#BirdvilleVoices
vol.1, edition: 4 March 2017
Welcome to #BirdvilleVoices Digital Literary Magazine!
North Oaks MS: Dylan D.
My Memoir
As the bell rang and school let out I gathered my things and sprinted down the street. I saw my Jayfeather travel trailer hooked up on the truck in the front of my yard and my parents scrambling back and forth loading up the truck. I helped them and when everything was loaded up we got in the truck we got on our way to Palo Duro Canyon.
It had been 6 hours since we had gotten out of the truck. My family and I all needed breaks. The truck was tired of driving with a big travel trailer on it so t needed a break too. We found the nearest rest stop and handled business. After we all had our breaks we got on the road and saw a sign saying Amarillo in 5 mi. The first thing I did was help my dad set up the trailer. After we explored the beautiful views, the delicious food, and horseback riding down in the canyon we got back on the road and set sails for Roswell, New Mexico. As we rode down the street I noticed that the light poles had alien heads on them. Everything there was Alien themed including store attractions and even McDonalds!
The whole way back home I slept in the truck. Getting back home was one of the best feelings in the world!
Haltom MS: Aly M.
Thunder claps around the small town of Haltom city. People of all ages are watching the news. A storm is coming.
Kids squeal in nervousness as rain starts pouring down. About 45 minutes after the first rainfall, a tornado warning goes out to broadcast on every tv station in the area. As people watch the tornado from a distance in their houses, a duck falls out of the sky. Not injured or hurt, it waddles away to a nearby pond. People stare at it in disbelief. Where did it come from, and how is it not hurt?
As more ducks fall from the sky, people then find out where the mysterious ducks are coming from. The small tornado goes over a pond and as it sucks up water, it accidentally brings a duck with it .
After the small tornado is over, citizens all around are grateful that nothing nor nobody was hurt. Everyone had a good laugh that day that ducks rained from the sky.
Watauga MS: Lily M.
Dogs
Warm tongues licking your face bringing smiles to your childhood.
The sight of the friendly faces gives you a positive attitude.
The soft fur left on your clothes after snuggling your buddy.
Happy memories brought into your life by spending time with your pal.
Bubbles flying everywhere when you bathe the closest friend you'll ever have.
The fun times spent with your roommate.
The ball throwing.
The games.
The toys.
The fur.
The memories.
All carried into your life by a simple pet.
A simple best friend.
A dog.
Something that you never really think about twice.
Someone who could improve your life for being not only a dog, but a loyal companion.
North Oaks MS: Nikolas G.
My Memoir
Although it was still very dark outside, my mother and I had awaken early.
We had to wake up early so that my mom could take me to my cousin's house while she went Christmas shopping.
So after we ate breakfast and brushed our teeth, we started our drive to their city. When we arrived at their house, I was greeted by my grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins. As I watched my mom drive off, my cousins gave me a dinner plate. After I realized why they handed me the plate, I quickly picked out the foods I wanted.
After eating dinner with my family, my cousins asked me if I would be interested in playing some board games and when I agreed to do so, they pulled out Monopoly and then we played. When we were done playing all the board games that they owned, we decided to go out for bike riding. We started doing stunts, and then we went on a few hills, and after riding down a few hills, we all started getting bored and tired.
But for some reason, tired or not, we decided to race each other from one hill to another. So as my cousins and I were having a good normal time, my turn came up to race. After a minute or two, I was starting to wear out, and I wasn't paying any attention to what was in front of me at all. Before I could look ahead, I was soaring in the air. When I figured out what happened, I noticed that I was laying flat on my own hand! Ewwww! so my mother came to pick me up, not to take me home but to the ER. That night, I went home with a cast, a wrist brace, and specific rules to follow. I learned to pay attention to where you are going when riding a bike.
North Richland MS: Claire L.
True Nature
“I go to nature to be soothed and healed, and to
have my senses put in order.” - John Burroughs.
This is how I feel about my family’s ranch called the 420. Its 420 acer’s and I couldn’t love anything more.. If you want to know what it’s like in the country with no loud noises and no big lights, go out there. It is so beautiful and peaceful.
One night my friend Emma and I went out there and started star gazing. I have only seen one shooting star before but that night we saw four shooting stars! It was so amazing!
