SEARCH RESULTS

Back to Articles Advice Back to Sections Advice: Friends and Poetry Aamna Raja Volume 5 Issue 3 January 14, 2025 Image Provided by Elaine Ching “Hi! I'm a student here at North and I fear that I’m in a bit of a pickle! One thing about me is I LOVE writing poems, but I HATE reading them to others. I was with my friends the other day and who I THOUGHT was my best friend forever, grabbed my diary and read a bunch of my poems to the WHOLE CAFETERIA!! Please, what should I do? I love my best friend so much. We love shopping and going to Hot Topic together, but I don’t know how to confront them about this. My heart is broken.” -Pedro Hey there Pedro! To start, I want to let you know that your feelings are valid- trusting someone with something as personal as your poetry, only to have that trust betrayed in a public way, must have been heartbreaking. You are in no way, shape, or form overreacting. I can’t take that feeling away, but I can help you formulate a plan to try and get some inner peace. Firstly, reflect on your feelings. Try and figure out exactly what you’re feeling. Are you angry? Embarrassed? Hurt? Understanding these feelings is important before taking any action. You seem to already have an outlet to cope: writing poetry. I understand if you’re scared it will happen again. In this case, it is best to write this poetry at home or maybe even in a locked note on your phone. It will not only give you clarity on your situation, but also help you figure out how to go about the next step: starting a conversation. Confrontations don’t need to be dramatic and emotional. You can talk to your best friend (let’s call him Dylan) and ask to go to a Hot Topic. While shopping, you can safely express your feelings in an environment you both feel comfortable in. When communicating with Dylan, try and remain calm, as anger will only complicate your emotions further. Your goal is to try and mend your relationship as best you can, not to start a fight. After this, take some time to reflect on whether you’re able to rebuild your trust. Maybe at the food court while getting Addams Family Burger King milkshakes and listening to My Chemical Romance . Remember, you do not have to show him your poems again if you decide to trust him once more; they’re your safe outlet. Pedro, even the strongest of silver chain necklace bonds have their ups and downs. You can try your best to mend the relationship, but don’t give in so much effort that it becomes a chore. You got this! Stay strong Pedro, -Aamna BACK TO TOP

Back to Articles Polaris Back to Sections Rollercoasters By Navrosedip Kundlas Volume 3 Issue 1 November 7, 2022 Image provided by UnSplash Life's a rollercoaster, don't you see? It doesn't matter which you pick, you'll still scream Full of twists and turns, no one said it's easy Life's the same way, can't you see? One day you're on top of the world, the next day you're on the ground crying   One spins you, until your head's dizzy The other it drops you from extremes Sometimes it feels so slow waiting Then you're on but not you just want to get off Life's the same way, can't you see? One day you're on top of the world, the next day you're on the ground crying   Life speeds by just like a coaster You just sat in and the ride's already over Friends are the riders next to you Some stay and others leave you Life's the same way, can't you see? One day you're on top of the world, the next day you're on the ground crying BACK TO TOP

Back to Artwork Nostalgic Musings Back to Sections Sophia Song - Nostalgic Musings - 3 By Sophia Song February 10, 2022 Photography Volume 2 Issue 4

Back to Artwork Pop Art Back to Sections Anonymous - Pop Art By Anonymous January 14, 2022 Acrylic Volume 2 Issue 3

Back to Articles Polaris Back to Sections Lies By Navrosedip Kundlas Volume 2 Issue 4 February 10, 2022 Image provided by Polygon Life is a game At the end you're still going to get the blame It doesn't matter if you want to play You'll still get tricked into saying okay People do things Which bind them in return with strings When they finally break through, their heart gets hit with regret No wonder why they rather forget We trust people without thinking It's so careless that we end up fleeing We hope our running will make us free When we know at the end, we'll end up at that same tree We keep going back Hoping we're ready for the next attack We lookout for the unknown enemy When they're standing right there acting friendly As soon as we turn around They get ready for a rebound Falling down, shattered into pieces We thought we had put up all the braces Swallowed into a hole of darkness Back into the castle of mistress When will we escape? From our own mistakes? Trust isn't something to give But something to earn It isn't a piece of candy Given to anyone who makes us happy We get trapped in our own puzzles Built from our own troubles We blame others for our misdeeds Like they're the ones who plant our seeds Life is a game At the end you're still going to get the blame It doesn't matter if you want to play You'll still get tricked into saying okay Phony smiles and showering compliments That's exactly how they play They use you for their accomplishments All you need to say is okay To get into their game of lies As soon as they get their prize They'll leave you without a goodbye Leaving you all alone to die BACK TO TOP

