Monthly Archives: March 2025

“Rift” & “Anticipation”, Two Poems

By Gabriel Cheng, age 16, New York.

1. Rift

Beyond the horizon,
the sun begins its descent
into darkness. From my boat,
an off-white wooden petal floating
on the summer-calm Winnipeg,
I breathe in the forsaken festival.
Unshackled by night, swirling
mixtures of maroon and black
frolic in the sky, like children of the sun
set free. Slowly,
the hero of this requiem creeps up,
its luminescence pale and misty.
Then the stars, tarnished and enigmatic,
arrive, disrupting their lives
to reach the moon, everything
attempting to rivet a frayed bond.

I am an outcast in my home
shrouded by inanimate shadows and feign,
witnessing from afar a tale of sorrow
for what could have been,
Kites mingling above star-kissed hills,
fingers clasped with another’s under
a candle-lit table, the laughter of children
orbiting the room like Earth orbits the sun.

As the ceremony comes to an end,
my body tilts with the breath of the sea,
another wandering soul exhumed
on a boat drifting towards and away.

2.  Anticipation

I wake up to my alarm, groggily, fumble for the snooze button,
My heart racing from the jolt. As the blaring ceases

I rub off relics of the night, expecting clarity, only to be greeted
by flurries of light cast from the window-framed sky.

The door creaks as I stumble out of the shadows and into a man-made ravine,
the corridor dividing the subconscious as the sky does heaven.

I enter the kitchen and grab a naked piece of toast. I pop it in the oven,
watching expressions crease along the crusted ridges of its face.

With each bite comes the nostalgia of emptiness sunken deep
inside and lurking within the cavities of my stomach.

I shove the remaining sliver in my mouth and swallow.

The futility hisses in my ears like an engine and something
pounds in my chest fiercely, trying to escape. But I don’t.

I descend the winding stairs leading to the blue expanse,
walk down the asphalt weathered by a trillion steps.

I search for a raindrop, a signal I’m heading down the right path.
I look to the sky and wait,

a moment of silence
anticipating its touch.

—By Gabriel Cheng, age 16, New York. He adds:
“I am a multilingual Asian-American teenager. Poetry and prose have always been my passion, driving me to become an editor-in-chief for my school’s award-winning literature and art magazine, as well as news editor for our campus newspaper. Through both of these positions, I have cultivated a desire to spread my knowledge and to teach others. Outside of school, I’ve built on this commitment to cultural access by tutoring English to Ukrainian children, and then teaching chess after the language lessons.”

A Stronger, Happier Self through Teen Friendships

A Stronger, Happier Self through Teen Friendships

By Kayla C., California.

One Sunday last spring, my friends and I gathered at my house to work on the poster and decide the food for a cultural food festival at my school. We blasted music on our devices, screaming, laughing, and joking—having the time of our lives. Jolie kept slipping on the floor, causing us to all laugh, so I got her some slippers (she still tripped.) After Jolie came out of the bathroom, Elle knelt and proposed to her with a toy flower, and got rejected. (Elle married Leyla instead.) Later, we went for ice cream and drowned it in sprinkles. It was fun to spend time together and work on a project we all cared about. We could easily engage in conversation and have fun while doing so. Friendships like these make us feel wanted, supported, and free to be who we are. Teenage friendships are vital because they can help you become a better person.

Teens talk more about their social life with friends than their parents. They see them nearly every day at school, online, and outside of school. Teens spend more time going and being at school than they do at home. School is where teens make the most friends and their social life revolves around. The result is that they see their friends more than their family, allowing them to understand better and deepen their bonds. Teens and their friends’ type of humor, experiences, and age all affect how they interact with one another, so they feel more comfortable talking to one friend versus another based on how much they trust them. In the article, Having A Best Friend In Your Teenage Years Could Benefit You For Life, Chen writes, “…unwavering support acts as a kind of protective buffer against insults to your self-worth or feelings of depression. That can be especially beneficial during adolescence, a formative period when peer feedback has extra gravity.” (https://www.npr.org).

When someone requires reassurance and company, their friends act as supportive and protective beings that help them re-assess their self-esteem. The result is that teens feel more confident in themselves and trust their friends to be there for them when needed. They develop more trust in them and feel they can rely on them when they’re struggling, so teens often talk about their problems with their friends rather than family.