You can see everything out there. Beautiful sunsets, road runners, coyotes, to even a bobcat chasing a deer! When I am out there sometimes I am just speechless. There are no words to explain how pretty and special it is out there. From watching storms blow in to sitting in the sun, it is truly nature out there.
My Papa, who bought the 420, died a couple of years ago. I see him every night I am out there., He is the biggest, brightest star in the night sky. I have so many memories at the 420. I shot my first deer, saw my first shooting star and every year we even do our own fireworks show for July 4th. I love going out there and experiencing true nature.
How do I feel about nature ? To me it’s family.
Smithfield MS: Sonya D.
Locked!
How hard is it to pick a lock? I did not know the answer to this question until this evening. With grease on my fingers, I’ll unlock the story.
I was hiding with my brother’s NERF gun under what we call the buffet, hoping he wouldn’t find me when I heard my 2nd grade sister yell “MOMMY! NATE LOCKED NASH [my youngest brother at 1 ½ ] IN HIS ROOM!” I stayed under the buffet for a while, until I knew my mom wasn’t having any progress. I stashed the gun under the buffet, then crept to my brothers’ room. I watched my mom for a bit, then I asked, “Can I try?” After repeating the question a few times, she let me have a go at it.
I didn’t have any luck at first, so we unscrewed the entire front of the doorknob. From there I did a little better. I found a few points of interest, but none of them worked. This entire time my little brother (the one trapped in his room) was either quietly playing or tugging on the doorknob. After what seemed like hours, but was probably just minutes, I was working on my last lead when, suddenly, something clicked, literally!
The door swung open! My mom sighed with relief, while Nash rushed into her arms. I don’t know how I did it, but I’m so glad it worked.
In answer to the first question, picking a lock is hard, but if it’s for a good reason, a little sweat and grease is worth it. I’m so happy I could pick that lock.
Haltom MS: Linette M.
Motivation
Motivation is an inspiration in your heart.
When someone tries to motivate you they try to make you believe in yourself.
Motivation can change someone’s life.
I might not be an athlete or been on TV,
but I know it doesn’t take that much effort to stand up and rise to the light of victory.
Don’t give up because you’ve seen other people give up. Think about being one of the people to accomplish their dreams.
Be who you were born to be.Richland MS: Mattea G.
The Spelling Bee
“Are you ready?” my parents asked.
I was not ready! I don’t think I can do this, but I would have to try, whatever the circumstances. I mean, I had studied some, enough to get somewhat far. Even though I had butterflies in my stomach, I had people that were depending on me to do well. I had to go out there and try my best.
The spelling bee was about to start and I was first, so that made it harder for me. I went up there to spell my first word, and it was surprisingly easy. The next few rounds were a breeze, with a lot of people getting out. I tried my hardest to stay in, and I was still in the spelling bee by the time there were four people left.
The words were getting harder, and the tension was rising. The butterflies in my stomach were coming up again. I nervously went up to spell a word. I thought, “I better get this right if I want to win,” and I got the word “inflagration.” I wasn’t sure how to spell it, and I was so worried. I tried to sound as confident as I could, and spelled it: “I-N-F-L-I-G-R-A-T-I-O-N.”
Right then I knew I wasn’t going to win. It was over. I went down in the audience and saw the others spell. As long as they all misspelled the word, I could go back in, and that’s just what happened. I went back in and spelled “inconceivable” correctly, and won, since everyone misspelled a word again! I was so proud of myself. Even if it happened mostly because of luck.
Even though luck affected it, I know I had tried my hardest because if I didn’t, I would’ve been out way earlier. If you try your hardest and believe in yourself, you can achieve a lot of things, like I did at the spelling bee!
North Ridge MS: Shelby P.
Rules are here for a reason. They are here to protect you, so that you don't get hurt. They are here to help you not get in trouble by doing something you aren’t supposed to be doing. The only reason rules are here are to help you,. This is why rules should never be broken.
There are many rules. No stealing, vandalism, and no lying. But there are also little rules that shouldn’t be broken either. If you have ever been to an indoor playground, you’d know there is usually a big plastic sign on the equipment with the word ‘Rules’ on the top. They may seem like no big deal, but even the smallest rules can make a difference. It may say ‘No Climbing’. If you climb, you may fall and break something. Listening to the rules could’ve prevented an incident like that from happening.