Back to Articles Fiction, Polaris Back to Sections Emily Dickson By Navrosedip Kundlas Volume 3 Issue 4 May 18, 2023 Image provided by Wikipedia Emily Dickinson was a prominent American poet born in Amherst, Massachusetts in 1830. Dickinson is known for her unique and unconventional style of writing poetry that often challenged the traditional forms of poetry during her time. She is recognized as one of the most significant and influential poets in American literature. Emily Dickinson was born into a wealthy and prominent family in Amherst, Massachusetts. Her father, Edward Dickinson, was a prominent lawyer and politician, while her mother, Emily Norcross Dickinson, was a homemaker. Dickinson received her early education at Amherst Academy, where she excelled in her studies and demonstrated a strong interest in literature. As a young woman, Dickinson was deeply influenced by the works of Ralph Waldo Emerson and the Transcendentalist movement. She began writing poetry at a young age and continued to write throughout her life. Despite her love for writing, Dickinson was a private person and rarely shared her work with others. Dickinson's writing career spanned over three decades, and she produced over 1,800 poems during her lifetime. However, only a handful of her poems were published during her lifetime, and it wasn't until after her death that her work gained widespread recognition. Dickinson's poetry is characterized by its unconventional style, including her use of slant rhyme and irregular meter. Her poems often explore themes such as nature, death, love, and spirituality. Dickinson's work is also known for its use of vivid imagery and metaphorical language. Emily Dickinson's poetry has had a significant impact on American literature and culture. Her unconventional style of writing and her exploration of themes such as death and spirituality has influenced generations of writers and poets. Today, Dickinson is widely regarded as one of the most important and influential poets in American literature. Her work continues to be studied and celebrated, and her legacy as an iconic American poet remains strong. One of Emily Dickinson's most famous poems is "Because I could not stop for Death." This poem explores the theme of death and the speaker's journey toward it. Here is the poem in its entirety: Because I could not stop for Death— He kindly stopped for me— The Carriage held but just Ourselves—  And Immortality. We slowly drove—He knew no haste And I had put away My labor and my leisure too, For His Civility— We passed the School, where Children strove At Recess—in the Ring— We passed the Fields of Gazing Grain— We passed the Setting Sun— Or rather—He passed us— The Dews drew quivering and chill— For only Gossamer, my Gown— My Tippet—only Tulle— We paused before a House that seemed A Swelling of the Ground— The Roof was scarcely visible— The Cornice—in the Ground— Since then—’tis Centuries—and yet Feels shorter than the Day I first surmised the Horses’ Heads Were toward Eternity—   References: Franklin, R. W. (Ed.). (1999). The Poems of Emily Dickinson: Variorum Edition. Belknap Press. Sewall, R. B. (1974). The Life of Emily Dickinson. Farrar, Straus and Giroux. Smith, M. (Ed.). (1998). The Emily Dickinson Handbook. University of Massachusetts Press. Miller, C. R. (1997). Emily Dickinson: A Poet's Grammar. Harvard University Press. Vendler, H. (2010). Dickinson: Selected Poems and Commentaries. Harvard University Press.   Emily Dickinson was a prominent American poet born in Amherst, Massachusetts in 1830. Dickinson is known for her unique and unconventional style of writing poetry that often challenged the traditional forms of poetry during her time. She is recognized as one of the most significant and influential poets in American literature. Emily Dickinson was born into a wealthy and prominent family in Amherst, Massachusetts. Her father, Edward Dickinson, was a prominent lawyer and politician, while her mother, Emily Norcross Dickinson, was a homemaker. Dickinson received her early education at Amherst Academy, where she excelled in her studies and demonstrated a strong interest in literature. As a young woman, Dickinson was deeply influenced by the works of Ralph Waldo Emerson and the Transcendentalist movement. She began writing poetry at a young age and continued to write throughout her life. Despite her love for writing, Dickinson was a private person and rarely shared her work with others. Dickinson's writing career spanned over three decades, and she produced over 1,800 poems during her lifetime. However, only a handful of her poems were published during her lifetime, and it wasn't until after her death that her work gained widespread recognition. Dickinson's poetry is characterized by its unconventional style, including her use of slant rhyme and irregular meter. Her poems often explore themes such as nature, death, love, and spirituality. Dickinson's work is also known for its use of vivid imagery and metaphorical language. Emily Dickinson's poetry has had a significant impact on American literature and culture. Her unconventional style of writing and her exploration of themes such as death and spirituality has influenced generations of writers and poets. Today, Dickinson is widely regarded as one of the most important and influential poets in American literature. Her work continues to be studied and celebrated, and her legacy as an iconic American poet remains strong. One of Emily Dickinson's most famous poems is "Because I could not stop for Death." This poem explores the theme of death and the speaker's journey toward it. Here is the poem in its entirety: Because I could not stop for Death— He kindly stopped for me— The Carriage held but just Ourselves—  And Immortality. We slowly drove—He knew no haste And I had put away My labor and my leisure too, For His Civility— We passed the School, where Children strove At Recess—in the Ring— We passed the Fields of Gazing Grain— We passed the Setting Sun— Or rather—He passed us— The Dews drew quivering and chill— For only Gossamer, my Gown— My Tippet—only Tulle— We paused before a House that seemed A Swelling of the Ground— The Roof was scarcely visible— The Cornice—in the Ground— Since then—’tis Centuries—and yet Feels shorter than the Day I first surmised the Horses’ Heads Were toward Eternity—   References: Franklin, R. W. (Ed.). (1999). The Poems of Emily Dickinson: Variorum Edition. Belknap Press. Sewall, R. B. (1974). The Life of Emily Dickinson. Farrar, Straus and Giroux. Smith, M. (Ed.). (1998). The Emily Dickinson Handbook. University of Massachusetts Press. Miller, C. R. (1997). Emily Dickinson: A Poet's Grammar. Harvard University Press. Vendler, H. (2010). Dickinson: Selected Poems and Commentaries. Harvard University Press.   BACK TO TOP

