s k k i l l l l s s a a n n d d d p p r r e e s s e e n n t t a a ta t ta t t t at a at a i on on f f or or t t h h e e r r e e a a l l w w or or l l d d — B B OOM OOM L L I T T M M A A G G ' ' S S G G O O T T Y Y OU OU C C O O V V E E R R E E D D I g g o o t t t t o o l l e e a a r r n n h h ow ow t t o o b b e e e p p r r of of e e s s s s i on on a a l l w w i t t h h b b u u s s i n n e e s s s s p p r r oj oj e e c c t t s s ( ( W W h h a a t t at a at a I m m e e a a n n b b y y t t h h a a t t at a at a i s s : : S S e e r r i ou ou s s w w or or k k ) ) I l l o o v v e e t t h h a a t t at a at a a a b b ou ou t t t t h h e e l l i t t t m m a a g g F F or or m m e e , , a a s s t t h h e e a a r r t t e e d d i t t or or , , I g g o o t t p p e e op op l l e e t t o o s s u u b b m m i t t a a r r t t t t o o ou ou r r l l i t t m m a a g g I E E n n c c ou ou r r a a g g e e d d t t h h e e m m t t o o s s u u b b m m i t t , , t, t b b y y y y y g g i v v i n n g g t t h h e e m m a a l l i t t t t l l e e s s h h o o v v e e ... ... b b u u t t m m a a k k i n n g g s s u u r r e e w w e e d d on on ’ ’ t t p p u u s s h h t t h h e e m m c c om om p p l l e e t t e e l l y y ly l ly l y. y I a a l l s s o o g g o o t t t t o o l l e e a a r r n n n a a b b ou ou t t s s e e n n t t e e n n c c e e f f r r a a g g m m e e n n t t s s , , a a s s w w e e l l l l a a s s h h e e l l p p i n n g g ou ou t t c c l l a a s s s s m m a a t t at a at a e e s s , , s s u u c c h h a a s s M M e e l l e e c c h h I m m a a d d e e s s om om e e e e d d i t t s s t t o o o t t h h e e s s u u b b m m i s s s s i on on s s t t o o m m a a k k e e s s u u r r e e n n o o s s p p e e l l l l i n n g g e e r r r r or or s s oc oc c c u u r r r r e e d d ... ... a a n n d d l l e e t t m m e e s s a a y y ay a ay a A A L L O O T T OF OF T T H H I N N G G S S N N E E E E D D E E D D T T O O O B B E E F F I X X E E D D O O O’ O’ ’ ’ ’ ’ ’ – S S e e t t t t i n n g g a a g g o o a a l l f f or or m m y y s s e e l l f f w w a a s s a a b b i t t h h a a r r d d ; ; I d d i d d n n ’ ’ t t r r e e a a l l l l y y ly l ly l k k n n ow ow w w h h a a t t at a at a I w w a a n n t t e e d d t t o o d d o o B B u u t t t t h h r r ou ou g g h h ou ou t t t t t h h e e p p a a pa p pa p s s s s i n n g g t t i m m e e w w h h i l l e e i n n l l i t t m m a a g g I g g o o t t t t o o s s e e e e s s om om e e t t h h i n n g g s s a a n n d d l l e e a a r r n n t t h h i n n g g s s t t h h a a t t at a at a p p i qu qu e e d d m m y y i n n t t e e r r e e s s t t t. t I s s e e t t s s om om e e g g o o a a l l s s : : I w w a a n n t t t t o o b b e e a a b b l l e e t t o o s s oc oc i a a l l i z z e e w w i t t h h m m or or e e p p e e op op l l e e , , a a n n d d b b r r i n n g g ou ou t t m m y y v v oi oi c c e e t t o o t t h h e e p p u u b b l l i c c I a a l l s s o o w w a a n n t t t t o o p p u u t t m m y y v v oi oi c c e e i n n t t o o m m y y w w r r i t t i n n g g I d d k k ... ... m m a a y y ay a ay a b b e e I s s h h ou ou l l d d b b e e a a n n a a u u t t h h or or I f f e e e e l l l l i k k e e t t h h i s s m m a a g g a a z z i n n e e c c a a n n b b r r i n n g g m m a a n n y y t t h h i n n g g s s t t o o t t h h e e s s c c h h ool ool a a n n d d w w or or l l d d I s s e e e e g g ood ood t t h h i n n g g s s I f f e e e e l l l l i k k e e t t h h i s s M M a a g g a a z z i n n e e c c a a n n h h e e l l p p p p e e op op l l e e i n n m m a a n n y y w w a a y y ay a ay a s s P P e e op op l l e e c c a a n n v v i e e w w t t h h e e w w or or l l d d d d i f f f f e e r r e e n n t t l l y y ly l ly l , , y, y s s o o t t h h e e y y m m a a y y ay a ay a v v i e e w w t t h h i s s m m a a g g a a z z i n n e e d d i f f f f e e r r e e n n t t l l y y ly l ly l t t oo oo P P e e op op l l e e c c a a n n a a g g r r e e e e w w i t t h h w w h h a a t t at a at a t t h h e e a a r r t t i s s t t h h a a s s w w r r i t t t t e e n n , , s s om om e e c c a a n n d d i s s a a g g r r e e e e W W e e c c a a n n ’ ’ t t d d e e c c i d d e e t t h h a a t t at a at a f f or or t t h h e e p p e e op op l l e e , , i t t ' ' s s on on t t h h e e m m t t o o m m a a k k e e t t h h i s s M M a a g g a a z z i n n e e m m or or e e t t h h a a n n w w h h a a t t at a at a i t t i s s T T h h e e i r r i n n p p u u t t m