AMPERSAND WEST LIBERTY UNIVERSITY 2020 SPRING ISSUE & About Ampersand Ampersand was first published in 1980 as a publication of the West Liberty chapter of Sigma Tau Delta, the international English Honor Society. Through the years, it has changed ownership from Sigma Tau Delta to the Department of Humanities and back again. While it is now housed in the College of Liberal Arts, students who wish to submit to and work on the publication can come from any academic program, such as graphic design, history, and, of course, writing. It is always an opportunity for students to showcase their creativity. Art, whether words or images, speaks to us as humans. We are storytellers by nature and need literature and art to share our perspectives and help us understand our experiences and the world around us. Things like facts, logic, and statistics help us learn about the world; they educate our minds. However, art speaks to something deeper, what it means to be human, what it means to be living in this world that we’re learning about. It helps us find our voice, our place, and find each other. It’s important to encourage creative talent, so we don’t drown in facts, so we don’t lose that connection with other human beings. Many people write and create art as a way to process their experiences in the world around them, and it’s an important way to do that. However, it’s also inspiring to share that process with others. It is through literature and art that people learn of other perspectives and learn that they aren’t quite as alone as they may think, that there are others out there experiencing the same things. Ampersand lets current students at West Liberty University to share their insight and their experiences. This issue allows readers a glimpse at how our students see the world, and we welcome you to experience each smile, each heartbreak, and each brief moment of their lives as you read the pieces presented here. i Editorial Board Ashley Cole Catherine Calissie Dylan Parsons Luna Phalen Michaela DeBee Patience Tedrow Taylor Koontz Faculty Advisors Dr. Jen Fawkes Dr. William Scott Hanna Nicole Naegele Ampersand is an undergraduate literary publication of West Liberty University in West Liberty, West Virginia and is hosted by the College of Liberal Arts. ii Table of Contents Anonymous ....................................................................................................... 1 Mona Lisa ................................................................................................... 1 Chris Cronin ...................................................................................................... 2 Buried ........................................................................................................ 2 Siara Deem ......................................................................................................... 7 Disregard .................................................................................................... 7 Eternal ....................................................................................................... 8 I Need a Poem .............................................................................................. 9 The Mirror Woman ..................................................................................... 11 Things Interrupted ...................................................................................... 15 PJ Denard ........................................................................................................ 16 City of Gold .............................................................................................. 16 Graffiti Me ................................................................................................ 17 Space Traveler ............................................................................................ 18 Undaunted Dreamer .................................................................................... 19 Justin Hall ....................................................................................................... 20 Untitled .................................................................................................... 20 Untitled .................................................................................................... 21 Untitled .................................................................................................... 22 Untitled .................................................................................................... 23 Charles Henry.................................................................................................. 24 My Old Friend ........................................................................................... 24 Waking up ................................................................................................ 26 T.N. Koontz ..................................................................................................... 35 Broken Like Trodden Snow ........................................................................... 35 The Chaste White Dress ............................................................................... 36 Crying Out ................................................................................................ 37 In Dire Need of Real .................................................................................... 38 Callie O’Neil .................................................................................................... 39 Fall Blessings .............................................................................................. 39 Summer Loving .......................................................................................... 40 Central Park Blues ....................................................................................... 41 American Beauty ......................................................................................... 42 iii Dylan Parsons .................................................................................................. 43 George Bush Goes to a Baseball Game .............................................................. 43 On Che Guevara’s Murderer Being Treated for Cataracts By Cuban Doctors .............. 44 Red Rosa .................................................................................................. 45 Luna Phalen ..................................................................................................... 46 the dread snags at my heart like lilies. ............................................................... 46 the nerve snap makes me grin real big! .............................................................. 47 a poem about worrying ................................................................................. 48 Claire Pittman.................................................................................................. 49 Children of the Stars .................................................................................... 49 Whimsy .................................................................................................... 50 Paige Wallace .................................................................................................. 51 Dad’s Dirty Laundry .................................................................................... 51 For PawPaw .............................................................................................. 53 Tid-Bits .................................................................................................... 55 Raeann Williams .............................................................................................. 56 Misplaced Grief .......................................................................................... 56 Ode to the piano in my 11am lecture ............................................................... 57 Shoes ....................................................................................................... 58 Michelle Yadrick ............................................................................................. 60 Federman, Michigan .................................................................................... 60 Intercepted Letter from Hudson River State ....................................................... 61 Brie-Ann Young .............................................................................................. 62 Friend’s List .............................................................................................. 62 Light ........................................................................................................ 63 Memory ................................................................................................... 64 Woman in the Mirror ................................................................................... 65 Special Section – Dave Thomas Retirement Tribute ........................................ 67 Matthew J. Smith – 1993 .............................................................................. 68 Gail Adams – 2004 ...................................................................................... 69 Rachel Wurster – 2016 ................................................................................ 71 Jacqueline (Bartels) Yahn – 2007 ..................................................................... 72 Charisse Powell – 2012 ................................................................................ 73 Britney