The beauty is dying

by Isabella Q., grade 8

What happened to me?

Why am I dying?

The past and present is ruining me

And it will continue on like this...

Drip, Drip, Drip

Every little drop is contaminating me

Every drop is like little bombs to my body

I can hear the drops coming in

One by one they fall

One by one they destroy me

Trash

                 Food

Gasoline

        Wraps

                                    Bottles

Are all the things that constantly fall over me

I used to be beautiful.

People came from all over the world

       Just to see me   

They admired my light blue colorful water

With every sun ray...

I used to shine

I used to be bright

I used to be happy

I used to laugh

But the...

Humans didn't care about me anymore

All I can say...

it's their fault

They thought I would continue to be beautiful

The reality is

I can't

The trash is too much

Sometimes, I think about the way I used to be

Occasionally, I feel like

running away

Why stay?

To suffer more?

I am of no use anymore

Never beautiful like I was before

Every day, every hour, every minute

I'm getting each day worse

It just takes a matter of time

I still try to shine beauty

The one that is left

I try and do it for the animals

They deserve the happiness

At the end...

It's going to run out

It will be gone

Forever.

I am loosing my mind

I am lost

Please help me

Please help me survive.

Peace and Freedom is All I Ask You!

by Nina A., grade 8
How richly glows the water’s breast before us, tinged with evening hues, while facing the crimson East, well at least that is how I remember it.
My wings flutter all day, I find myself flying over the great Caribbean Sea. My eyes burn like a flame of fire, as they punctuate bottles and trash, floating towards great destruction.
Waves bring a pleasant sound as you make your way to the water; I flutter my wings as I show a great sight of relief. But the time came, when this feeling of relief vanished away, and danger came to us.
The crystal clear, blue waters have become one of marine’s life greatest dangers. I am facing myself, fighting for my life, I am trapped with no way out, I flutter my wings, but it is impossible to spread them and fly free.
This brown substance unknown to me holds me back; I am covered in oil with no way out. I see dead fish floating pass my wings, thousands of them. I see black smoke rising from a fiery platform; the scenery isn’t the one I remember from the day before. I can’t see the sun’s reflection in the water, only miles of a thick black substance. Please save my home, I want my children to see the beauty of this world, let them have a chance to experience it.
Don’t turn our oceans black!
Don’t turn our oceans in a garbage dump!
Turn our oceans in a beautiful Paradise of endless freedom, and beauty.

with care and love

by Myung H., grade 8
 
Fresh air was given, clean clouds were given out
everything was taken with care and love
now everything is gone.

I am the cloud
who has been wandering around the sky
with shapes, colors, air and new forms for people to admire.
I have been admiring them since the time I first met them.
I felt as if I was going to feel not mistreated but treated fairly
but I was wrong.

Pollution began, smoke came up
cough, cough I can’t breathe I am stuck
there should be  some way to get out from here
but really, there isn't an option.

People should understand that I give air to the trees
but they don’t understand that when pollution kills us
the air will be gone
and the surroundings will be dried

I am tired of this, tired that they can’t understand me
I had  friends up in the sky
the plane, the birds and the other clouds.
I don't belong here.

Now with the smoke my belonging friends will be gone
but not only they but I will be gone
and will they understand what has happened
to the world? What has happened to my life?

Still there is hope

OH... SUNDAY MORNIN´!

by Juan Carlos E., grade 8

Every morning, every sunrise
I wake up with no one beside me.
Every night, every moon light
I go to bed with no one beside me.

All this makes me feel lonely! Questions rise upon my mind! Why can’t I be loved? Am I ugly? Should I care about this stuff? Am I cute? Am I fat?
But all that changes on Sunday mornin’! Every year, I wait for this time… These days… This week!
Every year, every month, every week, every day, every hour, every minute, every second, I wait for these days…. This week!

Real humans come right here! Next to my tree, in front of the bush; to the lake!
Oh, how I love it when they come…
Every mornin´ I stay still. They come to see the first sun! Everybody tags along, and every time they look at me! I stay still, and try my best pose. While they take portable machines, who throw a flash!
And all my unanswered questions are answered! I am loved, I am not ugly, I am cute, and being a little fat, is a good thing…

Every morning, every sunrise
I wake up with no one beside me.
Every night, every moon light
I go to bed with no one beside me.

All this makes me feel lonely! Questions rise upon my mind! But all those questions, all my opinions, all my loneliness, all that... changes Sunday mornin´…

Red, Orange and Yellow

by Camila R., grade 8

Fire, fire everywhere
going up and down into my tree
red, orange, yellow!
here and there
branches burned, and trees in flames
ashes flying, fire burning
here, there, everywhere!
I see my home down to ashes, all with fire
there is no hope
                         There is no light
in my life
I see in the sky little red dots
little black dots,
all of my family,
flying away
leaving all dreams
or flying with them
but what about me?
What shall I do?
Stay here and die with the heat
or fly away to god knows where
                    I cannot go
I cannot stay
where all my story
is written in stone
here
in my home
but it is burning down
down to ashes
                       down to dust
                                            down to nothing...
All of this flames
all of this chaos
thanks to those humans!
That have no compassion!
For us little things
I have to go!
I have to hurry!
But I ask to myself once again, where?
I cannot go to those houses because all I get is
           Squash!
Squash!
                       Squash!
All of those hands trying to squash
are the same ones that let my forest die
Still, I have to go so I'm on my way
to one of those houses but I have to hide
and in my spot I hear them say
"Deforestation, just a silly mistake..."