m a a t t at a at a t t e e r r s s I f f n n o o t t t t o o Y Y OU OU , , t t h h e e n n t t o o U U S S A A n n d d i f f n n o o t t t t o o U U S S , , t t o o M M E E I w w ou ou l l d d a a l l s s o o l l i k k e e t t o o t t h h a a n n k k OU OU R R T T E E A A M M ! ! ! ! Y Y ou ou a a l l l l d d i d d s s o o w w e e l l l l I ' ' m m p p r r ou ou d d of of u u s s a a l l l l W W e e a a l l l l c c h h i p p p p e e d d i n n , , i n n m m a a n n y y w w a a y y ay a ay a s s , , a a n n d d w w e e a a l l l l d d i d d g g r r e e a a t t at a at a d d oi oi n n g g i t t t. t T T h h a a n n k k s s M M ol ol l l y y ly l ly l f f or or t t e e a a c c h h i n n g g m m e e n n e e w w t t h h i n n g g s s ! ! M M a a k k i n n g g m m e e s s e e e e t t h h a a t t at a at a I c c a a n n b b e e m m or or e e t t h h a a n n w w h h a a t t at a at a I p p or or t t r r a a y y ay a ay a m m y y s s e e l l f f t t o o b b e e I d d on on ’ ’ t t h h a a v v av a av a e e m m u u c c h h s s u u b b m m i t t t t e e d d i n n t t h h e e L L i t t M M a a g g M M a a g g a a z z i n n e e J J u u s s t t a a p p oe oe m m I w w a a n n t t t t o o g g e e t t f f e e e e d d b b a a c c k k on on m m y y p p oe oe m m , , m m a a i n n l l y y ly l ly l b b e e c c a a u u s s e e I w w a a n n t t t t o o k k n n ow ow i f f I w w ou ou l l d d b b e e a a g g r r e e a a t t at a at a w w r r i t t e e r r , , a a n n d d t t o o s s e e e e i f f I c c a a n n a a l l s s o o m m a a k k e e m m y y o o t t h h e e r r r r r w w r r i t t i n n g g i n n t t o o s s om om e e t t h h i n n g g w w a a y y ay a ay a m m or or e e ... ... l l i k k e e m m a a y y ay a ay a b b e e w w r r i t t e e a a w w h h ol ol e e f f i c c t t i on on a a l l p p oe oe m m ~ v ~ I f f I d d on on ' ' t t p p i c c k k m m i n n e e I w w ou ou l l d d s s u u g g g g e e s s t t “ “ M M y y S S u u r r r r e e n n d d e e r r ” ” b b y y Om Om s s h h a a n n t t i H H e e r r e e i s s A A qu qu o o t t e e f f r r om om t t h h e e a a u u t t h h or or : : : “I got up and grabbed my water bottle and cleaned myself for wudu. I then got down on my knees and prayed to Allah and asked him for forgiveness with tears rolling down my face.” Sounds interesting right? Just wait till you read it. T Th ha at t at a at a ''s s a al ll l I''l ll l s sa ay y y y ay a ay a . y. y T T h h a a n n k k s s f f o o fo f fo f r r c c o o m m i i n n g g g ng n ng n t t o o m m y y y my m my m t t e e d d t t a a l l k k , , T T h h e e o o n n e e a a n n d d o o n n l l y y y y y y ly l ly l ~ ~ L L i i y y y y y y iy i iy i a a ya y ya y h h < < 3 3 l l i i t t m m a a g g g g g g ag a ag a ’ ’ s s ’s ’ p p e e r r s s o o n n a a l l a a r r t t e e d d i i t t o o r r r. r r. r ~ ~~ ~~ ~~ ~~ ~~ ~~ ~~ ~~ ~~ ~~ ~~ ~~ ~~ ~~ ~~ ~~ ~~ ~~ ~~ ~~ ~~ ~~ ~~ ~~ ~~ ~~ ~~ ~~ ~~ ~~ ~~ ~~ ~~ ~~ ~~ ~~ ~~ ~~ ~~ ~~ ~~ ~~ ~~ ~~ ~~ ~~ ~~ ~~ ~~ ~~ ~~ ~~ ~~ ~~ ~~ ~~ ~~ ~ ~ Letter Fro� th� Editor... S� how shoul� I star�? M� nam� i� Day� an� I a� on� of th� Li� Ma� staff. If I a� bein� hones� thi� ha� bee� suc� � differen� ǣperienc� for m�. I learne� � lo� a� � writer an� a� � staff member. I a� ver� prou� of m� wor� i� th� li� ma� becaus� I learne� s� muc� b� workin� wit� differen� writin� strategie� an� learnin� differen� skill�. I fee� lik� th� li� ma� wil� b� abl� t� help s� man� �tur� student� becaus� ther� ar� s� man� differen� storie� i� th� li� ma�. �er� ar� s� man� differen� form� of writin� i� th� li� ma� an� I fee� onc� student� se� tha� w� al� use� man� differen� strategie� the� wil� b� inspire� t� us� thes� sam� one� i� their writin�, or a� leas� se� their option�. Personall�, i� m� writin� piec� I use� � lo� of slan� an� dialogu�. I chǿ� t� us� slan� an� dialogu� becaus� w� do�’� se� muc� of tha� i� our student�' writin�. A� author Co� Boot� actuall� inspire� m� t� us� tha� an� show student� how t� ǣpres� themselve� differentl� i� their writin�. I a� mor� ǣcite� t� se� th� li� ma�’� lates� editio� al� together becaus� I know tha� our other student� go� reall� creativ� wit� th� li� ma�. Plannin� th� bak� sal� wa� �� an� w� raise� awarenes� of th� li� ma� an� wha� w� ar� abou�. I woul� lik� t� than� everyon� els� wh� worke� o� th� li� ma� an� I als� woul� lik� t� acknowledg� everyon� wh� submitte� somethin� t� th� li� ma�. I know i�’� no� eas� t� shar� your