We need close friendships in middle and high school because quality friendships can help develop your self-confidence over time. “The significance of adolescent friendships seems to lie not in the number of friends a person has, but in the strength of a close friendship. Popularity isn’t important; it’s the true knowing and being known by another person that provides a teen with critical life skills that will serve him well for years to come.” (https://www.arnoldpalmerhospital.com).

A friendship is more important in quality than quantity. If you were to pick between having more friends but not as close versus only one friend whom you are very close to, it’s an obvious choice. Friends help teens realize they are recognized and loved for who they are and understand and accept their differences. “When the researchers evaluated the participants at the conclusion of the study, the ones who had close, emotional links showed improvement in their levels of anxiety, depression, and self-worth. In other words, they reported less depression and anxiety and more self-worth at 25 than they had at 15 and 16.”

Friends with close bonds lasted for not only a long time but helped both re-evaluate and boost their self-worth and confidence. The links they’ve formed kept them connected, allowing them to build trust and help each other through difficult times. Emotional support can guide a happier life and continued virtuous friendships. All that said, the question remains: how do we make the kind of friendships that change our lives for the better?

The most important part of having healthy, long-lasting friendships is effort. You must put in the work for the friendship to thrive because this is your friendship with your friends. Around Christmastime, my friend, Akhila, gave gifts to our whole friend group as a way to say, “Hey, I appreciate you, thank you for being my friend and making my day better every day.” It showed us that she cares, and it makes us feel happy when we’re in her presence. Each gift was different—she knew what we liked and spent her own time finding a gift for us. She paid attention to the little facts about us and found a gift that related to our interests or hobbies.

When it comes to friendships, race, gender, or cultural background don’t necessarily play a significant role in whom you can become friends with. As long as you find someone enjoyable, and comfortable and safe to be around, that’s considered a friend. One of my friends came out last year, and our friend group all accepted and supported them for who they are. Even our classmates outside of the friend group accepted them. To keep any friendships or relationships alive, you need to make sure everyone is cared for, and show that you are making an effort to sustain the friendship.

One of the greatest gifts in my life is my friends. They support me when I’m feeling low, are fun to have around and feel comfortable around me. During our teenage years, we grow more distant from our parents and feel more self-aware. Having good friends we can rely on can help us later in life because we will have less stress, anxiety, and increased confidence. Friends are important in our lives because they can encourage us to be our best selves.

—Kayla C., California. She adds: “… I can speak primarily English and Chinese. The most important aspects of my life are my friends, family, my pet, and the moments I share with them. I hope to live a fulfilling, but also simplistic lifestyle in the future. The people around me who look down on teen friendships and believe they can ruin relationships with your parents inspired me to write this piece.”

A Simple Act of Kindness

A Simple Act of Kindness

By Maya and Arjun Govindaraj, both aged 17, Chennai, India.

 

Our dad grew up in Chennai, India. He has always told us stories about how he struggled to reach great heights. When we were leaving the children’s home after serving dinner, we will never forget the way he looked at those kids with tears in his eyes and said in Tamil, the local language, “Study hard and you can be very successful someday.”

India is the second most populated country in the world with some 158 million children below the age of six. There are 30 million orphaned and abandoned children and according to figures published by SERUDS*, and the numbers have increased since 2020. Majority of these children are girls because they are considered a ‘burden’ in their communities. Less than 1% of the abandoned children are in childcare institutions, 91% of which are run by non-government organizations. Many end up living on the streets, begging for food, or are forced into child labor.

Our interest in community service started in Pre-K when we packed shoe boxes during Christmas, to send to kids in developing countries. Our parents always encouraged us to help people in need and took us to volunteer during school holidays. We moved to Chennai from Houston, Texas in January 2023 so my mom could care for her elderly parents, and during our time here, we have witnessed firsthand the harsh realities of poverty.

Our school involves us in many service activities that teach us about environmental and social issues and the value of collaboration, social awareness, respect, and empathy. We were able to interact with our host community through the Discovery Program and volunteer through the Seva (service) Program. Although we come from different backgrounds, teaching the local underprivileged children, and playing with them after school we developed a bond with them and realized how happy they were to spend time with us. All children need is unconditional love, opportunities to play and learn, and a sense of belonging.

