D-oL-Ph--In

Author's Note: Mr. Johnson and I did another poem imitating E.E. Cumming's r-p-o-p-h-e-s-s-a-g-r.  It was very difficult to decipher what the original poem said and then try to do a poem with the same concept.  Please leave me feedback.  Good luck reading.

D-oL-Ph--In

                                                Rs

                                a

                O            

S                                   (through)

t(water)he

    P     a    h   n                    up

s      L     s    I     g                  -

                                             ---

                                            -----       

                                          -------

and                                ----------

                                         --------

                                            -----

                                              ---

                                                -

                                          Down

and

SURFACE

          com(to the)ing

to

                                                                y

                                                a

                                r             

                p            

s

w (in) a t e (the) r

                                                I

A                                                                                             R            

r-p-o-p-h-e-s-s-a-g-r by E.E.Cummings

     
   r-p-o-p-h-e-s-s-a-g-r
                      who
  a)s w(e loo)k
  upnowgath
                  PPEGORHRASS
                                        eringint(o-
  aThe):l
             eA
                 !p:
S                                                         a
                          (r
  rIvInG                         .gRrEaPsPhOs)
                                                         to
  rea(be)rran(com)gi(e)ngly
  ,grasshopper;

Washington D.C.

Author's Note: My project on Washington D.C. was not a success, but it wasn't a complete loss. I did get some experience out of it. I'm writing this piece as a narrative for my Washington D.C. project. In this piece, I am working on voice more than anything else.  Please leave me some feedback.

JrNYLC at Lincoln Memorial

Since the spring of 2010 I've been dreaming of getting another chance to go to Washington D.C.  In sixth grade, I received my first.  It was a day similar to any other -- I got up, went to school, came home, got the mail, and so on.  In the mail that day there was a formal-looking envelope addressed To the Parents of Mai Vo, so I waited for my parents to open it with me.  Inside there were different letters and information for my parents and I about the Junior National Young Leaders Conference (JrNYLC).  The letter stated that my teacher nominated me to represent Wisconsin in a week-long leadership conference in Washington D.C.  In addition, I would have visited all the tourist attractions, heard various speakers, met tons of people, and experience a leadership trip of a lifetime.

White House

Unfortunately I wasn't able to go.  It was a mix between time, scheduling, and money -- and being on my own -- that interfered with the trip.  I still have the letter as a keepsake and I enjoy reading it to think of the phenomenal opportunity.  Though I didn’t go, I still got something out of that opportunity.  I got inspiration -- inspiration to relive the leadership trip.  I wanted to study all of the places that I would have visited such as the Lincoln Memorial and the White House.  As I shared my plan with Mr. Johnson he asked me, "Have you thought of planning a trip to Washington D.C. this year?"  I hadn't considered that at all, when I meant "relive" I didn't think I would actually get to go.  In fact I was thinking about a little project to discover more in Washington D.C., but I loved the idea of traveling there.  That turned out to be my second chance.

Vietnam Veterans Memorial

Right away I began researching and looking into hotels, dates and times, and transportation fare to visit all of the attractions.  I spent lots of time on my computer a lot and rereading my JrNYLC letters and schedule to plan a similar experience.  I wanted to visit all of the places that I would have visited back in 2010. Mr. Johnson assisted me to choose some additional places to go and places to cut from my list.  I ended with a list of thirteen destinations: the American History Museum, Arlington Cemetery, Capitol Hill, Ford Theater, Holocaust Museum, Korean War Veterans Memorial, Lincoln Memorial, Martin Luther King Memorial, Maryland Science Center, Smithsonian Air and Space Museum, Spy Museum, Vietnam Veterans Memorial, and the White House.  I couldn't wait to leave for Washington D.C. because this time would be better than the first.

Map

A couple weeks after I started my project it began to tumble down.  I worked hard and put nearly all my time in this project for a little while, but my parents booked our spring vacation during the same time that I was scheduling to go to Washington D.C.  Sure I was upset, but I somewhat saw an interference coming.  I had gotten too excited so go to Washington D.C. that I forgot about everything that could get in the way with arranging a large class trip.

Washington D.C.

In the end, I can't go to Washington D.C. -- again -- but I learned a more about the places that I want to visit and how complicated it is to schedule a comprehensive class trip.  Someday I hope can go to Washington D.C. and have the experience that I’ve been waiting for.  Until then I'll keep on dreaming and trying to make my wish come true.

