KANIKA WRIGHT
YEARS AS MENTOR: 1
OCCUPATION: Admission Counselor, City University of New York
BORN: Bronx, NY
LIVES: Queens, NY
MENTOR’S ANECDOTE: Tatiana’s smile is full of sunshine, and her writing definitely reflects this same brightness. I met a very shy girl at our first meet up. However, six months later, Tatiana has blossomed into a promising writer who is always hungry for more. Our quirky sense of humor and laughing fits come out in so many ways during our meet ups, especially when we are playing our favorite game Taboo. Tatiana inspires me to dig deeper into my writing craft and confront life’s struggles with the power and beauty of words.
My poem “I” was inspired by another poem called “Loose Woman” by Sandra Cisneros. It represents Rise Speak Change because it talks about how I changed from what I was, a person who could not speak up.
I am a tree
with a hard bark
I stay still while the colors on my leaves change
They change more often than the other trees do
Other trees change with the seasons
I change with the day
People always try to cut me down
Some have succeeded, but I just grew right back
I am strong
I am an empty box
People see no use for my emptiness
but I was not always empty
I had to have had something inside of me before I got this empty, right?
He took all that was left
He lied and said it was forever
when it was just temporary
Our love was not love
It was just all in my head
So now
I am just an empty box
Maybe being empty is for the better
Empty = no emotions
I had to sacrifice emotions to become stronger
I am stronger
I am a butterfly
I used to be cooped up in my mind
thinking about my emotions over that boy, my family, my school
That is when I decided to cut off my emotions
Thinking about everyone but myself made me spazz
Over time, when I lost my emotions
I liberated my mind and became a butterfly
I became stronger
I am a
teenager
a jokester
a hugger
happy, sad, joyful, mad, angry
too emotional, according to others
They do not know what I have been through
Regardless
I stayed strong through it all
Integrity
KANIKA WRIGHT
My poem “Integrity” was born from a rumor. I was amazed at how a false rumor could transform into something so large. I conquered that lie because I always had truth on my side.
I received Emily’s
cold stare
as the word
dripped
from her lips.
Lesbian.
The world spun violently off
its axis. Time
shivered in a frame.
Hushed voices, murmurs, whispers,
rumors commenced. Sixth grade gossip,
new topic for homeroom
tomorrow.
Lesbian.
Tomorrow came, yesterday
still alive in my veins.
My friends, distant.
Their looks toward me
flickered with change.
No more time for
hopscotch, or
eating lunch at our spot.
They stayed away
No touching
They faded away like apparitions ready to hurl shame my way.
Lesbian.
I was alone, only
The Lie
to keep me company. Breaking point
arrived as the wheels in my mind
turned.
Lesbian.
No truth to
Lies.
No lies to
Truth.
I knew Truth. Truth knew
Me.
Emily is a lie.
ELLA CALLAHAN
YEARS AS MENTEE: 1
GRADE: Sophomore
HIGH SCHOOL: School of the Future
BORN: Guangzhou, China
LIVES: New York, NY
MENTEE’S ANECDOTE: When I first met Allison, I was very intimidated by her poise and her esteemed career. I was nervous about being myself, but that subsided when I spent more time with her. Once we went to the Strand and poured over design books, and another time, she told about this amazing idea she had for a coffee-table book about artists’ living spaces. She’s easy to talk to, always understanding and very patient. She has inspired me to grow out of my shell.
ALLISON MOORER
YEARS AS MENTOR: 1
OCCUPATION: Writer, Songwriter, Artist, Mother, currently pursuing MFA in creative nonfiction
BORN: Mobile, AL