Just imagine this: If rules were never broken, would there ever be a need for discipline or lectures? No one would get mad at you for breaking the rules, no detentions, and no parent lectures. Your life could be so much better if you followed the rules.
Following the rules could also help you in the long run. If you ever get caught breaking the rules by stealing or any other federal offense, you may get a sentence in prison. A criminal record would really hurt a job application. They wouldn’t be able to trust you.
As you can see, there are many reasons why rules should never be broken, and I only exemplified a few of them. Rules are here for a reason, and are not to be broken.
Watauga MS: Clay B.
A box of chocolates put into my hands peeling off the seal ever so slightly
as it as it glided across the box. Smelling all those chocolates that would
soon be mine. Seeing dark browns and light browns like a tree filled forest
with little rays of light shining down on them. Some as strong and hard as
steel and some softer then a pillow fresh from the dryer. The flavors twirled
and danced in my mouth as they ice skated across my taste buds so
elegantly. The caramel oozed like lava flowing down a erupting volcano.
The taffe grinded against my teeth like two plates in an earthquake.
The chocolate was so rich and dark you could taste a little bit of heaven.
North Oaks MS: Emma C.
My trip to Disneyland
“ Hurry up and get ready,” my sister Lizzy said, “ today’s the big day.”
One of the happiest moments of my life was the trip my family, and I took out to California to visit my grandparents and went to Disneyland.
During the summer break of the 2015 - 2016 school year my family and I went to California to visit my grandparents. For my family each visit to my grandparents house is special , so when we found out that we were going somewhere special we were all excited. But … No one knew where we were going except for my mom and grandparents.
So the rest of us were guessing for the rest of the week waiting to know where we were going. Now after a week we got up and headed out. My brother sister and I went with my grandparents while my parents went separately. When we finally got to our destination everyone knew where we were. We were at Disneyland!
When I saw the sign that said Disneyland parking lot I became ecstatic. All I wanted to do was get out of the car and start riding the rides, eating the food, and just having plain out fun! But before we could do all of the fun stuff we had to do all of the dreadfully long and horrible things. Such as paying for our parking spot and getting parked and ready period. By the time we were ready to start having fun I could barely contain my excitement and pure joy.
Now as you can imagine if when we were all in the parking lot I could barely contain my excitement and joy when we were riding an escalator down to the ground level I could not contain my excitement and joy. I was literally ,jumping around like a preschool student. I was just ecstatic! I just couldn’t think about anything else. My face lit up as if it was a firework display.
And if that was not good enough to prove to my family that I was totally ecstatic when we got to pixie hollow I was jumping and screaming in anticipation. This was because the TinkerBell movies used to be my favorite movie series ever, and of course Tinkerbell was my favorite character of all time!
If I had to choose my favorite part of the entire trip to Disneyland it would be the part when we were at Pixie Hollow. Being in Pixie Hollow was my favorite part not only because it was Pixie hollow, but because I got pictures with two of the main character’s Silvermist and drum roll please… Tinkerbell!
After going to Pixie Hollow everything turned into a “blur”. All I remember after Pixie Hollow fully is a huge parade that happened that night. The parade included all of the “older” Disney characters including Tinkerbell, Cars, Mickey Mouse ( etc.), including a huge firework show.
My family also went to Disney California, but my favorite part was the day that my family and I spent at Disneyland.
our second day ( our day at California adventure. ) passed far to quickly and is now just a blur in my mind other than there awesome corn dogs and the water firework show that was put on at the end of the night.
Now almost a year later the last thing I remember is going to two different souvenir shops and getting a stuffed animal Dory.
The last scene I saw at Disneyland will always be painted at the back of my head. The last scene I saw at Disneyland was looking back at the amusement park from a tram was the water firework show continuing and seeing all of those beautiful colors just made me want to cry.
I will always remember my trip to Disneyland as one of the happiest moments of my life.
Smithfield MS: Sophie G.
The World’s Eyes
As Isabella stared the world in its eyes, she knew she would never go back. She had loved Mars so much and had always dreamed of being on it. She never thought that in the year 3017, never in a million years, would she be walking on Mars.
