INKLING 25th Anniversary Ed. Spring 2015 Inkling is the creative arts magazine of Lone Star College-Tomball. Students 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 Editor: Jeffrey Rodriguez Editors: Susan Strickland Canter Lauren Clark Samantha Fanning W. Shun Foote Lucy Goodson Khodi Jacks Deborah L. Tritico Staff: Susan Strickland Canter Lauren Clark Samantha Fanning W. Shun Foote Lucy Goodson Miguel Guzman Khodi Jacks David Romo Deborah L. Tritico Faculty Advisors: Mari-Carmen Marín Catherine Olson Kyle Solak Melissa Studdard Special Advisor: Udo Hintze Cover Art: Red Hands Louise Mallon After high school, I continued my education at LSC Tomball. For my first couple of semesters I took art classes like design and drawing, where the main focus was on black and white. This piece, “Red Hands,” was one of my first serious uses of color. I used black and red Prismacolor pencils on sketch paper. I studied multiple images of hands and used reference pictures while creating “Red Hands.” My goal was to give the effect of a liquid dripping off of two hands without defining the hands themselves. Inkling Table of Contents Mint Green by Valentina Osuna......................................................................................................................1 First Place Poetry Winner Deadly Assumptions by Jackie R. Beisert......................................................................................................2 Be Someone’s Difference Today by Deborah L. Tritico.................................................................................5 Control by Gavin Jaks.....................................................................................................................................7 The Light of Death by Lucy Goodson............................................................................................................8 At that Moment by Shanna Dudley................................................................................................................9 Master Class in Nature Photography (A Prose Poem) by Matthew Schumacher.....................................10 Chocolate and Cigarettes by Gwynn Worbington........................................................................................11 Second Place Poetry Winner Moldy Cake by Emily Haaland.....................................................................................................................13 A Life in a Music Playlist by Jessica Smith.................................................................................................18 Grandma’s House by Deborah L. Tritico......................................................................................................21 The Edge by Keith Thies...............................................................................................................................24 Sweet Beatrice by Madeline Maske...............................................................................................................25 My Search for Nietzsche in a Psychiatric Hospital by Traynor Swanson..................................................26 First Place Prose Winner Coffin Ripples by Lucy Goodson..................................................................................................................31 Dragonfly by Darrell Svatek..........................................................................................................................32 First Place Art Winner Whee!!! by Ashley Durden............................................................................................................................33 Monochromatic Streets by Miguel Guzman................................................................................................34 Storm A Comin’ by Deborah L. Tritico........................................................................................................35 Ruby Glimpse by Charlene Woelfel.............................................................................................................36 After the Rain by Charlene Woelfel..............................................................................................................37 Third Place Art Winner Mother Earth by Susan Strickland Canter....................................................................................................38 The Feast by Deborah Tritico........................................................................................................................39 Second Place Art Winner Bipolar by Cesar Gomez.................................................................................................................................40 Aspen Trees by Adrianne Gerlach...................................................................................................................41 Baby Ballerina by Susan Strickland Canter....................................................................................................42 Sea of Printed Works by Judith Rojas............................................................................................................43 Innocence by Judith Rojas...............................................................................................................................44 Hummingbirds by Darrell Svatek...................................................................................................................45 Coming Out of Your Shell by Cynthia Enciso...............................................................................................46 Lighting the Streets by Miguel Guzman........................................................................................................47 A Conversation between Aliki Barnstone and Inkling transcribed by Khodi Jacks..............................................................................................................................48 Ulla (After H.G. Wells) by James Hope.........................................................................................................53 Third Place Poetry Winner Longing for Samantha by W. Shun Foote.....................................................................................................57 The 13th Street Fear Factory by James Hope...............................................................................................59 Second Place Prose Winner Amazon Woman by Susan Strickland Canter................................................................................................65 A Fork in the Road by W. Shun Foote...........................................................................................................67 The Champions of the Alliance of the Forests by Ryan Farmer..................................................................69 All that Glitters by Madison Estes.................................................................................................................72 Third Place Prose Winner Words by Jackie R. Beisert.............................................................................................................................75 Stardust by Madeline Maske..........................................................................................................................76 First Place Poetry Winner Mint Green Valentina Osuna It’s the color your hair turns when your mom makes you wash blue dye out of your hair because good Christian girls shouldn’t draw that kind of attention. It’s the color of the bottom of the chocolates you get at Olive Garden after an awkward family dinner because your parents can’t control their temper. It’s the color of the ice cream you bought at Coney Island on the vacation your aunt took you on to avoid dealing with your cousin’s suicide attempt. It’s the color your bruise turns after getting a stick-and-poke tattoo because you were going to be friends forever. It’s the color of memories you wish you didn’t have. It’s the color that just isn’t your taste anymore. 1 Deadly Assumptions Jackie R. Beisert The strains of “Ave Maria” filtered through the huge cathedral. Samantha looked at David and felt as if her heart would explode right there as it beat wildly in her chest. She had never felt so intensely a love for anyone as she felt for David. The song ended, and as they began their vow exchanges, Samantha realized she was crying. She had waited so long for this day, almost as if she had been waiting her entire life for this one moment. They had met in college. Sam had been rushing across campus, to her next class and literally ran right into David. “Whoa, ever thought of trying out for linebacker?” Sam felt her face flush yet managed to stammer out a quick apology. David laughed, introduced himself and asked her out. They began dating and quickly became inseparable. They weathered some tough storms together. Sam’s mom had died from lupus during their junior year, which made her cling even tighter to David and vow she would never lose anyone she loved again. During their last year at college, David told her he was feeling “suffocated” and “needed space.” Samantha was devastated, and as David said goodbye and turned to leave her apartment, she barely missed his head with a crystal vase that she hurled at him with collegiate ball speed. She screamed, “You will be back!” David quickly got