wor� wit� everyon� an� I know i� i� no� alway� eas� t� edi� somebod� els�'� wor� s� her� i� � bi� shou� ou� t� th� Li� Ma� tea�!!! Bes� wishe�, Dayanar� Collad�, Even� Planner ~ v ~ Greetings Reader T T h h a a n n k k y y o o u u f f o o fo f fo f r r t t a a k k i i n n g g t t h h e e t t i i m m e e t t o o r r e e a a d d o o u u r r i i l l l l u u s s t t r r i i o o u u s s m m a a g g a a z z i i n n e e ! ! As an artist I know one thing considerably well, art. I know art is subjective and sometimes a bit strange to people. I know artists struggle with things like burnout and artist's block. All of that absolutely sucks. I've been a victim of damn near everything you could think of for an artist. Some of you know me, many don't. Partially because I'm too scared to actually have a proper conversation with half of you. My name is Kylo. I'm very new here. To the school, to New York. I fear some of you may not like me. But that's okay. I can't win 'em all y'know? Anyway, the cover that you opened to read this, that was me. Honestly, I did all of this to really get my art out there. I love what I do. I love what I call a job. Even though I don't get paid for it quite yet. I know someone out there, someone like me, could really use some form of distraction. The idea that I'll be giving that to them is payment enough for now. It would be kinda cool if you'd slide some money towards the green haired nerd roaming the school. It'd be appreciated. Of course I'm kidding. Kinda. Magazines are messy. On every part. So much work went into these pieces and we wanted to take extreme care of their art. Lots of very careful editing, lots of stressing about deadlines. Lots of team collaboration. I tend to avoid things like that. I hate rushing to finish a piece, it's the best way to burn me out in all honesty. This experience was different. Yes there were lows and issues with the production of this. As the branding designer, it was more than just drawing my usual hot guy or whatever. It was doing something everyone would like. Something that encased the pride of all of the wonderful artists inside. So it was rather stressful. Having that self placed pressure on myself to make something you'd all want to pick up. I was terrified of everything not liking it. I wanted it to be perfect. Which it's not, but in the end, here you are. You're reading this. You've seen my cover. You've seen the heart of the team who made this all possible. Not for ourselves. But for you. From the bottom of my heart I thank you all , Fish Dear Future Lit Mag Readers, The process of putting this magazine together was a good experience for me because it was a one time thing for me. The best part about putting this magazine together was when our staff and members got together and went through all the lit mags from every year and described what would be best for this year 2022 lit mag: for example, how we should put the texture of the magazines or how we should change up fonts that would be readable for our readers. I feel like the easiest part about this was explaining my job title to everyone which is Layout Designer; Layout Designer means how words and images are placed on a page, and what order pages are in. Layout is the organization of the magazine and different layout elements. What I was hoping to make people think or feel through the work I did on the magazine was for some people to feel a ~ vii ~ connection towards the stories. My goal for this magazine is to have the readers so into reading our stories that they would want to look us up on social media and would want to meet us and learn some basic steps on what helped us with this challenge. Some themes and big ideas that I’ve noticed in all issues were nature pictures, life stories, and Black Lives Matter posters. I didn’t go through my challenges by myself; I went through it with the teachers and students in Lit Mag as a team. I see the magazine going in future years from now on a website people can visit to read about other people's lives or experience in school, work or home. I feel like what might stay the same is the title of the collection which is “Be the Rainbow.” Sincerely, Isabel Martinez, Layout Designer Well, this is my first and probably my last time being a part of the lit mag staff at this school. It definitely was quite the ride as there were many bad moments and struggles, but there were also more than enough moments that made me