There were no aliens; it was nothing like anyone thought it was. In fact, it was better. She loved every minute of it. She had never loved something this much. She could see the whole universe and more from here. It was a terrifying sight. Also, it made her question her entire life. She had never wanted to stay somewhere so badly! Even though she had always loved her home, it was never really her home home. Earth was strange to her. She didn’t get the girls’ weird moods, or the boys’ need for competition. All she ever longed for was right in front of her.
Although she had always longed for it, she never wanted it to come because once it came, it was gone. Then what? She was scared of what would come next. During that fear of the future, she was just going to enjoy every little detail. She would look at every star, every planet, and the infinite amount of space.
It was almost magic-every strand of it going in every particle of every little cell in her. Yet the magic weightlessness in space made her joyful. She was forcing the magic not to spew out of her in happiness. Out of nowhere, she just started to cry. She freaked out because she did not know how it would turn out in the space suit. She had no idea what to do. The tears were not just going to stop.
It took every force in her to stop. When she did, she turned around to see all of the other astronauts laughing and running. Some were taking samples. She was there. She was the only one crying, staring, and wondering, it was beautiful.
Watauga MS: Carver O.
I'm rotting. It's nothing new, we all rot at some point. But, I'm rotting different from you. Rot is a plague. My rot is malicious, tearing myself and people around me apart. There are dark spots, pitch black spots, painting my skin like a child's artwork. My rot goes from the inside out.
They leave me in my room, I cannot go to school and contaminate others, I don't want to. I feel like a monster in a quarantined cage. I'm so terribly sick. Mother worries for my sickly self. Father left. I feel it is because of my illness. I feel terrible. Mother must be lonely, for she cannot be around me, I don't want her to be sick too. I often see tears paint my mother's cheeks.
We live in a poor home, my mother does not make enough money on her own to pay my medical bills. I only have two pairs of clothes. I have a shirt as green as the leaves on the trees I drew as a small child, and two pairs of boring khaki pants. My favorite shirt is a long sleeved white shirt my grandmother, Nâi Nâi, brought me for my birthday. She bought it when she went to Hong Kong, far away from our small village, Taishan. I wear it all the time, it's soft and comforting.
I stand and walk to my dresser, which has a mirror on it. I poke at my face, prodding at the dark spots. I start to pick at the rotten spots, making them bleed and grow larger. I look at myself in the mirror, and I scowl. I find myself ugly.
I plop myself down onto the floor and lay down on my back. I stare up at my ceiling, and count the tiny bumps. I close my eyes, and drift off into sleep. My plague on other's lives will be gone soon.
Haltom MS: Jessica T.
Trees
Trees start off as seeds,
sunlight , water, and air,
they still need.
They grow up to be taller than me,
Now I feel as small as a flea.
In the summer they have green leaves,
Trees are so important I believe.
In the spring, they are Cherry Blossoms,
“How pretty,” I shout, “They’re so awesome!”
In the fall, they’re red, orange, and yellow.
If I were a tree,
I’d want them to be my fellow.
In the winter,
They lose their pretty leaves.
Now they have nothing,
Feeling miss believed.
“Hello,” says the big blizzard,
It knocks down the tree.
The tree ages as well,
You must learn to appreciate it,
Even if it fell.
North Ridge MS: Lauren M.
Rules, Meaning to be Broken
In 1960, four African-American college students sat down at a “white’s only” table. They broke the rules in a peaceful way, But within the next decade, their actions helped launch the Civil Rights Movement that changed the country. So the questions is: is it okay to break the rules? Those four students broke the rules to get some overdue attention to their situation. A few reasons it would be good to break the rules is to get some good attention for your situation and if you are doing it for a good cause.
Segregation has been a cause now to start violence, protests, and even caused many deaths. Segregation does not just mean black or white; it also means male or female, different religions, and much more. It has to stop. It has become apart of our lives, for as long as we have known.
So, breaking the rules was always taught to us as a very bad thing to do, but is it really? Sometimes situations like segregation are calling out to people to help. Let’s face it, the world will never be perfect. There will always be bad people in the world, and people who support those people, That is where segregation and things like that start. When those four people broke the rules, they got attention. In a way, them breaking the rules made the issue of segregation better. Because within the next decade, the segregation act was passed. They broke the rules for good causes. They took a risk, did wrong, and received good attention. So breaking the rules is bad, but when no one else is willing to listen, it will give you that attention.