Seeing the amount of poverty that’s around us, and learning about the challenges these kids face in accessing a healthy meal and a good education inspired us to do something to show them that we do care. So, we bought backpacks, filled them with school supplies and gave them to 20 orphaned children along with evening snacks. We also served dinner to 60 children in a children’s home.

What we did were simple acts of kindness, but like Mother Teresa (the famous Nobel Peace Prize winning nun who lived and worked in and around Kolkata, India) had said, “We know only too well that what we are doing is nothing more than a drop in the ocean. But if the drop were not there, the ocean would be missing something.” To see the kids living alone without the love of parents and companionship of siblings is heartbreaking. Spending time with them we came to realize the privileges we take for granted and how fortunate we are to have a loving and caring family that meets all our needs.

The joy reflected in their eyes on receiving a simple backpack and the smile on seeing a small cup of ice cream made our hearts swell with pride, and although they have nothing, they were kind enough to offer us in return the power of their collective prayers as thanks.

We will be heading back to Houston, Texas soon, but what we have learned and experienced in the past two years in Chennai, will forever be etched in our minds, and we hope to continue to visit these children and share with them what we can.

As tech savvy Gen Z’s, it is our duty to use the power of social media to tell the stories of these children and to initiate global dialogues around the issues they face so we can find them the resources to face challenges and bounce back from adversity to fulfill their dreams of a better tomorrow.

* https://serudsindia.org/orphans-the-forgotten-children-of-india/ (From Sai Educational Rural & Urban Development Society, SERUDS) https://serudsindia.org 

—Maya and Arjun Govindaraj are Indian American siblings, both aged 17, and from Texas. They are currently studying at the American International School in Chennai, Tamil Nadu in South India.

Why I Hate Writing Essays

Why I Hate Writing Essays

By Neel Archis-Manish, age 17, Michigan.

It’s the fault of a rigid and purely grade-based public education system. I’m talking about why in today’s world, writings in schools have become a series of boring, formulative, information-stacked essays instead of genuine pieces of creations. I’m not blaming the public school teachers who simply mean well and are horribly underpaid. No, I blame historical education practices.

As a fourth year high school student in the US, I have written many essays in my ELA classes that respond to a specific prompt, include quoted sources, and require annotations on the side. All this basic system does is it makes me hate writing. I hate to say it, but it’s true.

I used to LOVE writing. I wrote poetry (it wasn’t great) and short stories (it was a laughing matter) and started writing my biography several times (I swear I’m going to get past Chapter 1 some day). But no matter how bad it all was, at least writing it didn’t kill my soul a little bit every time.

Language is a powerful tool that can be used to build empires and destroy them. Words are mightier than the sword not because nobody uses swords anymore, but because humans have the right to use words freely. High schoolers are so worried about their Grammarly scores and the 11:59 PM deadline that they often forget the importance of being present as a writer in their writings.

Quoted sources from all across the internet are great, and so are annotations. But neither helps an individual grow as an individual writer. The ‘classics’ we read in our English classes today weren’t classified as classics because they contained a well-researched bibliography, they were titled ‘classics’ because they were written from the deepest emotions from a true heart.

Formality kills humanity. Sure, you could decide to put on a fancy shirt and a suit and a tie and act like a functioning human being to charm yourself into some high-paying corporate job that covers dental insurance, but then what’s the difference between you and a slightly good-looking robot? Feelings are what humans have been doing best since the dawn of time. Let’s not forget our origins.

Love, respect, kindness, greed, envy, jealousy, selfishness, selflessness, humility, humanity, power, hunger, disgust, fear, sadness, anxiety, awkwardness, joy, pride, shame, disappointment, calmness, rage, confusions, desire, and so many more HUMAN emotions and feelings the world possesses. Why are adults teaching kids to bury all of them deep inside and instead turn to writing informative 2000-word essays about a global issue that then students pretend to care about for the sake of getting an A on a summative assessment?

