Kaila Fergon (18)
Broken Roots
A towering tree sat on a lonely hill
watching the sun set over the mountains
and people loved her for her strength.
She was the tree who never fell.
But a terrible hurricane came, stronger than even her,
carrying voices that were not her own,
and for a while she stood tall, intact,
but the winds didn’t die down.
They only grew louder, harsher.
So the storm took ahold of her branches,
like a puppet on strings,
and twisted her around.
She was splintered wood and fallen leaves,
and roots torn mercilessly from the earth.
She was a skeleton of what she once was.
The winds howled fiercely for years.
Soon the tree forgot what anything else sounded like.
Fall came and went but her leaves never caught fire.
The relentless hurricane ceased one day,
but it laughed as it retreated into the sky,
and the tree tried to figure out which parts were her own
and which were debris.
But she soon gave up,
breathing a sigh of relief,
At least I didn’t fall.
Years have passed and everyone knows about the tree on the hill,
with wild limbs, twisted and bent, and mangled roots.
She never grows leaves anymore, though they could have sworn she did once.
It is a tragic story, you see,
of the once tall tree on the hill,
with proud branches and fiery leaves.
Because when people look at her,
they remember the storm
instead of seeing a tree.
But the saddest part, I have yet to mention,
is that the tree, bent and unrecognizable,
continues to grow into that broken shape,
forgetting that it was never her own.
At least she didn’t fall, they all say,
But didn’t she?
Kaila Fergon is 18 years old and lives in Palm Springs, California. She spends her days reading far too many books with her dearest chocolate lab, Loki, who is always there to keep her company. She’ll be attending Point Loma Nazarene University in the fall and majoring in Psychology. She’s been tearing through books for as long as she can remember, and early on she knew that she would spend the rest of her life being changed by the way people expressed their feelings through words. That is why, regardless of her future career or her college major, she will undoubtedly always be a writer.
Broken Roots
A towering tree sat on a lonely hill
watching the sun set over the mountains
and people loved her for her strength.
She was the tree who never fell.
But a terrible hurricane came, stronger than even her,
carrying voices that were not her own,
and for a while she stood tall, intact,
but the winds didn’t die down.
They only grew louder, harsher.
So the storm took ahold of her branches,
like a puppet on strings,
and twisted her around.
She was splintered wood and fallen leaves,
and roots torn mercilessly from the earth.
She was a skeleton of what she once was.
The winds howled fiercely for years.
Soon the tree forgot what anything else sounded like.
Fall came and went but her leaves never caught fire.
The relentless hurricane ceased one day,
but it laughed as it retreated into the sky,
and the tree tried to figure out which parts were her own
and which were debris.
But she soon gave up,
breathing a sigh of relief,
At least I didn’t fall.
Years have passed and everyone knows about the tree on the hill,
with wild limbs, twisted and bent, and mangled roots.
She never grows leaves anymore, though they could have sworn she did once.
It is a tragic story, you see,
of the once tall tree on the hill,
with proud branches and fiery leaves.
Because when people look at her,
they remember the storm
instead of seeing a tree.
But the saddest part, I have yet to mention,
is that the tree, bent and unrecognizable,
continues to grow into that broken shape,
forgetting that it was never her own.
At least she didn’t fall, they all say,
But didn’t she?
Kaila Fergon is 18 years old and lives in Palm Springs, California. She spends her days reading far too many books with her dearest chocolate lab, Loki, who is always there to keep her company. She’ll be attending Point Loma Nazarene University in the fall and majoring in Psychology. She’s been tearing through books for as long as she can remember, and early on she knew that she would spend the rest of her life being changed by the way people expressed their feelings through words. That is why, regardless of her future career or her college major, she will undoubtedly always be a writer.