Loretta

She feels close to depth,
Like a necklace, you notice after looking for a while. 

She changes the feeling of the room without meaning to,
Grey suits her. 
Her smile is small and unforced, like it’s just where her face settles.

Arched eyebrows, not to impress anyone.
Eyes with softness, not emptiness. 

She doesn’t remind you of anyone else. 
No earrings, no necklace, the crashing waves of her hair, 

Not trying to be seen, 
And doesn’t demand attention

Silence is her language, 
She understands it as well as speech. 

Thin oval-shaped lips, bottling up words of wisdom
Forehead showing experience more than worry

If she were part of a story,
She wouldn’t be the centre of it. 
She’d be the depth underneath,
The part that connects things
And make everything else feel real. 
Like a bluer story, if present.

Umbrella for Two

Standing in the rain
Beneath the sky that weeps 
An elegy for one

Holding an unopened umbrella
A silent companion 
to the storm
A quiet witness 

The rain speaks gently
The way a mother may 

Standing still
The air and rain learns my shape

Each drop a promise
That breaks apart before it reaches me

Still, I look up
Just in case the clouds might remember
The child they left behind

Diamond in the Rough

From Within
Plastic green trees
Green Snow that never escapes
A glass dome,
Holding a tiny world
Foggy glass
No cracks, no scratches
Just a wall 
That separates their world from ours
On the bedside table for years
A mere shape 
Brand new once,
Now a diamond in the rough

Serena Park is a high school student who writes poetry and creates visual art in the quiet corners of her day. When she’s not working on a piece, she’s usually listening to music—especially rock, with a special place in her heart for Kurt Cobain.