kaohsiungsummerwriting

[kaohsiungsummerwriting]

Anne Wu, Scream 

Anne Wu, The Mirror Self 

Anne Wu, Daylight

Phoenix Tsou, The Deep Drop

Phoenix Tsou, Starry Night

Jimmy Wu, You Bowling Today?

Jimmy Wu, In The Snow

Victor Hsiao, Hot Spring Trip

Victor Hsiao, Mom

[kaohsiungsummerwriting]

Scream, by Anne Wu

lying

on

my back

on

my bed

in the room

I managed to breathe tranquilly

when someone entered the room

my parents perhaps

and asked me what was wrong

and then

I was forced to

scream

(after Shang Qin’s Cough)

[kaohsiungsummerwriting]

The Mirror Self, by Anne Wu

I stare at my reflection in the ornate wooden mirror, a blond girl with green eyes, in an orange T-shirt and jeans. Twenty years old today, and I still look like a fifteen-year-old. I suppose most women of my age might be pleased, but I don’t much care. The fifteen-year-old me was not a very good person to be.

Sydney, my half-sister, peeks into the room. “Hurry up, Evie! You’ve been in that room for at least ten minutes already.” She gives me a playful grin, mischief dancing in her eyes.

“Yes, I know, Sydney,” I groan. “Ten minutes isn’t all that long and I was trying to have some peaceful me time.”

“I said at least ten minutes, didn’t I?” She raises her dark eyebrows. “You care way too much about how you look.”

Her voice echos in the chambers of my mind: How you look… you look… look… look… look… Malevolent echos, echos that fill my head and send me spinning.

Then it changes into something else entirely. Something else from someone else entirely. Look, Evie, you’ll never be pretty, okay? Never like me.

“Evie?” Sydney frowns. “Are you all right?”

No, I’m not all right, I want to scream at her, but I can’t. I’m being yanked back to the old days, back to the orphanage, back to the place where no one wanted me, where no one cared for me. Where the popular girls passed me every day with whispers and snickers. Where my only refuge was a cave, and that was because no one was in it.

“Evie, can you hear me?”

The orphanage… everything coming back now. I was five when I was shoved in by a tall man smelling of smoke; I was five when I became confused, scared, trying my best to hide from the vicious world. Who was this mean tall man, and where were Mommy and Daddy? Where did they fly to after the cars bumping together? And why didn’t I get to fly with them?

I remember thinking once that wherever Mommy and Daddy flew to had to be better than this, that I had to join them somehow, but I was bound here. A jail cell, filled with scorpions.

“Evie!”

The cane whooshing down on my palms, crisscrossed with scars. The teachers, the cruel mockings, the rumors passed from teacher to student that I had an F in this subject or the other, the trips in the hallway from straight-A students. I would always hit the floor, always see stars, always have to retreat to the coziness of my cave and my books.

Sydney shakes my shoulder. “Evie, listen to me! Don’t get lost in yourself again!” Her face, concerned, worried. I suck in air, stabilizing myself.

In. Out. In. Out.

I nod, but turning to the door, I glimpse my reflection in the mirror again. Twenty-year-old me, fifteen-year-old me… does it make a difference?

Crying in my cave… endless tears, endless cruelty. Flashlights my only illumination, books my only friends. It was torture every day to step out of my bed, torture every day to live at all.

Sydney slaps me on the cheek gently. “Evie. Stop thinking of the orphanage.” A command. “It doesn’t matter how you look. You are a good person and you, Evelyn Ambrose, should be proud of that. Now look at me.”

The pretty girls, the popular girls, looking at me, giggling, pointing, and me powerless to stop it all…

One single thing repeated through my head every day. Hell.

Only Sydney understood me. Only her, and I was fifteen by then. Ten years gone by in the hellhole of all hellholes. Her family adopting me was the best thing that had ever happened to me, but that wasn’t a hard list to top.

“Evie, only stupid-heads think looks determine greatness. It’s like Mendel’s Law of Independent Assortment. Remember that from biology class?”

I manage to force out a “No.”

Sydney makes a face at me. “Well, you should. Two things don’t always arrive in a package. You can be ugly and evil, or beautiful and evil, or ugly and good, or beautiful and good. A one-fourth chance for each of them. Simple math.”

“But who cares about goodness? Who does, Syd?” I whisper.

She stares me hard in the face.

“Some people do. And you should, too.” Then she adds, with a fierce scowl, “And don’t ever, ever, ever call me Syd again.”

“All right, Syd,” I tease.

She slaps me for the second time, but she’s laughing. “Come on. That’s twenty minutes lost. And we have someone’s birthday to celebrate.”

We head out of my room. I don’t glance at the mirror again.

[kaohsiungsummerwriting]

Daylight

Day absorbs dark,

Ablaze sunrises shed their shadowy veils.

Stars sink to the treetops like glittering confetti,

And rests there, like a warm blanket,

The glimmering dreams and hopes

Conceived in this flowering, blissful paradise.

And the trees that were sprouted here

Whisper through the grass by their roots.

Leaves tinged with red and yellow

Ripple through the sunlight.