Back to Articles Sports Back to Sections Break Dancing to Become Olympic Sport for the First Time in 2024 By Carolina Grace Figueroa Volume 1 Issue 7 April 22, 2021 Image provided by ABC News The Olympic Games are international multi-sporting events that feature summer and winter sports competitions during which thousands of athletes from around the world participate in a variety of competitions. More than 200 nations take part in this global athletic sports festival, with the ultimate goal of cultivating people and contributing to unity and world peace through sports. The Olympic Games are normally held every four years, alternating between the Summer and Winter Olympics every two years in the four-year period. The Summer Games were scheduled for Tokyo, Japan in July and August 2020, but were delayed for a year due to the Covid pandemic. They will now take place in July and August 2021 and will not allow spectators from overseas. The International Olympic Committee (IOC), which oversees the global sporting competition, has chosen three new sports to enter the Tokyo 2021 Olympic Program, which are surfing, skateboarding, and sport climbing. In addition, the IOC has announced that break dancing (also known as “breaking”) has been named an official Olympic sport and will first appear at the 2024 Summer Games to be held in Paris, France. Breaking was the only new sport chosen to make its debut in 2024, hoping to attract and appeal to younger audiences. Breaking is an athletic style of street dance that originated in New York in the early 1970’s. It is a full body activity and a high-energy dance, also known as “B-boying” or “B-girling”, that involves moving to hip hop music. It looks like a combination of dance, gymnastics, acrobatics, and martial arts. Break dancers do hand glides, head spins, and back spins using fluid athletic moves and stylized fast footwork. Breaking mainly consists of four kinds of movement, which are toprock, downrock, powermoves, and freezes. There are bursts of flips, spins, kicks, and freezes. Two very famous break dancing moves are known as “the moonwalk” and “the worm”. This cool form of dance was created as part of the early hip hop movement. Break dancing is popular all over the world, highly creative, and has always included a competitive element, with dancers trying to outdo each other in one-on-one dance “battles”. The next step is for break dancers from around the world to start preparing for 2024. Those dancers with dreams of winning an Olympic medal can train, plan, and prepare their break dancing routines, which will be judged in six categories: creativity, technique, variety, performance, musicality, and personality, There is no system in place yet to decide who will be chosen for the Olympics, but many founders of the break dancing movement are expected to help younger competitors prepare and motivate to train those who are gearing up to compete at the Olympic level. Break dancing will attract more youthful athletes and is a more urban dance style sport that will guarantee high levels of entertainment and much competition at the Summer Olympic Games in 2024. BACK TO TOP