smile, laugh, and proud. I personally took up the role of the chief morale officer, and it definitely was an interesting experience taking up a generally newer idea of a role in literary magazines anywhere. There were many moments where I felt the worth and value of my role, and other times I blended into other roles just happy to help in any way I can. Sometimes I did morale raising work such as creating jokes for each day, or running a game day. Other times I helped edit, I even starred in a fundraising video. I definitely have enjoyed being a part of this amazing team though, making people smile, laugh, and just making it an easier working environment. I believe that we definitely have a lot of interesting submissions throughout our magazine this year. I’m glad we have so many talented writers throughout our school. I have a submission in collaboration with another student that I thought was amazing, but it’s nothing compared to some of the other submissions. Also there were a lot of students who really went after that love competition and it was hard picking a winner out of all the talent filled submissions we had. These pieces of literature should evoke many feelings, lots of imagination, and anyone’s inner reading sweet tooth. We definitely have owned the name “Be the Rainbow” this year as we showed all our colors and showed all the different dynamics we have as writers in this school. I’m not gonna lie, when I first joined lit mag I did not understand the name at all. Then I began understanding as the submissions showed how there are many different writing styles that can make a literary magazine beautiful, the same way there are many colors in making a beautiful rainbow. As much as I loved my time here at lit mag it seems it will be coming to an end here at Bronx Arena. I wish further lit mag staff good ~ viii ~ luck as well as the future submissions. I would like to give special thanks to all the people who submitted pieces, my best friends LBC, Bandit, and Long Legs. I also want to thank Molly, Takaya, and the rest of the lit mag team for this incredible experience. -Sincerely Marcus, Chief Morale Officer Dear readers, I'm the managing editor for Lit Mag this year. Lit Mag was an interesting experience. A few things I did was make Lit Mag a fun experience for everyone. I also made contracts for people to know what days they can come and I made a Google Calendar for everyone so they know when their deadlines were. There was a moment that my colleagues made me proud. That time was when we were running past the deadlines and we finished it in time for this wonderful book. I can see this book going beyond just Bronx Arena. It can be helpful to everyone in some way or form. It's a book to help inspire other people to show their creative side. A piece I'm excited for readers to read is “A Love Not Here Yet.” It's a good poem about love and I feel like readers would enjoy that. I think that Lit Mag would be a good experience for everyone. It can teach people new skills about editing other people's pieces. I'm thankful for my peers that help me. Their names are Skippy, LBC, and Long Legs for motivating me to work and I'd like to thank my teachers Molly and Takaya for pushing me to work. I hope future Lit Mag staff enjoy Lit Mag as much as I do. Sincerely, MELECH, MANAGING EDITOR T hese past couple of years have been very hard on our generation, yet a lot has been learned. We've had time to sit and think, learn how to express feelings in ways we love. That is why we decided to bring back “Be The Rainbow” and make it a big hit. In order to make it a great success, money played a big part when publishing the final issue and that's where I came in as fundraiser coordinator! My main job was to host fundraisers in order to raise money to help us through our journey of writing and publishing the literary magazine. This year I hosted and produced a fundraiser on GoFundMe with the help of my peers. We worked on a video that gives a brief explanation of why we need the money and our goals in this year's lit mag, along with the video I wrote a description that gives further info on our goals and purpose. This is ~ ix ~ what I'm so far most proud of in my work description. We've raised enough money to publish enough books to spread awareness on mental health around school. I hope that people are proud of our progress throughout the years, proud of the work I've done to help contribute