All The Faults In The World
By Elizabeth Sack I am a star that lives above the world. I watch and I wait, and sometimes, someone looks back at me. Even during the day I am watching, and there is nothing I can not see. I have been watching since the earth was formed. I have seen continents come together and break apart. I have seen oceans cover the world. I have seen civilizations rise and fall, and I remember a time before there were humans, before there was heartbreak. But it is the times of heartbreak that are most important in history, for they are also the times when change will come. I have seen cities war against each other, seen calculated murder at the hands of criminals, seen humans shun others simply because they are different. I do not pretend to understand it, though I have seen it all. After all, the stars have many colors, white and green and red and yellow and blue, and thousands in between, and there are not any that are the same. But every star fills your night sky, and without us all the night would be empty. I think it is the same with your world. Every living thing makes the earth colorful, whole, makes life worth living. I just wish that all humans could see it. I have seen colonists come across the sea, trying to administer their rule. I have seen them go to Africa, and just because the people there looked different, they enslaved them. I have seen hunts, humans hunting animals, killing them, for no crime that I can see. I have seen trees cut down so that an already overpopulated species can continue to grow. I have seen humans treat others of their own kind less just because of their religion or the color of their skin. I have seen wars fought because of it, but the problem is still here today. I have seen police brutality, child slaves, mistreated women, hunted animals, hewn trees, world-wide wars, environmental crises. Yet for all of this, all of this hurt and hate and fear, I have seen people who rose up, people who are still rising up, to face it. Greta Thunberg, Martin Luther King Jr., Rosa Parks, Mahatma Gandhi, Malala Yousafzai, Ruby Bridges, and hundreds of thousands more. And though they each fought for different things, what they fought didn’t matter nearly as much as what they changed, what they inspired, what they defied. And one of the best parts was they were all ordinary people. But they were also people who saw a fault in the world and decided to start to fix it. And maybe the faults weren’t fixed, maybe there are still cracks. Maybe there are cracks that no one has seen or tried to fix yet. But it is always darkest before the dawn, and that is when you can see the stars. Elizabeth Sack is in grade seven and goes to Samson G. Smith Middle School. She is in Newspaper Club and plays the flute.
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What does it mean to be an American?
What does it mean to be an American? If you asked anyone, they would all give you different answers. Some would talk about freedom, while others would talk about opportunities. But for me, I feel like being an American means to have rights, privileges, and freedom. No, America isn't a perfect country, but it is one of the only countries in the world that have rights given to people of different gender and diversities of our rich culture. There are many different races in this one country. If you travel anywhere in the world, you would mainly see just one race while here you would see a mis of different races and ethnicities. People in different countries don’t even have the rights to do much in their own country. Before, women weren’t even allowed to drive in Saudi Arabia until 2018, while here it was very common to see women behind the wheel. And even till this day, women in Saudi Arabia are required to wear an abaya but in America, women could be out in the street wearing anything they please. I remember when I was 12, my family and I went on our family summer vacation to Nigeria but had to pass through Dubai. I was wearing a mini skirt since I knew that when we landed in Nigeria it would be hot. I didn’t really think much about landing in Dubai and the restrictions. When we landed in Dubai and was getting off the plane, all of the airport working were giving me a funny look and my twelve year old self thought that they were looking at me because of my size which made me nervous because I hated my figure then. When we went to check our luggage in, so we wouldn't have to explore with 8 big travel bags, the lady behind the security desk pulled my mother and I to the side and told me to put something on. At first we didn’t really understand why she wanted me to change my outfit because in America no one said anything about my outfit expect people giving me compliments. My mother asked her to explain what she was talking about and was when she told us how it is not appropriate for a lady to wear anything as short or revealing as my shirt. I was surprised, which quickly turned into realization because I wasn’t in America anymore. It made me realize how America has more freedom, even with the most simplest thing like clothing. In the text, “What does it mean to ‘be American’”? It says, “Being American is red, white and blue and being free. It doesn't matter what language you speak…” From French to Yoruba to Turkish; there are thousands of different languages in America alone that people speak daily. These are the simple things in life that make me feel freer. That makes me feel like I have privileges. So, being an American means enjoying the right of freedom of speech, embracing the many diversities, the American way of life, different cultures and equal rights of determining the country's leadership. This makes me proud to call myself an American. Abiola is a Senior. She wrote this reflective piece for her Race, Gender, and Equity class at FHS. a piece on depression by Batool Zaidi
The feeling of being a burden on someone is another feeling I wouldn’t want anyone to feel. It’s unpolished even, awkward. Take it from a person who touches the surface of both of these sensations everyday; I feel downhearted. I try so hard to feel wanted, but all it is is awkward smiles and small talk, in which I am feeling nothing. I’m afraid to ask for things, because I feel like a strain, a deadweight. I try everything to make the people around me happy, but I feel like I just make things worse. I don’t mean to do it on purpose, I sincerely do it, because I’ve always been told to make people smile, because everyone deserves happiness, no matter their race, gender, sexuality, religion, cultural background, social class, their income, because maybe these are the reasons that people feel like they aren’t wanted, or that they are a burden. I know I have value, and am worth something, but one person can make you feel like you’re worth absolutely nothing. I know one doesn’t mean to do that, but I take it to heart because the last time I felt this way, I was told that I needed to see my therapist. Telling me that there is something wrong with the way I feel... I’m quite sorry that I don’t react to situations the way you do, or feel the way you do, or see the world the way you do, because we aren’t the same people. We’ve all experienced the world in all different ways. We all have had different experiences that shape the people we are today. So, you do not get to let me feel that way. I know this isn’t all that positive, and this isn’t the way I write usually, but I write what comes to mind. But this is a reminder, to the ones who feel like less than-- don’t feel that way. It’s not worth it; live your life, find happiness in the little things, you aren’t a burden. Batool Zaidi is a senior at Franklin High School. Her hobbies consist of writing film reviews for pleasure and enjoyment, watching films, and reading up on screenplays. She has been writing since she was in 8th grade, when she first used it as an outlet for her depression. This is a piece she wrote about being a burden. |
About Epiphany
Epiphany Literary Magazine is a safe space for students at Franklin High School to share their creativity. Archives '16-'20
June 2020
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