Back to Articles Polaris Back to Sections Not all of us are perfect-Chapter 2 By Navrosedip Kundlas Volume 2 Issue 7 June 13, 2022 Image provided by Canva -May 1st, 1990 Okay, breathe in and out. Calm down, Jules. We don't want to have a panic attack, do we now? After steadying my breath, I pushed the door to Caleb's room. Here goes nothing; you got this. "Oh, hey Jules. What's up, kiddo?" Caleb says, slightly startled by my arrival. "Nothing much, um, I just have a question?" I ask. What are you doing, Jules? "Sure, go for it," he reassures me, noticing my twitchy, anxious behavior. "Have you ever heard about the Paris Mansion? Cuz, I just found out that we have a mansion," I say. Gosh, you sound so stupid, Jules. Shut up, shut up! "Oh yeah, you learn about it when you are 18, and there's this whole thing where you inherit something ‘special’ that steers you on the right path. Or something, I don't really know; it's like a mansion full of expensive things that our family has owned for decades. Has it been a century? I don't know. I inherited our grandpa's brother's pilot hat from the U.S Airforce," he rambles while spinning a pair of car keys. "Wait, is that why you wanted to join the Airforce? Cuz of a hat?" I question, angry tears starting to well up in my eyes. "No, it was encouraging, but- wait, are you crying, Jules?" Caleb asks, softly getting up from his chair. He walks over and pulls me into a tight hug. Gosh, I couldn't even hold in a few tears. I didn't want Caleb to leave, to abandon me. Sensing my thoughts, Caleb looks me in my eyes and says, "Juliana Valentina Paris, you listen to me; I am not abandoning you. I'll be back for vacation and for some days off as well. Nothing is going to happen that's going to keep me from being with you. You can always write letters, and we'll stay in contact. There's nothing to worry about." He wipes my tears away. And at that point, I couldn't hold it in anymore because everything was not going to be okay. "No, listen, I heard dad and Aunt Jackie talking in one of the rooms. And I heard this…." Using my photographic memory, I repeated exactly what I heard to Caleb. Sitting down, his face turned from shock to confusion to stress. "Do you know anything about this--" "Sorry for interrupting, but I do know what this is about," Julian said, pushing open the door and walking into the room. "Julian! I said not to let them know we were eavesdropping! Wow, you're such a snoop; you can't keep your nose out of anything these days." Julie sneered, obviously mad at Julian for something. "I'm a snoop? Well, hello there, Miss I'm-so-innocent; you were the one rummaging through mom's jewelry so you could go to that little party of yours. Guys, did you know that Miss Julie here has a secret boyfriend? And she's been hiding it from the rents because he vapes and has tattoos. Oh, and piercings, let me add. Wait, and did I tell you that he..." Julian kept on rambling on and on about Julie's secret boyfriend. "Alright, that's enough. I said ENOUGH! We do not need to know every little detail about Julie's little boyfriend. And we'll keep your secret. Julian, please shut up and tell us what you know about the situation," Caleb said, slightly annoyed at the twins. Julian replies, "Aye-aye Sir. Okay, so listen to this. I was walking through the house the other day--" "Can you just get straight to the point?" Julie snaps, pissed at her twin for spilling her secret. "Alright, sheesh, who ruffled your feathers? Anyways, there are 5 siblings, right? 