I used to spend hours and hours reading books of mystery, fantasy, and historical fiction. I loved the feeling of being lost in a world where the real words ceased to exist. I loved the feeling of having to imagine, to create, and to be surprised. I used to come up with my own characters when reading stories about people. I used to make up landscapes and roam across Rome and Romania. I don’t do that anymore.

Writing based on information as opposed to human nature has killed the excited kid inside of me that once upon a time lived happily ever after. I’ve stopped reading books for fun. I’ve stopped being excited to enter a library and find a good book and open it in the middle and smell the smell of the fresh paper. I’ve stopped scribbling terrible poetry and weird short stories and unfinished memoirs on scraps of paper.

I once wanted to be one of those writers who wrote the first line of the first chapter of their first hit book on a napkin in a small bistro in a corner of a small town. I don’t want to do that anymore. Now, I just want to turn in my essay before 11:59 PM on the day of the submission deadline.

—Neel Archis-Manish, age 17, Michigan. He adds:

I was raised in Pune, Maharashtra, India in a house with two decent parents (they’re great!), a sister whom I hate passionately (it’s just a sibling relationship: I would give her my kidney, but not my phone charger), and a loving grandmother who’s cooking is, in one word, divine.

Growing up, I went to a Marathi-Medium school and learned Marathi (my mother tongue), Hindi, and English. When I was 15, my dad was fortunate to get an inter-company transfer. So in the midst of the Covid-19 Pandemic, our family relocated to Michigan in the United States of America.

I am currently enrolled at a good public school where I am able to make my Indian ancestors happy by performing well in academics, all while doing what I now love most: theatre. I am now the President of our school’s Drama Club. I participate (act, student direct, and head publicity and programs) in three productions each year, write and perform for our social justice theatre troupe, and have won numerous awards by doing forensics (competitive public speaking). Life is good.

I LOVE comedy. I have watched and re-watched and re-re-watched a ton of comedy sitcoms and TV shows. If you’re looking for someone to understand and laugh with you on niche Saturday Night Live references, I am your guy. Laughter is simply the best medicine, even when you’re not ill.

Currently, I’m looking at colleges and thinking about what I want to do. I’m at a point where ‘what do you want to be when you grow up’ is a legitimate question and not what an adult uses as an ice-breaker when talking to a child. Anyway, I’m fairly certain that I want to become a Secondary English Educator. Which led me to look into writing and publishing opportunities.

Save Them Bears

Save Them Bears

By Ya-Ting Yu, Taiwan

Black Bear recently moved north for climate change research. During the festive season, Black Bear’s colleague, Polar Bear, invited him to her family dinner. “No Bear should be alone on Christmas Eve,” she said when she heard the un-partnered Black Bear planned to hibernate in his cave. With no excuse to say no, Black Bear obliged.

That evening, Black Bear arrived at Polar Bear’s home with a basket of cloudberries in his paws. He’d agonized over the gift, unsure what to bring. Though he’d seen Polar Bear’s lunch boxes: ringed seals, whale carcasses, geese eggs, he still preferred chestnuts and persimmons. Honey and beetle larvae were rare treats he savoured after long hours of foraging through data at the lab, but to be inclusive, a value Polar Bear emphasized, he chose cloudberries, safe for vegans, vegetarians, and the nut-allergic.

Polar Bear’s family welcomed Black Bear warmly, hugging, kissing and thanking him profusely for the cloudberries. Flustered by the sudden physical contact, Black Bear forced a courteous smile and awkwardly patted Polar Bear’s Mom’s back, relieved when she finally let go of his paw. It was his first time receiving kisses from complete strangers. Where he came from, in the East, Bears rarely even shook paws, sniffing was usually as close as they got.

But their habitat differences didn’t stop there. For an occasion like Christmas Eve, Polar Bear’s family usually indulged in seal and whale fat. Vegetation was more for decoration, except for the hippie Cousin who’d recently turned vegan to combat the melting ice.

Before dinner, the family gathered in prayer positions, bowing their fluffy heads to say grace. Black Bear, unfamiliar with their faith, looked from left to right at the table and hurried to mimic their gestures.

“Amen,” Black Bear echoed, a pace too slow.

