Hello everyone!
Welcome to our PoArtMo Anthology (Youth Edition) Series, which celebrates the talented young creatives featured in The Auroras & Blossoms PoArtMo Anthology: Youth Edition (Volume 2).
Today, Anna Kuang and Makili Matty are telling us what inspired the pieces they sent us.
Anna Kuang
Anna Kuang (Beavercreek, U.S.) loves cross-country running, playing quizbowl, singing, reading, and writing. She plans to study biochemical engineering because of her interest in using science to save the environment. “My role model is my mother because she has an amazing way of staying positive every single day. She is so selfless, generous, and strong. She has been through so much adversity, and has never given up or lost her ability to see the bright side of things. I can only hope that one day I can be as awesome as she is.”
Anna sent us the poem titled The Sun and Us:
The idea for this poem came to me during a point in my life when I felt stuck — like I was doing the same things over and over, day after day, without going anywhere. Things never changed. It was life on repeat, and I was sick and tired of it.
However, as time went on, I came to realize that though each day seemed like the same old day, there was still beauty in living, if only I opened my eyes to see it. And not only were there small joys in everyday living, there were opportunities to make life better for others. The sun takes the same path day after day, and yet through the process, it shines light onto the whole world. I learned that, just like the sun, I can take each day as a new opportunity to illuminate the world around me, and in doing so, illuminate my own life. And through this poem, I hope I can inspire others to believe that as well.
Makili Matty
Makili Matty (Kittery Point, U.S.) enjoys writing, playing soccer and hockey, math, and science, and wants to become a professor of theoretical physics. “My role model is my grandmother. She is always kind to everyone, and trying to help or feed them lunch.”
Makili sent us the poem titled Cranberry Bundt Cake:
The first time I ate raw cranberries, I spit them out. It was at this small farm, and I remember watching as the old ladies that owned the bog sorted through the fruit, throwing out the unripe ones. Every now and then, one of them would pop a berry into their mouth. They called them “candy”.
Raw cranberries are not sweet. They taste like someone took the sour part of a lemon and the tart part of a grapefruit, and added the faintest dash of honey. They are not sweet, yet when you cook them with sugar and flour and butter, they make the most basic cake that much better.
Cranberry Bundt Cake is a reflection of how tart and sour can make something the slightest bit sweeter. Of how a bit of pain and sorrow can sometimes make a memory just a little bit more meaningful, and of how small things can sometimes be the difference between a cake and a bowl of cranberries.
Anna and Makili, thank you for sharing what inspired your pieces. We know that people will love your work as much as we do!
This instalment ends our PoArtMo Anthology (Youth Edition) Series for this year. We hope that you enjoyed reading the words of our wonderful contributors, and will support them by buying a copy of The Auroras & Blossoms PoArtMo Anthology: Youth Edition (Volume 2).
The Auroras & Blossoms PoArtMo Anthology: Youth Edition (Volume 2) will be released on March 23, 2023. In the meantime, you can pre-order your copy for 50% off the regular price. Offer ends on March 23, 2023.
Cendrine & David
Please note that Auroras & Blossoms only releases digital copies (ebooks) of its anthologies. This allows us to keep our costs and book prices low, and avoid charging young participants for submitting to us.