Inkling Spring 2019 Volume 29 INKLING Volume 29 Spring 2019 Inkling is the creative arts magazine of Lone Star College-Tomball. Stu- dents of LSC-Tomball are invited to submit poetry, essays, short stories, or artwork for this annual publication. All copyrights revert to the authors and artists. No portion of Inkling may be reproduced without consent of the individual contributors. Senior Editors: Amanda Black Brezalel Leviston Editorial Staff: Angelica Balles Rebekah Chatman Regina Elizalde Ashley Ener Joseph Fenley Marisela Flores Laura Franco Kaitlin Quarles Georgette Smith Advisers: Mari-Carmen Marín Catherine Olson Kyle Solak Cover Art: Enchanted Forest (Mixed Media) Emily Ponce-Camacho The author of the book Peter Pan, J.M. Barrie, was never clear on what exactly Neverland was, but from what I gathered, Neverland is a blank canvas that we, individually, paint with our thoughts, dreams, and experi- ences. My personal idea of Neverland is a picture of something like heav- en, a place to visit in my sleep, and a land where I can truly be free (as shown in my art work). We have all been to “that place between sleep and awake, that place where you can still remember dreaming.” In the famous 1991 movie Hook, Tinker Bell says this to Peter Pan in hopes of sparking some courage. Now I say this to you hoping to spark some inspiration. Do not be afraid to close your eyes, and have a little faith; then, you will be off to your own Neverland. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS The Inkling staff, editors, and advisers would like to extend their sincerest thanks to Lone Star College-Tomball for the opportunity to publish this twen- ty-ninth edition of our magazine. We’d like to thank sponsors of this year’s reading series: the LSC-Tomball Li- brary and the Office of Student Life. With their support, Inkling was able to host an on-campus reading and an interview with short story author Antonya Nelson. Additionally, Inkling would like to express our vast appreciation to Laura Franco and Brezalel Leviston for their efforts in transcribing the Antonya Nelson inter- view for publication in this year’s magazine. And, of course, tremendous thanks go to Antonya Nelson for sharing time, talent, and stories with us. We offer heartfelt thanks to Dean Melinda Coleman in the First Year Founda- tions Division. Thanks also go to Shannon Marino, Lisa Gutierrez, and Sousan Abdul-Razzak in the Office of Student Life and to Bobbye Silva in the Lone Star College-Tomball Community Library for supporting us throughout the year. We must thank the Inkling faculty judges, Cory Colby, Janie Filoteo, Bo Rollins, and Becky Tate. Finally, we mustn’t forget English professor Douglas Boyd, long- time Inkling judge, proofreader and grammar sage, for the consistent editorial direction he has brought to the magazine over the past twenty-nine years. Most of all, special thanks go to the talented and inspired students of Lone Star College-Tomball. Each year, we collect hundreds of submissions, and in the end, we are able to showcase only a handful of the creative works that LSC-Tomball students have to offer. Many thanks to all of the student contributors this year, in past years, and in years to come. This magazine would not be possible without them. Inkling Table of Contents Embodying Eponine by Victoria Adolph 1 First Place Prose Winner Parental Investment Risk by Emmalee Waggoner 5 First Place Poetry Winner I Only Feel Like Myself When You Hurt Me by Laura Dunn 7 To Darken in Sunlight by Joanna Wright 8 The Universe Speaks by Amanda Black 9 The Scythe and the Rend by Sabrina Hiltscher 10 Forest Lullaby by Taylor Elmore 11 Second Place Prose Winner To: Voice Leading; From: The Absolute Wrongs by Sabrina Hiltscher Second Place Poetry Winner 12 To the Man, Lee by Joseph Fenley 13 As If to Echo by Sabrina Hiltscher 14 The Moon Cast Her Shimmering Light by Laura Dunn 15 Grungy, the Homeless Man by James Purdy 16 Third Place Prose Winner Another Week by Amanda Petersen 21 Third Place Poetry Winner Differing Planesby Ashley Elliott 23 Time by Amanda Black 24 The Rock and the Tree by Cortney DeMott 25 Journal #5: The Forgotten by Jacob Perkins 26 The Other Truth (A Reversible Poem) by Julia Harter 28 The Phoenix by Georgette Smith 29 Breathing Again by Kaitlin Quarles 30 Haunting by Kaitlin Quarles 31 Self-Portrait (Sharpie on Paper) by Ashley Rodriguez First Place Art Winner 32 The Vanishing (Black Ink & Graphite) by Awesziana Roberson 33 Reborn (Gouache Paint) by Regina Roeli 34 Eyes Wide Open (Mixed Media) by Emily Ponce-Camacho 35 Restless Nights (Watercolor) by Mariana Ruiz Loya 36 Awakening Viridian Hue (Photography) by Christy Woelfel 37 Beach Buddies (Acrylic Paint) by Mariana Ruiz Loya 38 Determined (Acrylic Paint) by Regina Roeli 39 Never Forgotten (White Charcoal) by Yadhira Jaimes 40 Second Place Art Winner Effervescent (Photography) by Joanna Wright 41 At Worst (Colored Pencil) by Marisela Flores 42 Blue in the Inside (Digital) by Cynthia Enciso 43 The Terminator Sketch (Pencil) by Karley Morris 44 Sara (Acrylic Paint) by Regina Roeli 45 Ephemeral (Watercolor & Oil) by Awesziana Roberson 46 Judgment (Watercolor & Acrylic Paint) by Awesziana Roberson 47 Third Place Art Winner A Conversation between Antonya Nelson and Inkling Transcribed by Laura Franco and Brezalel Leviston 48 Walking Alone by Amanda Black 60 Dress Up by Julia Harter 62 The Last Sunset by Reba Threet 63 Primordial Her by Ashley Elliott 64 Love by Kiernan McClaren 65 We, the August Born by Joseph Fenley 66 An Entertainer by Joseph Fenley 67 Within a Tale of Hope and Ruin by Joanna Wright 68 Beneath This Towering Forest by Joanna Wright 69 Contributors’ Biographies 80 The Year in Inkling 84 Submission Guidelines 86 First Place Prose Winner Embodying Eponine Victoria Adolph It was now or never, the moment I had been anticipating since the beginning of the year. With my right hand grasping the other and my legs trembling beneath me, my heart raced 100 miles per hour dreading yet anticipating my 60-second shot of a lifetime. Alas, I heard the direc- tors yell “Number 76!” and pulled my shoulders back and held my chin high as if there was no tomorrow. “Welcome to auditions, young lady. Would you please introduce yourself and tell us what you will be doing for your audition?” requested a quite stern but gentle woman sitting at attention in the center of the director’s table. “My name is Victoria Adolph, I am 18 years old, and I will be preforming ‘Goodnight My Someone’ from The Music Man,” I pro- claimed confidently, pretending to be sure in every move I made, for there was no room for mistakes. The lady nodded and grinned at me as she turned to the designat- ed DJ and cued him to start the music whenever I was ready. A sudden heat flash struck me to the bone when nodding to the DJ, as I simulta- neously watched the lyrics fade into thin air. Afflicted by overwhelming dismay, I struggled; however, I managed to remember my lyrics but a second before my cue. An uproar of applause eased my overwhelmed spirit after my audition and brought about a silence to the fluttering of butterflies in my stomach. I could only hope giving my all was enough. I paced about my room while repeatedly hammering at the refresh button to the cast list page once I got home. Les Misérables was no Little Mermaid show, but a once-in-a-lifetime Broadway-styled opera one may compare to the status of Phantom of the Opera. During my long hours of waiting, I tormented myself with my deep insecurities. Give it up, Tori. You’ve only been an advance dancer and will forever remain 1 an advance dancer. Don’t fill your mind up with ridiculous goals; you’ll only disappoint yourself. You would never win the spotlight in a musical like Les Mis. Only the best of the best would be considered for such an honor. A sudden ping from my laptop pierced my body, replicating an ambush of arrows from a high scout barricade. I turned frantically to my laptop to scroll with quivering fingertips through the posted cast list. “AHHHH!” a high pitch scream burst louder than my body knows how to project, shaking the whole house. I brought my hands to my face, slowly massaging my forehead and rubbed my eyes in disbelief. I did it! I was notified with the casting of the role Eponine and a private message from the director requesting me to meet with her about the de- velopment and character building of this strenuous character. Still baffled by the news, I approached the director with a hum- ble, eager spirit later that week for character development. I realized throughout the meeting, the director had higher expectations than I had anticipated. The role of Eponine is highly emotional, heartbreaking, strenuous, and quite perplexing to portray. Be that as it may, the chal- lenge was mine to face, and the prominent expectations the directing team had needed to be exceeded. With one week to be off book, I rehearsed relentlessly and pushed myself beyond limits I have never come in contact with prior to. As rehearsals progressed, I began to struggle with relating to the char- acter and truly reflecting inside how Eponine felt. With an intense show such as this, it is critical to feel what your character feels on a personal level in order to convince the audience the emotions are raw and real, captivating the audience in such a way that the show becomes a reality they are living.