W.o.o.t.s.

Alien
by Joseph Albertine from Grant High School
Published in the 2007-2008 WITS Anthology I Once Was Young and Strong
Through the dark eyes of an alien
I can see the rich Americans
Those gas-hogging fiends
Towering elegant buildings loom
Blocking sunlight from
The grey ground as if it were a
Thick canopy of old growth-trees
Can you see the Americans?
Full bellies, large houses, [...]

When You’re Gone
by Maria Hernandez from Jefferson High School
Published in the 2007-2008 WITS Anthology I Once Was Young and Strong

The rain, the wet floor,
The smell of the flowers,
Cold air through my skin,
All the women crying
A man talking about heaven,
People wearing black,
Carrying umbrellas.
The red roses in the glass
That belongs to the coffin.
The yellow grass, the [...]

Your Voice
by Megan Brevig from Lincoln High School
Published in the 2007-2008 WITS Anthology I Once Was Young and Strong
It’s the late night conversations,
When your voice is coming through the phone
That you sound soft, and dull, and tired.
Often lapsing into desolate silences
Shared only by those who have trapped the noise within their mouths
You sound like [...]

I Was Taught
by Mark Jiminez from Pauling Academy, Marshall campus
Published in the 2007-2008 WITS Anthology I Once Was Young and Strong

I was taught that stealing was good, to take from the store or my mom’s money; but I learned my lesson, that stealing was not good.
I was taught to learn to swim when I [...]

Home
by Natalya Anderson from ACT, Roosevelt campus
Published in the 2007-2008 WITS Anthology I Once Was Young and Strong
I walk up to a red door with a silver knob, cold to the touch
I open it slowly, as I hold my breath, to find two things plopped on the couch.
One had his legs spread, the [...]

I Was That Kid
by Rose Nguyen from Benson High School
Published in the 2007-2008 WITS Anthology I Once Was Young and Strong
I was that kid
the one who got picked on
I was inside that house
the white carpet stained
the smell of smoke
from the cigarettes they smoked
colored marking on the wall
from little kids with creative minds
with no paper [...]

Hip Bones
by Talia Marie Bollard from Metropolitan Learning Center
Published in the 2007-2008 WITS Anthology I Once Was Young and Strong
Pointy thin bone almost ripping my flesh
Creating a mountain under my skin
Disappearing then reappearing
Flat on the ground like a pancake
They poke out to see the world, sharp
Pointy thin bone almost ripping my flesh
Bringing my skeleton form [...]

Life
by Samantha N.
From the WITS Program at Alliance High School
Life isn’t that simple
It comes and it goes,
The drowning of a boy
Who didn’t quite, know,
The experience was harsh
But it taught me a lot,
Life is unpredictable
More often than not,
Don’t take things for granted
Cause one may never know
How quickly life,
Can come and go.

Teen Hood using ING
by Samantha N.
From the WITS Program at Alliance High School
Racing, chasing, fighting chance
Moving, swinging, stepping dance
Crying, hurting, breaking heart
Loosing, refusing, acting part
Nurturing, loving, pleading mom
Singing, playing, sleeping, that lullaby song
Yelling, scolding, punishing dad
Reaching, speaking, sacrificing, trying to prevent bad
Life is filled with
Caring, sharing, preparing, childhood
Learning, perceiving, questioning, teen hood.

Though the content and themes of WITS student anthologies vary from year to year, one thing has remained constant: the artful design and layout of the anthology, created by book designer Jodi McPhee-Giddings, who has worked on the WITS anthology every year since 2003.
In a recent interview, Jodi graciously answered my queries about her occupation [...]