to our literary magazine course. My goal is to do the best I can to contribute and have a good final outcome. Our goal as a team is to influence people to learn their favorite ways to express themselves whether it's through art or any type of writing. We hope to give a roller coaster of emotions when reading, as our magazine consists of plenty of di erent genres of writing and di erent types of artwork. I'm excited to see everyone's work, specifically any love pieces. Overall I'm just excited to see how my peers chose to express their feelings. I'm excited to see my piece in a book. I wrote the piece “Barbie Girl Reinvention.” I'd like to hear more feedback and spread awareness on issues I see were wrong not only in the song but in our world that consists of many stereotypes. Overall, I feel you as the reader should really look into our book; it will open your mind up to new experiences other people write about and hopefully make you feel more confident and empowered to express your mind in your own way. Thank you for being interested in our art and our journey throughout our lives. SINCERELY, LIT MAG’S FUNDRAISER COORDINATOR, SAM Q : ) Dear Readers, This is our first year as a part of the Lit Mag team. We took on the roles of the 2 lit mag staffers. It was an interesting experience and something new to try out. So far Lit Mag has really shown us a different level of what our peers could do as artists and creative thinkers. One of the more interesting things we took on this year was the love contest where we could see our students really excel in what they wanted to write about and what was important to them. The lit mag really gave us a perspective of what it was like having to rely on others as well as having others rely on you to work as a team. As the Lit Mag Staffers we were able to help our peers and also connect with them and to also see what they have in store. We hope the Lit Mag does great this year and people enjoy this year's issue because of all the hard work our teachers and peers put into this. We would like to thank our peers especially our chief morale officer and the managing editor for keeping us on track and keeping the work environment enjoyable. Sincerely, Tae and Chief, The Lit Mag Staffers ~ x ~ Greedy for Love B B y y By B By B O O m m s s h h a a n n t t i i ti t ti t ~ 1 ~ Light VS Dark B B y y By B By B N N a a Na N Na N i i Natural Hazards Natural Nature Out of our control What do they really do but cause harm and damage to us as humans? What is good? Maybe there is no good From hurricanes to tornadoes Earthquakes to dust storms Breaking apart families Destroying homes and killing people Having to start over Losing your loved ones to something out of your control People would never forget How much do you know about Natural Hazards? How much do you prepare yourself for these? Why don’t they still teach us what to do in these moments? Natural Hazards Air pollution caused by us It hurts the environment Global warming is the outcome Winter too hot Endless days of snowfall and beaming sunlight Bare trees in the cold winters But beautiful colorful leaves fill those trees when outside gets hot Summer past the peak Winter too hot People now confused on why winter is so hot Natural Hazards Natural Nature Destroying homes and killing people Traumatizing children ~ 2 ~ What is good? Maybe there is no good Maybe destruction is just the final result But the destruction is because of us Maybe there is no good Maybe we are the destruction Breaking apart families We are blind to our wrongdoings Some also blind to the good Only some can see the good Not everyone is able to see the galaxy The swirls The dust and particles become beautiful swirls and colors They didn’t even know what this dust cloud was before the 20th century Every galaxy out there Not just the Milky Way Here before us Going to be here after us Just close your eyes and watch the colors The swirls They way it goes together Something beautiful ----------- ~ 3 ~ ~ 4 ~ The Wild Outback B B y y By B By B S S h h i i a a n n n n a a C C h h Ch C Ch C a a r r l l rl r rl r e e s s W W i i Wi W Wi W n n n n e e r r o o f f of o of o t t h h th t th t e e 2 2 0 0 2 2 2 2 L L o o v v e e C C o o Co C Co C n n t t e e te t te t s s t t f f o o fo f fo f r r W W r r Wr W Wr W i i t t i i ti t ti t n n g g ! ! Once upon a time in a world so beautiful but isolated from society, a young girl named