And then the light moves on.

(after Chika Sagawa’s Backside)

[kaohsiungsummerwriting]

The Deep Drop, by Phoenix Tsou

For a second I thought I was schizophrenic. The crash came so suddenly that I didn’t even know if it was real. It just seemed like an illusion to me maybe I was hallucinating after a really full lunch experience at an all you can eat buffet restaurant, I did not believe an incredibly skilled driver like my dad even to this day lane splitting and cutting off other drivers would crash into a slowly moving ice cream vender van while wheeling his way through Walmart at a incredibly slow pace. While I was doubting this really happened or not, deep down inside I hoped and hoped it was just in my imagination. After about five seconds I realized I can’t pretend anymore it's right in front of me. My excitement for a Saturday afternoon shopping at walmart with my family was completely dead. It turned into a mini depressed session in the car with my little brother both sitting in the back seat zoned out looking at what have just happened and my heart was like floating above wonderland to hitting the bottom of the ocean and shattered into tiny pieces that completely destroyed my suppose to be fun weekend. This memory hit me a few years back when I told my mom I was going to tutor on my bike but it was just a block away but I really liked riding my bike. After tutoring class I decided I was going to go for a ride around the art museum park, deep down inside I wasn’t feeling good about this because my mom had told me to go back home and not staying out for too long. I refused to listen because i knew I would be fine. Little did I know I crashed, sliding to the ground. It was a rainy day, had my one week old laptop carried inside my backpack with little protection. Right at the moment my backpack flew across the floor I had flashbacks of my memory when I was six. I started to panick.

[kaohsiungsummerwriting]

Starry Night, by Phoenix Tsou

Why is the night sky so beautiful? Yet, it seems like my emotions revolve around the stars. I drew this painting on a Monday night I thought to myself life is hard, what's the point of existence The black tower is like a black hole to me what if we just stepped inside no light just darkness nothing to worry about maybe we will be so much better without existing on earth. If we never did exist we wouldn’t have to worry about anything, Life existing in the universe makes me wonder where does the world even end, can there really be a place where there’s completely nothing? The stars on the skies remind me about that there’s always a completely different world out there for us to discover and learn about. What if their world had a perfect way of taking care of things?

[kaohsiungsummerwriting]

You Bowling Today? by Jimmy Wu

“Hey, you bowling today?” “Sure” I respond. This is the conversation we will have everyday in middle school with my best friend, Jerry. The first day of school all the student were in the auditorium waiting for check in. Jerry was standing right behind me on the line. The first impression that I had on him was he thinks that he is really cool, but he is actually not. He is as tall as I am, but he is way stronger than I am. He tap me on the shoulder and said, “Did you finish your summer homework??” I said “No, I didn’t get any summer homework” “I didn’t as well, hey it is really nice to meet you my name is Jerry” he responded. We became friends since we first met is probably because we had a lot in common. From grade 7-9 we suffer and celebrate everything together. We had fought our teacher many times together and of course we did our consequences together as well. We celebrate every game we have won whether it is on the internet or on the court together. Now we go to different schools, so we don’t meet each other that often. Even though we won’t see each other as often as before, but our friendship won’t change because we didn’t see each other.

[kaohsiungsummerwriting]

In the Snow, by Jimmy Wu

Next summer I am going to begin my college life in United states. The memory of me at Boston when I was four years came out immediately. This wasn’t a regular memory it was my first memory that I had. When I was in preschool usually walk to school with my dad on about 15-20 minutes. In these time my dad will usually help me practice my English by asking what day is today and how was the weather. I can still remember it was a snowy day and the road is full of ice. The ice made the road really slippery and I was walking really slowly and almost slipt on every step that I taked. My dad was afraid that I will go to school late because I was walking so slowly, so he decided to put me in his back and start walking me on his back. But, the routine of asking me what day is today and how is the weather didn’t stop. I was answering the question and then I feel asleep. The memory stop and I can not remember what happened next. This is important to me is also because this is the last time that my dad had put me on his back so I will save this as a really precious memory. That is a short memory, but it is also my the first memory that I had. I can still remember clearly even though it was 13 years ago.

My first memory came from when I was four years old in Boston. When I was in preschool usually walk to school with my dad on about 15-20 minutes. In these time my dad will usually help me practice my English by asking what day is today and how was the weather. This is when I have my first memory. What makes me feel that I remember the most is in a snow day. That day was really slippery so I slipt almost every step that I take. My dad was afraid that I will go to school late because I was walking so slowly, so he decided to put me in his back and start walking me on his back. But, the routine of asking me what day is today and how is the weather didn’t stop. I was answering the question and then I feel asleep. Than I don’t remember what happened next. That is a part of my memory that have left in my brain even though it was 13 years ago.

