Eating Poetry

Sometimes we are changed by the most surprising things. Inspired by reading “Eating Poetry” by Mark Strand, the 8th graders of Clinton explored what the effects of eating inedible things could be. After discussing the ways poetry can shift our mindset, students wrote poems where they underwent stunning changes. From robots to monsters to trees to fire benders, students reflected on the experience of being changed into something new.

Ms. Karas (Morning Class)

Sakura Tree Siti N.

Flowers growing in my mouth.
There is no happiness like mine.
I have been eating flowers.

The people around me do not believe me; I was human.
Their eyes are wide.
and they run away as fast as they can.

The summer is gone.
The season of winter coming soon.
The Sakura tree keeps growing.

People keep running away from me.
The Sakura tree keeps growing beautifully in winter.
People getting scared.

Everyone doesn’t understand.
When the flowers keep fully growing whole, my body.
Everybody screams.

I am a Sakura tree.
I don’t move and I can’t.
I’m eating the flowers.

Eating the Universe Iker O.

Galaxies run from the corners of my mouth.
There is no anger like mine.
I have been eating the universe.
it has made me hyper.
I transform into a 50ft giant with chainsaws as hands.
After I finished eating I got bored.
I feel like I’m going insane.
I feel like I’m being watched.

Eating Legos Axel A.

I have been eating Legos.
It goes in my nose.
There is no craziness like mine.

The workers can’t believe what they are seeing.

their eyes are in disgust.

and they walk with their hands in their
pants.

the Legos are gone.

the light is bright.

I drop a Lego in my hand.

Their eyeballs roll.

Eating a Computer Caleb L.

I have been eating computers
It’s been a while
So many foodies
watching the way I smile

Anywhere I go
There’s always eyes on me
I met a foe
And soon he became King

I started feeling robotic, metal and easy
saw a transformer and the Queen
Then I became a computer for the
world to see
and now Caleb uses me

Ms. Krasic

Nothing Aatika B.

Vast space of nothingness
Curiosity and interest consume me
as I eat Astronomy

Facts and Numbers
followed by zeros
Looking at the blank sky
with the moon up above
Stars glisten in my mind
to keep asking why

Everything is unknown
Just there to question

Infinite too hard to believe
but reaching there some day hopefully

Dangerous phenomenons and theories
Gaps that are unknown

Hungry for more
but that can never happen
One day it might
but I won’t be there

The Real World Aryan R.

I’ve become a cord
A cord that connects to the Real World
A world full of negativity

I’m electrified at what I see
In fact, I’m enlightened
By how cruel they are

I’ve become media-aware
By broken Hearts
And Hurtful Info

I Ate My Phone

Eating a Balloon Elijah B.

I have eaten a balloon
but my thoughts have never been more weighted.
grandness, profoundness, importance.

Yet as heavy as they are, I am lifted.
lifted above the burden of my being
My consciousness expands.

I am pondersome and pensive
I think thoughts, within a thought
within a thought…

 

 

 

Yet as great as I have become
I am now empty.
Endless and empty.
I am now the sky.

Ms. Karas (Afternoon Class)

Chairs Atikah A.

I love eating chairs
But I just don’t care
But don’t ask me for some
Because I just won’t share
When I eat chairs
They remind me of pears
But I hate them
So I just cry
Don’t try to comfort me
Because chairs are just dry
They also make me thirsty
And they are also no trusty
So when you give me chairs
Make sure they don’t taste like pears
And make sure they don’t tell me dares
Because maybe I might just share!!!!

Eating Fire Abdul R.

I’ve been eating
Fire there’s no thirst and pain
Like mine as the fire reaches my gut

My Brother does not believe
What he sees. His eyes are
shock and scared

The fire is gone
The silence is loud
and he runs away in fear

He does not understand what
I’m doing until he saw me
creating fire from my hands and realizes
I became a fire bender

I am a new man
I play with fire as he
screams my mother’s name
I fly in joy with fire and
run away

Eating Tape Lyric G.

When I’m hungry I eat tape
like spaghetti since I was a little cub

making me hard to find, I become quiet even
in hide and seek.

Staying to myself is very important to me.

A lot of people wonder what’s up with me.

When I eat tape I feel very relaxed.

Then I get sad and go right back, nobody is
there for me like tape is.

I even go to tape when I feel anxious.

Eating Dirt Moises C.

In part of the Earth I become.
No one knows what are my thoughts.
When I am doing this my soul disappears.

Because of this, I lost my track.
There’s no way to come back.
Eating dirt makes me feel relaxed.

Now I need a map to go home.
But in a plant I just become.
I don’t know what’s going on, but I feel really calm.

Ms. Macmillan

Eating Stickers Armesha S.

Sticker wrappers are found on the floor.
Nobody is as eager as me.
I have been eating stickers.

Everyone is shocked.
The sight of me eating stickers.
Stickers plastered on the walls.

I have become a monster for stickers.
Every last sticker gone.
Nobody understands me.

I Ate a Pen Saif A.

I ate a pen.
The ink is flowing through my body
It makes me feel crazy

It makes me want to study
It makes me crave knowledge

Eating Video Games Mustafa S.

Game discs shattering as I bite
while having the time of my life
I’m eating video games with passion

Feelnig like a thunderstorm
while my parents are thinking
“Why was he ever born?”

proud as I beat my fav game
panic as I realize my mom caught me
playing games till 3 AM.