MY STORY
Stella Neuschul is a Senior at Redwood High School. She was born in Sarajevo, Bosnia, and moved to California when she was 7 years old. While living in America, she became passionate about playing basketball. It is her main outlet for stress as well as her way of proving her determination and grit. However, amidst the pandemic, it has been difficult for Stella to play, so she has turned to various art forms, such as drawing and poetry, to express her emotions.
PORTFOLIO OF WORK
THE GIFT FOR ‘GOODBYE’
One day
My dad gave me a gift.
An MP3 Player.
It wasn’t my birthday,
Or New Years,
Or Christmas.
So what was it for?
It was for goodbye.
Masked beneath the wrapping paper
Was a note.
“Stella,
I have downloaded our favorite songs
So for the next three months,
While I am not here,
You remember me.”
And then he was off to America.
And I was stuck with Lady Gaga playing on repeat.
SANCTUARY
Today, I feel heavy.
Because around me,
the world is heavier.
Yet my heavy body sits
In an effortlessly simple gazebo
Protected from the wind
Watching the fog pour over the sanctuary of Sausalito.
Sitting right on top of the motionless water,
The fog shields it from all the heaviness.
Oh, to be the water.
Oh, to be kissed by the low-lying wisps of mist.
MY WORLD
Rooted from a scarred and desperate place
I have emerged
And become resilient
Brave
Within the bubble I live in
I feel the privilege
Never taken for granted
Because I know what it's like
When the bubble is
Burst
I see myself surrounded by peace
Feeling freedom from conformity
In my own world
Where there is no bubble
So there is no bubble to burst.
In my world
I dream of being a leader
Every inequality in the real world
Will have disappeared
Every beautiful thing
We will still enjoy
I know that this world exists
Because I have the power
To make the real world
My world.
MY DEFINITION OF A "GOOD" POEM
I think that the most important thing in a poem is diction. The carefully chosen words are the way in which the speaker draws in the reader-- Just like the hook on the first page of a book. For me, it is important that when I am reading a poem, I feel the emotions the speaker is attempting to convey. In the best poems, this is often done through literary devices. Ones that I have found to be the most compelling and to show the most emotion are alliteration, metaphor and personification.
The poems I enjoy the most are about nature. Although this may seem like a cliche topic for a poem, I find that if the use of literary devices as well as clear and effective word choice is used, nature poems can open up your imagination and create a deep connection between you and the speaker.