For my second birthday my family and I went to help me choose a cake for my birthday. We looked for a long time because me and my family have different definition of what a good cake is. Finally I found a cake that  both my family and I agreed that was the perfect cake for us. In the next few hours we enjoyed the cake. We enjoyed it is not because the cake taste so delicious, it is because I was able to enjoy it together with my family, this would made me feel the cake taste extra delicious. Second, after a hard work of finding the cake that I wanted with my family I feel the work was all worth it, so the cake taste extra sweet, because me and my family put in a lot of effort in finding the perfect cake.  So the cake taste extra fluffy and sugary due to these two factors. This is the first memory I had, and it is also one of the best memory that I had left in my mind for my life because I was able to enjoy the sweetness of the cake together with my family.

[kaohsiungsummerwriting]

Hot Spring Trip, by Victor Hsiao

The spring water flowed around the rocks while hot steam rises to the sky. The mountain breeze quickly rushed through my face, and the scent of the boiled eggs slowly wandered into my nose, I felt the deepest relaxation ever. That piece of memory sometimes wanders into my brain, it comes unexpectedly, I have no idea why. It was about 5 years ago, me and my parents went on a little trip into the mountains to enjoy the hot spring water. The hotel was marvelous, you could see the lights dazzling as we drive closer and closer to the hotel, I could still remember the cold  breeze hugging my face as I stick my head out the window to get a closer look at the hotel. We arrived shortly, and the entrance was beautiful. Bright lamps were lined up on the left and right side of the entrance, welcoming us in. We quickly checked into our room. The fresh laundry smell of the bed made me feel fresh and clean, even though we had a long car ride. My eyes were heavy, I couldn’t help but lie on the bed, I didn’t have the right mind to let myself know that I didn’t even shower or brush I teeth, soon I quickly wondered off into the dreamland. After a long sleep, I finally woke up. The morning tasted nice and sweet, and I couldn't wait to go on more adventures. Me and my family decided to get room service for lunch, which I thought would be boring, but turned out to be quite fun. The hotel served really nice spaghetti, so I really enjoyed it. After lunch, we went to the spring water again. This time I can easily go in the hot section, the experience was so amazing I almost fell asleep in the water.

[kaohsiungsummerwriting]

Mom, by Victor Hsiao

My mom has black eyes that are strong and authoritative, and black hair with a little bit of white in it. She has aged, but that doesn’t change her beautiful looks. She has a pointy nose like a mountain, I could still remember me playing it when I was a little kid. My mom isn’t very tall, she is about one head shorter than me. She used to carry me around, but now she can’t do that anymore, maybe because of her age or it’s just that I am too big. Her personality is as graceful as a swan. She always keeps her temper under control, and never raises her voice. She does not back down from challenges, she faces them with confidence and grit. Dedication is her finest trait, she never leaves her goal, and always dedicates herself to the matter at hand. You will never find one inch of distraction in her, getting distracted is the last thing she does.

[kaohsiungsummerwriting]

Assignments: Thursday, June 29-Eternity:

1. Read (everything).

2. Write. Write stories. Write essays. Write letters. Write emails. Write poems. Write postcards. Write notes.

[kaohsiungsummerwriting]

If man pushes nature too far, then nature will push back devastatingly.

Anne

[kaohsiungsummerwriting]

The black tower is like a black hole to me.

Phoenix

[kaohsiungsummerwriting]

Assignments: Wednesday, June 28

1. Daily Observation Journal, Entry #10

2. Daily Observation Journal: Type up your entire DOJ, Entries 1-10. Make sure each entry is dated. Give the entire DOJ a title. Email to me.

3. Complete one more revision of: (1) Present/Past essay, (2) Painting essay, (3) Portrait. Give each essay a title. Be creative. For the Painting essay, insert an image of the painting into the essay. Format it so that it is aesthetically pleasing.

4. Final reading/writing assignment. Choose two of the following poets. For each poet, find (online) two of their poems. Read the poems. Choose one poem by each of the two poets and write an “imitation” of each: poems, in your own words, but using the structure and the devises of the original. Here are the poets to choose from:

Shang Qin. Ye Mimi. Chika Sagawa. Wong May. Dot Devota. Hiromi Ito.

To repeat: you will be writing two poems. 

[kaohsiungsummerwriting]

[kaohsiungsummerwriting]

Assignments: Tuesday, June 27

1. Daily Observation Journal, Entry #9

2. You should now have at least: (1) one complete draft of your Present/Past (aka First Memory, aka Pomegranate) essay, (2) one complete draft of your Painting (aka Tigress imitation) essay. You should revise each of these essays at least one more time, following the feedback guidelines we’ve discussed (that you’ve been applying to your classmates’ work): first sentence, last sentence, description (clarity, tangibility, imagination), and voice (tone, personality, strength). 

3. Write a draft of a Portrait, following yesterday’s guidelines (see post: Assignments: Monday, June 26). The draft does not have to be “clean” or “complete,” but should be at least 1-page in length.

4. Email me an update on the book you are reading (independently): what page you’re on, how the book is going (what’s happening, whether or not you are interested, what you like about it, etc.) NOTE: I haven’t received very many of these updates, so please try to do this today/tonight!

[kaohsiungsummerwriting]

It is pleasant to have something to talk about that no one else has monopolized; it is like making a new path in the trackless woods, blazing the trail where no foot has pressed before.

Helen Keller