Kira witnessed something that changed her life forever...reality. Kira Bailey was the age of 10 when she found out her family had been killing spiders on the farm in southern Australia and leaving the other animals be. She had a count of 3 other siblings, one older brother with 2 twin baby sisters. She was always fond of animals of all types and she hoped to build a rescue center for animals when she got older to pursue her dreams, although her father wasn't quite favorable to this idea; in fact he wanted her to become a police officer. As Kira started to grow up her love for animals grew much bigger. She even started going to the library and checking out books about all different types of animals. Sooner or later her mother got her a pet koala that she called Sid. Kira went out on a walk to the park with her little sisters because her mother insisted. As the girls left the sisters flew to the farm to play with the animals in the shed. Kira quickly ran after them to ensure their safety as she noticed the crops were beginning to rot and grow fungi, even though they were recently planted. She instantly became disgusted and told her parents. They started to investigate the issue and still hadn't come to an agreement on the cause. As everyone was asleep, she snuck out of her room and rushed to the animal shed and saw with her phone flash that the only spider web they didn't destroy was in the corner not to be seen by the average human. All of a sudden she heard, "Hey there what's your name...?" "AGGGHHH," Kira started to bawl in fear. "Who are you? Who is there?" Kira said. Then she realized it was the pig that was speaking to her. Soon, other animals started speaking (cow, sheep, horse) she saw she could talk to animals, and her gift was very rare. The animals were not expecting her to understand them. Neither was Kira. She started to wonder if she had completely lost her mind. She paced back and forth as she thought to herself if this is real. "Is my headband too tight?" Kira said. "No no no, maybe this is a dream again," Kira said. She walked towards the corner because she saw a bright green light. "I'm about to touch it..." 5 seconds later, "ARRRRGGGGHHHH OH MY GOD—ARE THOSE SPIDERS GLOWING IN THE DARK????" Kira said. ~ 5 ~ The special spiders in the dark shadow told Kira that they have a special power that's different from others. "Oh yea I definitely lost my mind," Kira said. These spiders don't get blinded by light. "Why are you guys in the dark?" Kira said. "We stay in the dark because at night we turn into vampires with special webs that are sticky and designed to trap opponents, which are very hard to break," Consuelo said. "Plus we do have venom that can damage a human which is very dangerous," Marriott (elder shadow spider) said. Charlotte (elder shadow spider) explained their species covered thousands of spiders. They described how they had to fight for a majority of their lives for survival to protect their spider clan. Later that night Kira did way more research based on real evidence and came to the conclusion that there was a new type of species of insects that deliberately fed off of crops and the only animal that could kill them were spiders. Kira almost passed out in shock. She realized she wasn't crazy; this must be real. She was very determined to help the spiders and farm animals. The next morning, Kira went to her father and showed him what she had discovered and he was shocked but sounded quite arrogant. "NO! YOU FOOLISH GIRL, WE WILL NEVER TOLERATE SPIDERS! THEY ARE NOT ANIMALS, THEY'RE CREATURES!" her father said. Kira argued back at the fact that they were animals too and shouldn't have to be treated like that. Her father grew more upset and grounded her and told her to go to her room immediately. Kira left with so much doubt and anger. She quickly tried to find good ideas for what she could do but did not think of a good one until night time. A light bulb struck in Kira's head. She had a 2 story house. She snuck downstairs when everyone was sleeping through the back door. She ran to the shed quickly and pulled out her bean bag chair to sit on while petting the pig. The animals started to tell her about the constant abuse and unwanted breeding her father put them through and how they would soon die. That is because Kira's father was killing the spiders who ate the new species of plant eating insects. They explained there were only 3 spiders