So why else would it be good to break the rules you might ask? Well, I’m not telling you to go rob a bank because you need money for your sister to get a new car, but if it is for a cause that large amounts of people can benefit from, then it is okay. Sometimes it’s good to help. If those four college students had just followed the rules and had not stood up for themselves, who knows, we could have been in the Civil War right now!
Other good causes would be examples like when Rosa Parks sat down on the bus and refused to give up her seat when a white person told her to. Or when the first woman dropped in a voting slip when it was against the law for women to vote. Even now, here and in other parts of the world, people are seperated by looks, skin color, and even gender. But who will take that risk, and even risk their own life for what is right? Throughout history, the rebels, rule breakers, and people who have dedicated their lives to fixing problems, they didn’t do it for themselves, they did it to help others. Great acts of courage, bravery, and kindness have been used for good causes. Sometimes, it takes an act of bravery to stand up for what is right, to break a rule or to be different. The person who could stand up for others, or even yourself, could be you.
In conclusion, generally, no it is not okay to break a rule. But the world is not always general. The world is unique and unfair. So it takes a great act of courage to be different and break the rules. So who knows, in fifty years, maybe you will be remembered for breaking a rule in order to change the world.
Richland MS: Sasha N.
A NEW BEST FRIEND
He was the smallest and the least playful.As a matter of fact everyone else was busy looking at his siblings,and if someone tried to touch him he’d jump back growling.People shook their heads heads and scolded their children for trying to touch the puppy,and instead pointed him to some other dog or puppy.he was in a kennel all alone away from all his other siblings.I had watched this puppy get rejected several times.
He had a cream coat and big sad green eyes he sat at the front his paw touching the glass.I walked up to his kennel and placed my hand were his paw was. he stared at me and i stared at him back,and i felt an instant connection.HE finally seemed happy he wagged his little tail barking loudly and jumping in little circles.My dad must have been watching cause he placed his hand on my shoulder’’Let’s take him…’’I opened the kennel door and he ran up to me.I picked him up and he didn't hesitate to give my cheek a big wet lick.
He was the perfect dog even if he had a bit of an attitude towards others.The lady told us everything they knew about him.I named him Oliver after the orange cat from one of my favorite Disney movies.
Oliver was my new best friend. he was loyal,caring,and gentle.He knew never to nip or bite and was at my side all the time.Oliver is now about 2 years old but still acts like the loveable misjudged puppy,and I think he’s gonna stay that way forever.But as long as he remains at my side he'll still always be Oliver the rescued American Bulldog Mix.
Smithfield MS: Caroline K.
Fishing!
Pensacola Beach, fishing, and a fishing guide are all good ways to set up a day of great fun. I found this out when I went fishing with my Gramps, my two cousins, and my Aunt Heather in Florida. I would do anything to have another day like it, I promise!
We arrived at the fishing shop to meet our fishing guide, Tyler. When we got far enough out in the ocean, Tyler said, “I see some jumping Spanish mackerel.” Then, he handed me the fishing lure and I started to fish. We caught seven fish in the first hour. It was great!
After that, we went on a long ride to another part of the ocean to try to catch king mackerel or red snapper.The ride was very bumpy and my cousins and I could not stop laughing. On the way, we saw six dolphins jumping along the side of the boat. It was really cool. Now it was about to be the last hour and my mouth was so dry because it was so hot and humid outside, I could just feel the sweat dripping down my face.
Aunt Heather said, “You are all so dehydrated and need some water.”
I thought, “Great I’m so thirsty.”We brought some drinks along with us, we drank them, and then moved on.
We caught four red snapper, one black snapper, and eight more Spanish mackerel in the last hour. After riding the waves and laughing, and eating more snacks, it was finally time to go in to the shore. Surprisingly, I was ready to go.
In the end, we caught twenty fish and had a blast! “Will you go with us again next year?” my cousins asked. Of course I said, “Yes!” I knew we would have a feast for dinner with the rest of my family and they were so excited. I would do anything to have another great fishing day like I did.
North Richland MS: Emma S.
Nature at its finest!