Pier in the Lake

by Gyu Jeong L., grade 8


Now the peace is gone
A pier is built upon me
Over my transparent body
And I'm burning in pain

Now the peace is gone
The pier fully built
and fisher comes to fish
I can predict something bad is going to happen

Now the peace is gone
Many kids are kidnapped
Many lose their homes
Many lose everything they have

Now the peace is gone
Fish struggle to survive
some don't get to live long
Some don't even get the chance to live the world

Now the peace is gone
Now traps are set too
and more are taken too
And my body now is a death trap

Now the peace is gone
Little are left
and the rest is gone
Still, the destroyers want more

Now the peace is gone
they abandon my body
and search for a better place
my soul follows them

Now the peace is gone
Everything changes
Day by day
year by year

Now the peace is gone
No more fishes come here
Still more traps are set
Even more dangerous than before

Now the peace is gone
As the time passes
The fishermen are gone
But so does the fish

Now the peace is gone
No more fishes here or there
No fishermen near here too
Still the peace is not here

There´s nothing in my body
Nothing, only traps
Deadly traps that will catch any fish
Now the peace is gone
And so is my soul
and death came here

Fish have Opinions

by Monica M., grade 8

What I think of humans?
I think they must be blind or dumb
Or they are just selfish.
So here’s what I would say to them
Someday when
I meet them

Dear Humans,
Look at our world
And if you noticed
It’s ours not yours
It’s not only you humans living here
We live and inhabit this place as well

It’s your home and ours
So why are you destroying
And harming it, why?
Have we done something wrong?
There must be something
Cause we don’t deserve it

You’re destroying my home
And the home of many others
Your trash is hurting us
I am living in YOUR waste

It’s unfair,
I don’t throw my waste
In your home
I don’t enjoy my life
Leaving other animals to die

No, I’m a nice fish
So why aren’t you a nice human?
Do us a favor and try
Tell your human friends that
They should leave us alone
So live in our home
The lives without trash in our
Face

Not only that but please stop
Creating ways
For us, animals
To die

Don’t you see what you’ve done?
All the species that are endangered
All the animals dying
Or losing their home

What would you do if
We did that to you?
Think about it
You would understand our pain

So just to make this clear
Animals die, your fault
Animals lose home, your fault
Earth isn’t pretty, your fault
Water isn’t clean, your fault

And you still wonder why animals die
you should really think about changing
do something to help us
help the world

use less water
use less trash
create less waste
don't pollute our water more

There are so many things you can do
I bet you can think of more
I'm just a poor fish
living in your dump

It’s not our fault
Humans have the entire fault
So please think and reflect
That even fishes want you
To swim another direction
And for everything I didn’t mention
Wait for the next letter

Unthinkable

by Esteban V., grade 8

I am located in Europe
In a country called Croatia
They say such vocabulary cannot describe me
I am overjoyed when people admire my beauty
They say such thing is a miracle
I have lived many years and experienced all sorts of feelings
I have suffered a lot
in 1991 I was severely destroyed
War caused people to stop visiting me
Thankfully it made me recover and get better
Years before, this humans contaminated me and destroyed parts of me
While I recovered, the war ended and tourists started to appear
They made me enjoy life
They preserved me and loved me
What I am trying to say is that these humans can bring lots of harm but they can change
I´ve heard stories that they contaminate a lot
I think they should work together in order to satisfy nature and their needs
My friends, let´s enjoy what we can of something and take care of it
My crystal clear water reminds me of the transparency people should have in the government
The paths that surround the water remind me of the laws people should never break
The waterfalls remind me of children´s rights and that they should always be respected
The animals remind me of happiness and friends
Nature even gives us the correct way to do things
we must folllow by example and enjoy responsibly

Airplane

by Charlie C., grade 8
 
I think I am going to quit
I am tired of flying.
The air is just too much to me.
I take people places faster
Than any other transport.
I am bored of watching everything.
The ocean, the people, the houses,
I see everything.

The work I have is too much for me,
A small airplane.
Everyone uses my because it´s the
Easiest way.
Cars don’t cross the oceans,
Boats are too slow,
And not everywhere there are trains.
I am the fastest, the safer,
The best.
 
CLOUD

I love my job.
I love than I never
Stop moving.
My job is really easy.
I just lay and let
The Earth move me.

The coolest part of
My jobs is
Changing shape every day.
It easy to be a
Cloud.

I see everyone
From the sky.
I´m sometimes
In Africa, Asia or even
The oceans.
I travel a lot.

The only thing
I hate
Is that people hate me
When I pass trough
The Sun.


I AM THE WIND

I am strong,
I have a lot of force,
I move the oceans waves.
No one can beat me.
I am the strongest.

I am the wind.

Poor helpless wind vane