left (Charlotte, Marriott, Consuelo). They were the only elder spiders left. Kira cried throughout this whole story being told how they were forced to breed and abused against their own will to satisfy human needs. They explained that if those insects weren't killed the spiders would die from starvation and the insects would take over the farm. "If any more of us die we will be forced to kill your kind or the spider ancestors will try to rain down their evil," Marriot said. ~ 6 ~ "Nobody touches my family and nobody will harm you guys!" Kira said. Kira then knew she had to make a change. So she let 3 of the horses go on a mission with a note attached to an anti wildlife abuse center. The next morning her father was furious, although Kira volunteered to take over the farm during the day, but her father just said no. He demanded she get back in the house, but Kira refused. He shot his gun in the air creating suspense, so Kira was forced to go inside. The father realized 2 days later 2 of his horses, 3 of his pigs, 1 cow and 2 sheep had died. He quickly knew after that he should have listened to his daughter Kira, but when he went for her help she was gone and had left a note. In the note she described that she felt ignored and disrespected so she fled with the animals in their family truck. Her father yelled in outrage. He was absolutely furious. He told her mother quickly and they left to go find her and the animals. Kira didn’t see any good from the animals living in solitude. She wanted them to be free so she drove out in the open and tried to cover her tracks. She got to a safe and secluded spot where she could say her last goodbyes to the animals and free them into the wild where they belong. Her parents drive up and yell her name, "KIRAAA, DON'T DO THIS, WE PROMISE WE WILL DO BETTER BY YOU! PLEASE YOU ARE ALL WE HAVE!". Kira shouted back, "NO, YOU HAVE IGNORED ME AND I AM NOT WEAK!" The father threw out her charm bracelet they gave her when she was born and said, "I was wrong, you are able to change the world. I just needed to see it, sorry." Kira got emotional and said the only way she was coming back was if she got to run the farm and they agreed. Kira did not get in any trouble although she came back and the elder spiders had a new batch of kids and trusted Kira with their lives. ~ 7 ~ Dasia B B y y By B By B D D a a y y ay a ay a a a Aigh so look... Ima just be as honest as I can here cause ain’t no point of sugar coating nothin’. So I’m 17 years old, I’m a Scorpio. My birthday is November 3rd and my favorite color is red. I think that’s how you properly tell somebody about yourself without telling them about your fucked up life. Then they give you that sad ass face feeling bad for you. Yeah I'm used to it, been there, done that and I ain’t tryna do it no more. I have 4 best friends named Ashley, Marie, Jasmine and Casey. They are all older than me, just like most of my friends. I never was the type to have younger friends. They are my best friends but not the BEST friends in the world.. Honestly they can do better BUT THEY ARE MY BEST FRIENDS. I have 3 brothers and 3 sisters I probably talk to twice a year. I'm not really close with my family and I never really was honestly. They're weird and we just don’t get along, but seriously tho... Ion understand the way they think at all. Except for my little brother, he means the world to me. My little brother’s name is Pop Pop and he’s only 10. Anyway my siblings and I lost our mom when we were very young. My sisters were 17 and 19 and my lil brother was around 5 years old. That was really hard for us, I was always going through shit but after that I ain’t never been the same. Losing a parent is a different kind of pain. I got used to this lifestyle though, it’s always some drama. Always having to keep everything bottled up and also always the one everyone wants to complain about. I remember wishing everything would be okay, wishing we were normal siblings, like everyone else's family. Big dinners, family vacations, celebrating holidays and birthdays together, but nah It’s not worth it. NOT WORTH IT AT ALL. My older brother is locked up, AGAIN... I swear getting locked up obviously doesn’t faze him. He’s in and out every few months. My father acts like that’s my kid and is always calling me asking about him. He never calls me to check on me. I can be in a hospital bed, it won’t even matter to him. Matter fact