Love

By Julia J., Age 15

The one hundred thirteen degree weather was especially harsh in the barren town of Reynosa, where there wasn’t shade in sight. However, the motivation to provide shelter for my new friends compensated for any discomfort caused by the Mexican climate. As Ramón Lopez came towards me I immediately noticed his brown calloused feet walking on the rocky dirt road. He smiled and called out “trabaja!” while handing me his cement-mixing shovel, and then sat down to rest with his two younger brothers. I watched them, marveling at how well they got along, and wondering at what time in American society it had become unacceptable for teenagers to enjoy the company of their younger siblings. I then regained my focus and began the arduous task of mixing cement manually in order to lay the floor for the Lopez’s first legitimate house.

 By Kate H., Age 22

I believe in love at first sight, first laugh, and first hug. I’m not talking about romantic love; I mean the kind of love that you have with your best friends who you know you’ll have forever. In high school, my friends were the people who I had known all my life, the ones who knew everything about me because they had lived it all with me. Going away to college and later when I studied in Europe for a semester, I found that there are some people who just understand you from the second you meet them. It’s love at first sight.

By Alicia C., Age 19

Halloween has passed and November has just begun. This of course means that the holiday season has officially commenced. Ads on television already begin to advertise the perfect holiday gifts, stores and shopping centers are decorated with extravagant displays of lights and pine and the emphasis on family coming home for the holidays can be seen everywhere you turn.

By Rachel R., Age 23

Air saturated with cicada shrieks
Sprinkler sprinkles
The glow of summer
Somersault momentum
Songs and stories
And silly
Snickers