“Do Bears in your forest also celebrate Christmas?” Polar Bear’s Mom asked.

Black Bear scratched his ear. “I guess so? But it’s more of a time when Bears hunt for deals—shopping sprees, fancy meals. We don’t get the day off, you see. Lunar New Year, now that’s a feast worth hibernating in Taiwan.”

“Oh, are you from Taiwan?” Polar Bear’s Aunt leaned closer, her snout twitching. “My son volunteered to build homes for the poor children in rural parts of your forest. Right, Cubby? He, sorry—they have an igloo architectural license.”

Mortified, Polar Bear injected, “Auntie, Cousin went to Thailand, not Taiwan.” Her fur bristled as she glanced at Black Bear.

“That’s cool,” Black Bear said. “But igloos? My Sun Bear friend told me they melt once the volunteers take off. At the end, it seems easier for them to sleep in trees.”

“In trees!” Polar Bear’s Aunt gasped. “Son, you must go back and build them un-meltable igloos next time. The poor cubs. Just imagine—they don’t even have blackout curtains!” She sighed sympathetically and turned to Black Bear. “Do you have blackout curtains in Taiwan? Don’t tell me you also sleep in trees.”

“Oh no,“ Black Bear said with an uneasy laugh. ”Mostly caves or tree cavities. The only time I climb trees is when I’m hungry—for honey and bee larvae. Have you tried them?”

“Bee larvae? That sounds disgusting,” Polar Bear’s Cousin said, wrinkling their nose, unfazed by Polar Bear’s death glare across the table. “Thailand fed us Pad Thai and Green Curry every day.”

“Son,” Polar Bear’s Uncle rumbled as he lumbered over with a platter of barbecued seal fat. “Don’t you know Formosan Black Bears are battling Giant Pandas to protect their territory? What propaganda are you watching all day on TikTok? Read the news.”

Polar Bear’s Aunt sniffled. “I heard about that conflict. Is that why you left, Black Bear? It must be so dangerous back home. Don’t worry. Stay here in the Arctic as long as you want. We’ll sponsor you.”

No longer able to tolerate her extended family’s political incorrectness, Polar Bear tried to stir the conversation. “So, Black Bear, how’s your research? Any insights to share?”

“Yes, actually,” Black Bear said. “Before coming here, I thought Taiwan did a terrible job on climate change initiatives. Sure, we mostly rely on fossil fuels, but imagine squeezing Australia’s population into an area the size of Switzerland. Add typhoons and earthquakes to the mix. Our islands need to generate energy for millions and the semiconductor industry, which, by the way,” he added, fixing his gaze on Polar Bear’s Cousin, “powers your AI, EVs, solar panels, and wind turbines. Charity case, eh?”

A beat of silence followed as Polar Bear’s family exchanged looks. The Cousin shifted in their seat, ears flattening. Minutes passed. Polar Bear cleared her throat.

“Did you know Taiwan is smaller than many of our icebergs?” she asked, her voice tentative, like a kind schoolteacher. “Every Bear does what they can with what they have. And really, isn’t that what this is about? Climate change affects us all—even those big-headed humans. Here we are, just bears trying to adapt.”

She surveyed her family, looking each in the eye, and finally at Black Bear. “And if Black Bear can adapt to seal fat and bear kisses, maybe we can try a little harder too.”

For the first time that evening, Black Bear felt the tension in his shoulders ease, melting faster than glaciers. Maybe he didn’t fully belong in the Arctic yet, but any bear could find a caring companion who understood, even in this icy corner of the world. He leaned in to sniff the barbecue seal fat and said, “Hold up. Let me get my soy sauce.”

Story and illustration by Ya-Ting Yu is a Taiwanese writer based in Taipei, with roots stretching to Toronto and Edinburgh. Writing in English as her second language, she weaves themes of identity and belonging, drawing on her background in counseling and psychology to tell the stories of East Asian expatriates and international students.

Save Them Bears was inspired by my own experience as a Taiwanese expat, navigating the nuances of cultural assimilation and identity. I hope to highlight how cultural misunderstandings can be wrapped in well-meaning gestures. By anthropomorphizing the characters, I aim to create a story that is somewhat ‘trigger-free’ yet thought-provoking.