My whole team walking with sweat falling off of us, bugs flying everywhere then suddenly we all stare!
My group in a line hiking at camp with my mom behind me. As we walk we hear people say there is a snake but we don’t believe them. As my mom and I walked around the bush with curiosity we saw the snake.I don’t want to walk past it but my mom was right behind me. As I daringly passed the snake with a frightened look on my face. All of a sudden; Ahhh… my mom scared me! I thought I was going to die but once we passed the snake I saw that everyone was also afraid. Even more than before. I asked everyone around me and then I saw that there was not only a mama snake but baby snakes with her. Everyone was scared because the mama snake was getting mad at us because we were walking passed the her babies.
My mom and me looked right at the other mom and her children. I knew then, that we are all part of nature together.
Nature might be scary but it sure is beautiful!
North Richland MS: Nolan R.
Up the Mountain!
“It’s the not the Destination, It's the journey.”
― Ralph Waldo Emerson
Splosh! Squish!
I’m glad I wore my- Splosh! old shoes… Walking in mud wasn't very pleasant but it was going to be worth it when I reach the top of the mountain.
I went on a field trip in fifth grade to a place called Camp Grady Spruce and we had hiked up a mountain there! So, my cabin and the cabin next door to us walked together . to the starting point of the route we were going to travel. We had a camp counselor guidance of the mountain on our hike. At first we stepped in a lot of mud and also saw some animal tracks too! Just some dog tracks though.
On our way up the mountain, we took plenty of notes and observed all of our surroundings at each stop. I had bought a camera to capture photos of everything that I thought was interesting! We had a few obstacles that we had to overcome along the way too. I realized that we are way up! I could even see through the trees occasionally to view the lake!
Then, in an instant, I could just see the top of the mountain! All I had to do was walk up a little path and I would make it to the top! In my mind, I was thinking, “I wonder what the view looks like from here.” As I took my final steps to the top, I ran over to the fence to see a breathtaking view of almost the whole camp. I uttered to myself, “Man, that whole climb was worth it.”
At the end of the day, I really realized that that was the one of my best experiences with nature ever!
North Ridge MS: Sebastian S.
In 1960, four men broke the rules to help gain freedom for African Americans. They had the choice between following the rules and not getting in trouble, or breaking the rules and being heroes. I think rules normally shouldn’t be broken, but under special circumstance, they can be bent because sometimes they can be unfair, and in some cases, it is the right thing to do.
To start off, rules can sometimes be unfair. Not ones like you can’t go into a certain area or you can’t have dangerous things in an airport, because those are there for our safety. Unfair rules are banning a certain race or religion from somewhere for no apparent reason, or others along that same line. Those rules, with everyone pitching in, can be broken and protested. For example, if Martin Luther King Jr. followed the rules and didn’t protest, African Americans might still be living unfair lives today, and nothing may have changed. For this reason, I think under special conditions, rules can be broken.
Another reason why I think rules can be broken is that sometimes, it is the right thing to do. If your friend’s race or religion is being pushed around because of some unfair rule, are you just going to sit and let them suffer because the authorities say so? For example, if people followed the unfair rules and didn’t protest for the rights of African Americans, nothing would have changed. There are still people living in fear in countries under Communist command, and if everyone helps out, we can take a stand and make the world fair. This is another reason why rules can be broken to make things fair.
As stated above, under special circumstances rules can be broken because rules can be unfair, and sometimes, it is also the right thing to do. One thing I know for certain is that the next time there is an unfair rule, I will be willing to break it in order to make things right.
Richland MS: Daniela G.
Color Doesn’t Matter
He said it so calmly like if it was a joke.We were in class.The teacher gave us the work and part of it was coloring. I was sitting with all my friends before it happened. While we were coloring we were just talking and working.
Now that we were all gathered up and working he said “That is where the Mexicans sit or people with darker skin than me.” Although he was my friend it hurt me a lot.While I was thinking of what he said, and they all felt the same way.
After that I started to cry because I am always insecure about my skin color. Then I called my mom to tell her what happened and while I was calling her, I started to cry again. Then she said, “People are always going to say stuff, but don’t listen because you are worth a lot, it is just that they can’t see it.”
Now I know that I am worth a lot even if I have a different skin color.