stream of teen spirit

ENTERING THE INNER WORLD OF VOICES TEEN RADIO >>>>>>>>>

VOICES is a remarkable experiment in Teen Radio.  Working with a team led by writer & performance artist, Kathe Izzo from the Great River Arts Institute, diverse groups of rural Vermont & New Hampshire teens probe a variety of subjects with rich & surprising results.

We invite you to participate ~ invite a VOICES workshop to visit your school or organization, sign up for teacher trainings, or simply pick up one of our exercises & send us your writing RIGHT NOW . . . 

VOICES TEEN RADIO is a project of Great River Arts Institute in Bellows Falls, Vermont.  Special thanks to the A. D. Henderson Foundation for their generous support, without which this project would not be possible.

exercise #25

Tell the story of a moment that brought new meaning to your life.

my bike (exercise #25) (podcast)

EMILY ~ MY BIKE ~ PODCAST

~ emily bos-lun,19, westminster, vt

love & hate (exercise #25) (podcast)

KAREN ~ LOVE & HATE ~ PODCAST

~ karen m, new york

my guitar (exercise #25)

I like playing my guitar when I am in a mood no one can understand but me!  When I play I get lost in my own world.  I play to get stress off my mind.  I play to get relaxed before I go to bed.  I love to learn new songs when I play I feel good about myself.  The new songs I learn I play over and over till I get it right.  The more I learn, the better I get.  The better I get the more I have to show to my friends and for myself.

I got into playing because my older cousin played a little bit.  He inspired me because he could play good.  I wanted to be able to play like him.  When I was 8 years old, I picked up his guitar and he showed me a G chord and I picked it up from there.  When I turned 9 1/2 I got my first guitar.  Then I started just messing with it with my friends and we got a book with the chords in it.  Then we taught ourselves how to play bar chords and power chords.

The hard part of playing is switching your chords to your bar chords or power chords.  Soon as you learn how to mix it all up and learn to switch you will see what you get and you will feel goods.  When you make a tune you like you can get lost in your own world, you mood goes mellow and you will feel like no one can touch you.

When I was learning how to play the song from Green Day TIME OF YOUR LIFE, I had fun learning how to pick the chords.  It was so mellow that I can play that tune over and over and not get bored of that tune.

~ chris thomas, 21, (bellows falls, vt)

exercise #24

Enough about Me.  What about You?

Write a poem to someone in your life.

Use the chant YOU: YOU ARE, YOU ALWAYS, YOU REMIND ME, YOU CAN . . .

you are (exercise #24)

You are no longer here,

you left without saying goodbye,

you always were the sweetest kid alive,

you could make me smile,

you could make me laugh,

you did it all with one little snap,

you were like my superhero,

the man flying in the sky,

you lit me up whenever you walked by,

you got into trouble too much,

you let me down more than enough,

On days you'd be upset - but never once did you rest,

your last day with me was the best one yet,

I'll always remember the the night you spent,

you made me a castle, right near the beach,

you then named it Squiddiply.

You were an inspiration, a spark of light, a single night

mare to this home.

You are no longer with us,

where did you go?

You left a heated spot,

that's gonna stay forever.

You left me no pain,

but that I'll always remember,

You were not old enough, to just say no.

You spent your last day on a bike,

You stayed your last night in room 205.

you died on April 24th, 2010.

And that's a day I'll never forget.

You were remarkable, a creature to love, you were

magical, and I'll love you no matter what.

~ k. kennett, 14, (chester, vt)

you (exercise #24)

You

are a special person to me

the voice inside my head

are always there for me

pick me up when I fall

are beautiful

are the most wonderful person I've ever met

make me laugh

make me smile

make up my hope

are everything i can't be

are my other half

smile more than anyone I know

don't cause me sorrow or pain

make me want to be a better person

are as clingy as  me :)

are gorgeous

are funny

are everything you say you're not, in my eyes

express out loud how much you care and what you feel

get along with most everyone

are a good influence on me

You are everything I've needed you to be, you don't need to change one single thing :)

~ shelby, 15, (chester, vt)

you (exercise #24)

You are . . .

my world

my everything

my love

the best

the one

The bomb

You need to

be there for me

stop nagging

be a man for once

show the feelings

cry for once

show you actually care

You have

made me happy

broken me

made me cry

completed me

held my hand

wiped all the tears away

You are

kind

an asshole

gentle

rough

silly

serious

You are my

star- to - burst

foot - to - loop

mac - to - cheese

best -to - friend

x - to - o's

sun to sky

You

are one lucky ducky

a little Redneck

can eat like a beast

have the softest touch

make me giggle

can make me want to punch you!!

You want

me to be there every second

to cry out !!

me to stop acting lie this

more than I can give

this to stay.

You are going to stay. You need to come true to me.  You have to change your breakthrough.  You are my body to hug.  You express yourself when I don't want you to.  You want me to love you.

~ m. blake, 14, (chester, vt)

you are. you could be. you don't have. (exercise #24)

you are nice and sweet

you are quiet and funny

you could be gentle.

you don't have to be bad

you don't have to be shy

you could be anything you want to be

you could be your own person

you don't have to believe what other people say

you don't have to fight with other people

you could be calm and listening

you are a true friend

you are sweet, gentle, calm and peaceful, loving and you care

you are the person that I believe in

you are a good listener when someone needs to talk

you are magnficent

you don't have to be a bully

you don't have to be  a maniac

you are really nice to talk to

you are always with me when I'm crazy and weird

you didn't have to leave me alone

why couldn't you be my friend?

~ marissa varga, 16, (chester, vt)

you are . . . you were (exercise # 24)

You were my salvation,

my light in the dark

You made me feel loved

like someone actually wanted me.

You were my best friend,

the one I turned to

the shoulder I cried on

my light in the dark.

You were my hero

strong and supportive

funny and kind

My light in the dark.

But now you are a jerk

someone who cares about

themselves and no one else

You don't care about me

like I thought you did

You're my cloud on a sunny day.

You are a stranger to me

when I hear your name

I can't recognize it

I don't know you anymore

You lied

You're a cloud on my sunny day.

taylor lefevre, 16, (chester, vt)