Darkness

Author's Note: We just started the second book of Life of Pi and he is now in the middle of the ocean just watching days go by.  I thought about that and to me it made a good idea for a poem.  This poem is in the tragedy mode.  I wrote this in an open format and in the point of perspective of Pi.  Please leave some feedback.

I sit here cold and lonely
in darkness.
With nothing before me but
death and blood --
a horrifying stench of blood.
I look away.

I sit here...
and wonder what might be
lurking beneath me.
Waves silent and still,
I'm waiting for them to start to churn
and see what will come out --
and take me.

So wait and wait...
In hope that I'll be found.
Staring out into nothing.
Not even a star in the sky --
Only clouds and darkness.

The Porch

Author's Note: This is another poem that I am working on with Mr. Johnson.  We chose to imitate The Pasture by Robert Frost.  We changed the mode to comedy but we stuck with the same structure.  Please leave me some feedback.

The Pasture by Robert Frost

I'm going out to clean the pasture spring;
I'll only stop to rake the leaves away
(And wait to watch the water clear, I may):
I shan't be gone long.—You come too.

I'm going out to fetch the little calf;
That's standing by the mother. It's so young,
It totters when she licks it with her tongue.
I shan't be gone long.—You come too.

The Porch by Mai Vo

I'm going out to sit on the swing;
I will peacefully sway from here to there
(And looking at the world for which I care):
I watch the sun rise. -- You come too.

I'm going out to take a nice stroll;
I will feel the wind and sun on my face,
Such a wonderful feeling to embrace.
I watch the sun rise. -- You come too.

Snow

Author's Note: I have been waiting forever for snow.  Today the snow finally stayed on the ground and kept on falling down.  I'm so excited and I felt like doing a open poem on it. I was working on word choice in the poem.  Please leave me feedback!

Peacefully
Falling, swaying, flying
Blissfully flowing in the breeze,
Sitting neatly on branches or rooftops,
Creating fluffy, white blankets on the ground,
Light and gentle, flowing down.

I Can Accomplish Anything I Try

Author's Note: Mr. Johnson and I are beginning to work on a different way of poetry together.  For our first one, we are doing a parallel poem to When I Heard the Learn'd Astronomer by Walt Whitman.  I made a couple of attempts to write this poem.  I also learned that I tend to rush when working and my following try will always be better than my first.  

When I Heard the Learn'd Astronomer by Walt Whitman

When I heard the learn’d astronomer,
When the proofs, the figures, were ranged in columns before me,
When I was shown the charts and diagrams, to add, divide, and measure them,
When I, sitting, heard the astronomer where he lectured with much applause in the
lecture-room,
How soon unaccountable I became tired and sick,
Till rising and gliding out I wander’d off by myself,
In the mystical moist night-air, and from time to time,
Look’d up in perfect silence at the stars.

I Can Accomplish Anything I Try by Mai Vo

Before I bothered to try,
Before the lessons, and accidents just waiting to happen,
Before I tolerated the snow, the cold, and the fears of going down,
Before I listened to everyone where they spoke about the thrill and the adventures on the
rugged slopes,
How soon, unbelievable, I felt victory and excitement,
Again, rising and beginning at the summit,
Then looking down and imagining what I can accomplish,
Letting go, and gliding to the base.

Looking at the Stars

Author's Note: I was looking up at the stars the other day.  The skies were perfectly clear and I felt like I could see the universe.  It was also so beautiful to see the twinkling stars.  I like writing about nature and things that stand out or are memorable to me so I decided to do a poem about stars.  I wrote a stream of consciousness about this and then I transformed it into an open form poem.  Please leave me feedback. 
 

Looking up to the bright, sparkling lights

that float right above. 

Filling the dark, night sky

like a billion diamonds.

Not a cloud,

clear - with only twinkling stars.

Remembering when I was little

and my mom showed me the

Big Dipper

Orion's Belt

Now that's all I see

One bright star

More radiant than any other

Puts a twinkle in my eye

Maybe it's no star

Maybe it's

Mars, Jupiter, or

a whole new world

I keep gazing into

the miles and miles

of open skies

Looking at the stars.

The Sounds of Music

Author's Note: I did a word association and something that constantly came up was music-related topics.  I decided to write simply about the sound of music.  I am a percussionist so each stanza will represent a different instrument in the percussion family.  I worked on incorporating onomatopoeias and a steady pattern through the entire piece.   I also chose related the sounds of the instruments to parts of nature.   Please leave me feedback. 

