1 Prisms Managing Board Editors-in-Chief: Loryn Helfmann and Shelby Ozer Managing Editors: Zoe Huber-Weiss and Elizabeth Vogel Layout Editors: Rachel DeChiara and Sabrina Merold Head of Arts and Design: Lila Gyory Arts Editors: Jeffrey Frankel and Monica Murthy Senior Editors: Molly Alter and Ben Martin-Katz Copy Editors: Katie Charney, Katharine Fuzesi, Clara Mooney, Anna Tyshkov, and Cynthia Yang Faculty Advisors: Debby Dixler, Alexandra Mahoney, and Lou Scerra Staff Members: Amy Chen, Rachel Greene, Laurel Gupton, Eliza Huber-Weiss, Yasmin LoPrete, Claudia Lu, Alicja Madloch, Alyssa McPherson, Prianka Murthy, Charlotte Smith, Carissa Szlosek, Andie Wei, and Mollie Wolhforth Special thanks to Andrew Alford and Julius Tolentino for their assistance with this issue. The Prisms staff would like to acknowledge the existence of explicit language in this issue. In printing this language, we hope to preserve the integrity of the work. Cover Art by Theo Rapanu Words Read these words in a rhythm. by Alyssa McPherson.............................................................................6 The Search by Charlotte Smith.......................................................................................................................................8 The Weight of the World by Katharine Fuzesi...............................................................................................9 Mother by Rachel DeChiara.........................................................................................................................................10 Dear John Doe by Rachel Greene.........................................................................................................................12 Queen of Fundy by Katie Charney........................................................................................................................13 Children on the Craft by Clara Mooney.........................................................................................................14 What’s Supposed to Happen by Katharine Fuzesi.............................................................................16 Ode to the Silent Letter G by Rebecca Antwi.........................................................................................17 The Best Personal Essay. Ever. by Alex Liao..................................................................................................20 Defensive by Carissa Szlosek.......................................................................................................................................20 Group Effort by Rachel DeChiara...........................................................................................................................21 Socks on Wood by Shelby Ozer.............................................................................................................................22 Funerals by Jessica Waggoner....................................................................................................................................24 Liar by Alicja Madloch........................................................................................................................................................ 25 Two Kinds of Mature by Katharine Fuzesi.......................................................................................................26 Submission #73 by Rachel Greene.......................................................................................................................28 Sometimes I Wish I Could Stay Here by Annie Tvetenstrand....................................................30 Ar t Untitled by Nicole Andrzejewski....................................................................................................................................7 Untitled by Kevin Jiang.............................................................................................................................................................9 Fates by Carissa Szlosek...................................................................................................................................................12 Sunlight by Anna Tyshkov...................................................................................................................................................15 Rocky Road West by Carissa Szlosek.................................................................................................................16 Krissy by Alicja Madloch....................................................................................................................................................18 Rubinstein by Anna Tyshkov............................................................................................................................................18 Hong Kong by Cynthia Yang.......................................................................................................................................19 Who Doesn’t Love Chocolate? by Francis Lai.........................................................................................19 West Village by Elizabeth Coscia..........................................................................................................................23 NYC by Greta Skagerlind................................................................................................................................................23 Josh by Greta Skagerlind...................................................................................................................................................24 Untitled by Anna Tyshkov...................................................................................................................................................27 My Mother’s Eyes by Katie Charney.....................................................................................................................29 Elle by Katie Charney............................................................................................................................................................29 Winter by Katie Charney....................................................................................................................................................31 The Beginning by Monica Murthy.............................................................................................................................31 1980’s Prisms logo 4 So What’s a QR Code? This Fall, we are excited to introduce a new digital element into Prisms. This issue features QR codes for a select number of poetry and prose pieces, which will allow you to hear an audio recording of an author reading his or her work. The QR codes appear as large checkered squares next to three pieces in this issue of Prisms. If you download a free QR reader application on your smartphone, you can scan the code with your phone and it will bring you to a URL of the audio recording. 5 Read these words in a rhythm. by Alyssa McPherson this poem is a challenge to you to read these words in a rhythm. speak these words like they’ve got soul—let them saunter off your tongue in the sultry tunes of smooth jazz... and don’t be afraid to give them a little swagger. drop the stilted recitation, the monotone intonation, the robotic drone that comes buzzing out the mouths of the uninspired like bees are filling their cheeks. add some honey to these words. make ’em sweet, let ’em cascade through the ear canals in streams and creeks and rivers of gold. let ’em water these dry, barren fields and sink down into your roots, back to a time when your ancestors breathed ancient stories and exhaled songs into the sacred land in a language you used to understand. pull these words back to a time before pop stars copyrighted dollar signs and belted drunken vapid rhymes like they know what it means to have that magic flow. speak these words like a spell, let your voice be the wand that illuminates the dark side of these cratered minds, where neglected dreams and passions and childish hopes reside, hiding from the beasts that would rip them apart if you let ’em— so you better fill these words with the roar of the lion, fill these words with the howl of the wolf, 6 make the air quake and the nerves shake with wonder, let these words rumble up from inside you like the churning of thunder, let them part the clouds of your self-doubt and fill your voice with light. teach these words to sing the music of You, swell these syllables with the harmony of your past, your present, your future, and all those moments in between... because when you open your mouth, you can make dull eyes glisten, when you open your mouth, all the world will stop and listen if you read these words in a rhythm. Untitled by Nicole Andrzejewski 7 The Search by Charlotte Smith The wind pummels against my stiff spring coat, cracking my hair in the sky. His hooves cut into the untouched ground. The sound of dead grass being ripped. The trees stand crooked and black the world holds its breath as my horse and I trudge through its hollow stomach. The wind is in a frenzy. It searches for spring. My horse scrambles up a slope the sound grinds in my ears and the fallen rocks sink into a muddy pit. We are so alone. We arrive at a stream. It barely makes a sound. The water is so black, so cold. It moves slowly, swallowing all signs of life, slips into every crack and licks it clean. As we step around brambles, tangled and dry, his ears prick, alert and ready. Surprised. A lonely cluster