I remember this one time I was in the hospital and at first he was acting all concerned about my health and why I was there. I literally was crying and throwing up, screaming in pain and he started talking about my brother. Going on and on about how my brother doesn’t call him and why he doesn’t get a job and get out the street and stop tryna be a thug ... blah blah blah too much extra bullshit on my plate for what? Like seriously dude, what does any of that have to do with me in the hospital, or with me in general? He loves his son though, that’s one thing about that man. He knows the real definition of favoritism. I miss my mom every day, but things like this make me miss her even more because she wasn’t like that. SHE WASN’T LIKE THAT AT ALL. ~ 8 ~ That’s why I try to provide for myself; I know for a fact since a young age I can’t depend on my dad for shit. I was walking down the Ave today, and I saw a few “Help Wanted'' signs earlier, so I decided to walk in a couple of stores and see wassup. I walked in Foot Action and did an application. I also went into two nail salons and a spa. I did go into a few restaurants too. The restaurants look like they were all family businesses. Literally FAMILY BUSINESS ONLY. Then after I did that I decided to go and grab a few things for the house since I was already here on the Ave. About two days later I get two phone calls and it’s a young lady who sounds like she’s in her twenties. She tells me her name is Lisa. Who the hell is Lisa? She kind of sounds like a bitch. No seriously tho, SHE REALLY DOES SOUND LIKE A BITCH. Lisa: “Hey, I'm looking for a short red head named Dasia,” with an aggressive tone. I'm telling you, she sounds like a bitch. Why did you have to mention me being a redhead? Me: “Yes I’m speaking, can I help you with sum?” I'm speaking aggressively too cause I ain’t got time for nobody to be playing on my phone. Lisa: “Yeah, you came into my shop two days ago looking for a job; you left your number with my assistant Daisy. I was on vacation and she was watching the shop for me. She told me you have experience. Are you still looking for a job?” She tryna sound nice and shit after I asked her if I can help her with sumn and I really need a job so I'm tryna sound nice too. Me: “Yeah I am actually. I'm sorry for the tone earlier. I was really confused because this is a blocked number.” Lisa: *She starts laughing like me and her are friends who are catching up* “It’s okay, Dasia, I understand. Would you like to come in so we can talk in person and discuss what we need you to do here in the shop? How is Tuesday? Can you come with a white shirt and blue jeans?” Me: *I'm tryna fake laugh so she do feel like we cool* “Yeah most definitely, Tuesday will most definitely work, I’ll be there. Thanks for calling, I look forward to meeting you in person,” and she hangs up. I'm excited! I have a shot on making some real $$. MY OWN REAL $$$. Since today is Sunday I think Ima go get some of those clothes for work at the mall before they close. This feels good and I ain’t even gonna tell nobody my good news. I’m tired of people putting an evil eye on my accomplishments, no ma’am, no thank you. It’s 4 30 pm, so I head out since the mall is literally right there near my house. I walk to Subway, grab some food and then I go into Burlington. While I am looking for some jeans that are actually going to fit, I get another phone call and it’s another blocked number. So I pick up my phone again to see who it is and it’s a man with a deep voice. He sounds kinda creepy. John: “Hey my name is John, I’m looking for a young lady named Dasia?” Although his voice is creepy, he sounds like he’s trying to be nice. ~ 9 ~ Me: “Uhh yes speaking” John “Hey you came into Foot Action two days ago looking for a job, I had you fill out an application. Are you still interested? We are a little short staffed and can definitely use the help.” Me: *Sounding super excited, “Yes I am still interested and I also really need a job.” John: “Great, can you come by the shop on Thursday? I would love to show you around, speak to you in person about your potential position and how payroll would work over here... “ Me: “Great yes, Thursday works, thank you so much.” I'm so happy honestly. When I was talking about looking for jobs I felt like nobody wanted to talk to me. I was so sad thinking about how nobody was going to hire me. Now look, two different jobs want to