Illumination | Teen Ink

Illumination MAG

August 16, 2011
By VandaNoon PLATINUM, West Pittston, Pennsylvania
VandaNoon PLATINUM, West Pittston, Pennsylvania
42 articles 0 photos 32 comments

Favorite Quote:
what i can remember<br /> is a lot like water<br /> trickling down a page<br /> of the most beautiful colors<br /> -Marie Digby &#039;Unfold&#039;


I used to catch those lightning bugs
Back in my old hometown,
During those easier, laid-back moments, you remember,
Lying on that clearance-rack hammock
And listening to the crickets chirp,
Neighbors, all together, enjoying the cool summer nights.

Now, times are louder, base pounding out of their stereos,
“Shots,” “Dynamite,” that good ol' “Party in the USA”
You know, those songs we dance to,
Screeching the lyrics, like we love them

Truth is?
I hate the loud blasting sound
And the obliteration of the peace,
But then again, I'm a hypocrite,
Dancing and screeching with the rest of you.

I hope tomorrow will be greater than today,
And I will be able to find that magic in the simple things again,
Like back in the days, once upon a time,
When catching lightning bugs was enough



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This article has 7 comments.


on Mar. 21 2012 at 7:52 am
VandaNoon PLATINUM, West Pittston, Pennsylvania
42 articles 0 photos 32 comments

Favorite Quote:
what i can remember<br /> is a lot like water<br /> trickling down a page<br /> of the most beautiful colors<br /> -Marie Digby &#039;Unfold&#039;

Thank you so much. =)

ColetteF said...
on Mar. 20 2012 at 9:55 pm
This poem is a work of art. I love the imagery and word choice, it felt more like reading a story or taking thoughts from someone's head the way it flowed so naturally :) great writing!

on Aug. 24 2011 at 12:20 am
VandaNoon PLATINUM, West Pittston, Pennsylvania
42 articles 0 photos 32 comments

Favorite Quote:
what i can remember<br /> is a lot like water<br /> trickling down a page<br /> of the most beautiful colors<br /> -Marie Digby &#039;Unfold&#039;

Oh, and I didn't quote anybody's actual statuses in this draft.  Just was inspired by them. =))

on Aug. 24 2011 at 12:18 am
VandaNoon PLATINUM, West Pittston, Pennsylvania
42 articles 0 photos 32 comments

Favorite Quote:
what i can remember<br /> is a lot like water<br /> trickling down a page<br /> of the most beautiful colors<br /> -Marie Digby &#039;Unfold&#039;

Thank you so much for the kind comments everyone; they mean a lot to me. 

It's a funny story how this poem came about.  I attended a lit camp this summer and one of our assigments was to look at people's facebook statuses and mash them up so they would form a poem.  This poem (with new thoughts, ideas, and words) came from the rough draft of that original assignemnt.  In reading people's statuses, I just realized how much simpler times used to be, and that was the basis for Illumination.  Ah, nostalgia. 

Anyway, it means a lot to me that you all like it, so thanks again. =)


on Aug. 22 2011 at 10:22 pm
SunkistKisser BRONZE, Tempe, Arizona
1 article 0 photos 32 comments

Favorite Quote:
&quot;Not one would mind, neither bird not tree<br /> If mankind perished utterly<br /> And Spring herself, when she woke at down,<br /> Would hardly know that we were gone.&quot; ~Sara Teasdale<br /> (Yea, I know, it&#039;s kind of deep, but I kind of dig it.))

This is beautiful and totally true in almost every way. As we get older, it's harder to find the little things that make us truly happy. Like catching lightning bugs. :) Good job! Keep writing!

on Aug. 22 2011 at 8:27 pm
Thesilentraven PLATINUM, Mableton, Georgia
40 articles 2 photos 1632 comments

Favorite Quote:
&quot;il piu nell&#039; uno,&quot; (according to Emerson, an Italian expression for beauty)<br /> <br /> &quot;Unable are the loved to die, for love is immortality&quot; ~Emily Dickinson<br /> <br /> &quot;The deeper that sorrow carves into your being, the more joy you can contain&quot; <br /> ~Kahlil Gibran

My, and what illumination you cast on the subject! To remind the reader that things were so much truer and simpler in the comfortable past, and open our eyes to the uncomfortable reality of the now. I loved the last line of the second stanza; that had a lot of truth to it.

The good news is this: the lightning bugs and the laidback moments are still here; they're just a little harder to find. But we will find them again, and there's where the salvation is.

Stated honestly and boldly, Theresa, and I sincerely hope that you find the tomorrow (or the yesterday) which you seek and that you will no longer have to screech those cold lyrics anymore. :) 


on Aug. 22 2011 at 11:30 am
casielynnxoxo SILVER, Pasadena, Maryland
6 articles 0 photos 62 comments

Favorite Quote:
&quot;You&#039;ll never fully understand someone, unless you are them.&quot;

I really love this, I feel the same exact way! <3 This is awesome.