Peaceful

Like the whoosh of ocean waves

Crashing on the shores

Sending soothing sounds to my ear

Terrifying

Like the rustle of winds

Tearing through the land

Sending piercing sounds to my ear

Relaxing

Like the pitter-patter of raindrops

Falling on the windowpane 

Sending soothing sounds to my ear

Powerful

Like the boom of thunder

Clapping in the sky

Sending piercing sounds to my ear

Ashes

Author's Note: I just finished Catching Fire Suzanne Collins and I'm beginning the final Hunger Games book, Mockingjay.  This piece is titled "Ashes" because Katniss, the main character, was just taken out of the games and told that District Twelve, her home, has been destroyed by bombs and flames.

I walk

On

what used to be life on earth

Into

the dark cloud of dust and smoke

Upon

the rocky rubble and destroyed belongings

Through

the abandoned city where only silence stays

Now I weep and mourn over

All lives taken

All houses destroyed

All happiness captured

Everything I once had

Gone

Now and forever

all that's left -

Ashes

Cross Country 2011

Author's Note: Cross country ended a couple weeks ago and it was a very special experience for me.  I just felt like writing about my experience running at those meets.  In this piece I am taking my perspective from the second meet at Grant Park right at Lake Michigan.  It was my favorite race of them all.  I'm writing this piece as if I wrote while I ran the race, that is all except for my last paragraph which was a reflection on my experience.  Please leave me some feedback.  Thanks!

Thirty seconds!  We all get down into start position.  We are all shivering of the cold weather and nervousness running through us.  I feel like everyone can hear my heart vigorously beat.  I'm so nervous.  Ten!  Nine!  Eight!  Seven!  Six!  Five!  Silence.  BOOM!  We all charge forward, giving ninety to one hundred percent if we can.  I'm stuck in the middle of everyone, but I'm fine there.  I can't waste my energy at the beginning... I still have over 1.8 miles to go. 

We all run in a giant pack and turn into the woods.  I can already feel myself begin to pant.  Slowly I get on the inside and start to pass some people.  I keep on looking down at the ground and try to keep complete concentration.  The path has hills, turns, rocks, sticks, and hundreds of feet pounding down on it. Everyone is gradually breaking apart.  I can see some of my own teammates really close to the front whereas I'm still near the middle.  I keep on thinking that I'm going to do worse than the last race by the amount of runners in front of me.  Trying the best I could, I push myself to go a little bit faster and pass somebody.  Every hill there is, I will take very long strides.  I must look like a weirdo, I feel so odd running with such a large stride, but I pass a whole group of runners by doing that.  I'll take every chance I get to try to get ahead.

As I run, I'm almost distracted by the scenery of our running course.  We run through this beautiful wooded area where there are bridges, pebble paths, arch-like trees, hills, and a refreshing breeze. Then we switch off to grass, a road, grass, and then back into the woods in a short amount of time.  I don't know why but the feeling of running on rugged grounds really interests me and I enjoy it.  I find the paths so adventurous and scenic. 

I can hear people heavily breathing behind me and that really irritates me so I try to run faster and get away.  Then there's also some people who start walking and I really want to tell them that they can do it and keep on going, but I just keep on running ahead.  Gradually we get higher and higher above, but I barely notice it until we are running right on the cliff of Lake Michigan.  The race has only a little distance left to go. 

I am starting to hear people cheer again, it means I'm closer to the finish.  I sprint down the hill, remembering to take long strides.  As I get back on the grass where we started, I give everything I have left and sprint all the way into the finishing chute.  It's my last chance to pass anyone.  Coaches are screaming to the other runners, "Sprint, go!  She's right behind you!"  The runner in front of me turns around, and that slows her down.  I pass her and I'm done!  I'm panting and completely out of breath, but when they give me my place card I feel so much better - thirty seventh place!  I improved eleven places from my the meet before, and I'm so proud of myself.  I only wish that my parents could have seen me run so I go to call them to talk about the race.

I never thought that I could run long distance.  Before the summer of 2011, I would have never bothered to try running two miles, let alone 1.5 miles, I simply thought I couldn't do it.   Though I'm not amazing, I'm glad I did the best that I could and tried to do something that pushes me to work harder.  Cross country was a very valuable experience for me that I hope to keep with me forever.

(I don't have a ribbon from the Grant Park Invite.)