By Zara Quiter, TIWP Student This is my No Kings battle crybecause it might be war,because it’s a war I would wageagainst him.I could write page after page,I could go out on every limb,but does my message even reach his ears?Anger is the essence of my tears,not sadness, maybe some fear.I wish I was there […]

By Giséle Anagnost, TIWP Student I come from the seeds from my parent’s trees.I come from a house filled with warm hugs and open arms.I come from relaxing days spent in the glare of the sun.I come from hour after hour spent immersed in the irresistible pull of books.I come from the refreshing and cool […]

By Harper McIntyre, TIWP Student A globe of gunmetal mesh;That encapsulates the beautiful.If that crown was not laid over these flightful creaturesWe would probably never see them again. And for I exist most naturally in this museum of Seraphim,My hands and feetcovered with my youthful wings.I am too large to slip through this meshBut I […]

By Mina Talebi, TIWP Student Boney fingers are warmer than they should beBaby, you say in your native languageLet me seep the sorrow from your neckCry all of the hardship into my hands The wind plays at a whisper of a whisperSome secret that could bring retribution and justice and you just can’t hearHeartbeats climb […]

By Mina Talebi, TIWP Student Flowers died when you didn’t come overYellow tulips holding each other, weepingI go hoarse like a desperate woman, reaching for someone who is curling to avoid meI chase you and you runObediently disgusted,Heartbreakingly afraidThere must be a sharpness in the way that I loveMud and dirt slather my laugh and […]

By Mina Talebi, TIWP Student I am peacefully on my knees for youHands and feet are gentler stillButterflies fill my lungs and beat until I look up at youEyes sad like a little boysJoints hard like your father’s My choice to pray to you was no choice at allI burn altars and frown at crosses […]

By Neko Ikels, TIWP Student I’ve bitten my tongue,More times than I can count,Held it,Restraining myself from saying something,The wrong thing. I bite my tongue when I have nothing nice to say,When my words feel like leaves that fall and blow away,When I am in a room full of people who talk so much of […]

Inspired by the poem, “what can a poem do?” by Darius V. DaughtryBy Lina Norris-Raman, TIWP Student A poem cannot stop time,but it can still a recurring thought.It can quiet the chaos,slow the churn of overthinking. It cuts through walls of anxietylike a flood through San Francisco—rushing, breaking,dismantling intention and purposeuntil the mind lies in […]

By Zara Quiter, TIWP Student As I listen to the creekin the corner of my streetsI hear the whispers of stories,songs from the grave,hushed memories long forgottencreeping through my window They filter through my mind,and return to the worldunder cracks of doorsinto the ears of few,They are changed, revised,reborn into something new,So that they may […]

By Lina Norris-Raman, TIWP Student Each glance in the mirror shows someone new,  every version battling, not a nice enough view.  Her nose too big, her waist too wide—  never pausing to think of what’s inside.     The guilt that pangs when she takes a bite, she keeps it hidden, locked in tight. With trembling breaths, she steps on the […]