April 23, 2020
MPA Middle School students were enthusiastic to celebrate the 50th Earth Day on April 22. Dr. Milam challenged students to go outside to be in nature and take photographs, and students in Ms. Atchison’s class wrote poems honoring Earth. Get lost in their beautiful writing and enjoy a few of their poems.
“The Lilac” by Zain A.
The lilac that grew from the rocks,
did what it had to do
to grow its stalks.
Do you know what it went through
to accomplish that?
It had to work.
It pushed and pushed.
Till it became a plant.
Then it soaked and soaked in nutrients,
and with all that effort,
it was beautiful.
It wasn’t easy.
There were rocks piled on it.
and then some snow,
and then some drought.
It should have died.
There was so much to overcome,
but it stayed alive with its will to grow
and be beautiful.
And because of that, it grew.
It grew and grew until the winter came.
Afterwards, it pushed and pushed,
and soaked and soaked,
and became beautiful again.
“Nature’s Grit” by David S.
These are the mallards that flew home earlier than the rest, the ducks that braved the cold and the journey to pave the way for others
Through the repeated snow, hail, and rainstorms, they have stayed in their home, refusing to give in
They were the early birds who got the worm, the ones who will build a nest and raise ducklings first
Praise to the ducks that went first, that braved the storm to help others find their way
“Hey, Twisty and Unique Beauty” by Alex M.
Hey, twisty and unique beauty, is it you that survived the winter and are still there ready to bloom in front of my house for everyone else to see?
Is it that you feel you must be strong and stay for others while they couldn’t stay for themselves and others?
Although it may seem like it was just another winter of freezing air, you showed everyone it is okay to struggle while doing it.
Yay to you, you twisty and unique beauty, your continuous life brings others life, joy, and the ability to forget everything else because you fight the same thing every year and never give up.
“The Giving and Return of Life” by Finn Z.
It’s funny to think that there is a cycle of life right outside of my backdoor. How could a whole lake freeze and thaw year after year than proceed to support a whole ecosystem?
To emerge with beauty, it needed to learn that there is more than itself, and that beauty isn’t just shapes and colors
The price of beauty isn’t easy to pay. As humans need more and more space, there continues to be less and less who care about beauty and only want the land
Because of all its hard work, whenever anybody even sees the lake from the corner of their eye, they will be in awe. In turn, they will want to keep it safe and help it out
“The First One to Bud After Winter” Lily R.
Is this the first budding tree after the cold harsh winter?
This tree that lost its beauty but worked to have it again. This tree that has gone through years of cold and wind.
This tree that has been there through cold, and warm. This tree that will lose but will always have again.
This is that tree, what a wonderful tree. The lucky tree that buds first.
“The Colorful Tulip” by Ema S.
This the tulip that grew from her roots whose colors didn’t blend well with the others
But do you know why her colors shone through though she tried and tried to keep them rather muted
Because you can’t hide things that are vibrant and true, and you certainly cannot change her
She can’t help it that you can’t handle her vibrance which is so powerful it’ll help her prosper
“The Butterfly that Weathered the Storm” by Tasos D.
Did you hear about the black swallowtail butterfly,
the butterfly the emerged from its cocoon nestled
on the underside of a leaf
It broke free of its previous unappealing shell,
And emerged beautiful
Its cocoon weathered each storm,
and it came out victor
All that said you would not last longer than a week,
all that doubted, you proved them wrong,
you are a beautiful butterfly
