AND THE FLOOD

By KAYLA READO

And the flood fable is one
of male and female, not life. Before Noah,
a Chinese man knew to build a boat
out of the bubble of a fish in a bucket.
Floods aren’t new
the height of their waves are; therefore,
we won’t have male and female anymore
just simple mountain climbers by the end
of our existence. So, I’m learning how to pitch
pick into stone and stick. My mother can survive
because her nose is wide and her skin is dark.
I am of my mother but not my mother so
I’m best suited for Amazon rainforest where the red
beneath my skin can liven and dominate.
Humidity does not harbor ill will towards me
but I cannot say the same of big-bellied anaconda
and foul-breathed piranha, and apparently there are penguins
or maybe I’m thinking of Africa. But regardless, I require
a teepee of big trees whose bigger leaves will satiate sun
and reservoir rain.
Evolution didn’t disappear after men put balls
in boxers and women put their breasts in bras so
I’m waiting on the population to plummet with the patience
of a fish in a bucket awaiting a flood.

LET’S MAKE THE MOST OF LOUISIANA’S COAST

BY HRILINA RAMRAKHIANI

I just want to boast, about the Coast, of Louisiana.
The Coast is invaluable to all it hosts:
It serves as a home to animals,
It offers a livelihood to some,
It even builds up the land, so Louisianians can proudly proclaim
that the “Pelican State” is ranked 31, in terms of size status.

Now I want to address its current deteriorating state.
Our Coast needs to be helped, not harmed on a daily basis.
Because if we continue to let it erode,
Louisiana as we know it,
Could no longer remain our home.

I am lucky to live in a time
When the Coast is still on our mind.
Some people are discussing ways to preserve it,
Many ideas have been presented,
But in reality, any preventive action must be taken
Before it is way too late to protect it.

So how do we preserve this precious land?
The best way we can, Hand-in-Hand.

THIS IS NOT FOR EVERYONE
THIS IS FOR THE GIRLS

By THE ROOTED GIRLS

This is for the long curly hair girls.
This is for girls with short straight hair.
This is for girls with no hair.

This is for the skinny girls.
This is for the thick girls.
This is for the girls in the middle.

Stop feeling bad about yourself.
This is for the insecure that are still confident.
Don’t cry yourself to sleep every night,
Thinking about that last fight.

This is for the girls with tough skin,
That don’t cry over stupid boys.
Pick yourself up.
And look at it differently.