5 is an odd number, so you know, things can't be split evenly into five. Since dad was the only male, he got most of the goods that grandpappy left. This obviously made the others angry, you know what I mean? Lawyers were called, and court hearings happened. And then dad still got the majority, except the sisters each got a little more. Blah, blah, blah. Our aunts never stop complaining. I remember the other day…." "Julian, will you get back on topic! For Jesus' freaken sake!" Julie snapped again. Something definitely happened between them. Julie never gets this mad. "Jeez, okay. Back to the topic. Now at your grand wedding Caleb, Aunt Jackie, in front of most of the people living in East Hamptons, will hand over that beautiful necklace to Amanda. As Jules said, it's missing, or shall we say stolen. I looked at dad's book in which he keeps checking all the items in the mansion, and the necklace isn't the only thing missing. The emerald, green gemstone collection is gone. The paintings of Pablo Picasso that our family collected are gone. So, on so forth, we got a lot of stuff in there. And there are other things, but my mouth is getting kind of dry," Julian says, his mouth exhausted. He grabs a water bottle on Caleb's desk and starts gulping it down. So basically, we were getting robbed. But by who? I mean, since I never heard of it, that means not many people know it exists, so that means one thing, right? It's got to be someone in the circle. "Who knows about the Paris Mansion?" I asked them. "Well, all five siblings know, the uncles, their children, I assume, lawyers, family friends. I don't know who else," Julian says, thinking aloud. "We have to find this robber. You know what dad said; if we don't figure out what's going on, our family will be torn apart. I can't let that happen; we need a plan. Also, this will be a great experience for my future of being a detective. I'll call my squad to help out." I speak. "We're like teenagers with one guy who just reached the drinking age; how are we going to find some criminal mastermind who's been going behind everyone's back and trying to destroy our family?" Julie questions me. "Guys, calm. Take a chill pill; no one's out to get us. I'm pretty sure it's some random old robber. The police can deal with this." Julian says, not caring about anything in life besides snooping on people. "Of course, you don't care. Here's your nose back, Mr. Take-a-chill-pill. It was in my business" Julie sneers. I mouth to Caleb CODE RED. We've got to get the twins away from each other, or else they might just start physically fighting. And it's happened before, and the damage is not pretty. "Why don't we solve this case, you know, since school's let out, and we've got nothing else to do with our lives," I say, trying to settle things down. "You mean besides Julie making out with her secret boyfriend," Julian teases. "You know what, you little-" "Why don't we make this team eight? Hmm? I can help with the connections I have in this town" Amanda says, startling everyone in the room. "Woah, dude, where did you come from?" Caleb asks. "Nowhere; you said we were gonna have some ice cream, so I came and heard this little plan to catch a thief. I want in," Amanda says. "You're in; let me call the squad. Let's meet at the beach where we surf. Amanda, do you think you can get us some files on the case? I'm pretty sure my dad reported this." I ask, ready for a great adventure. "Sure, girl, I'll sneak into my dad's office and find what I can," Amanda replies. With that, everyone leaves, and I head out to grab my skateboard. It was time to convince my friends that this plan would be fun and not dangerous at all. I mean, after all, how difficult can catching a thief be? BACK TO TOP

Back to Artwork Nightmare on Main Street Back to Sections My Heritage By Katherine Cevada October 8, 2021 Volume 2 Issue 1

Back to Artwork Spotlight Back to Sections XSCAPISM II By Osaiyekemwen Ogbemudia March 18, 2021 Volume 1 Issue 6