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This issue contains writing and art from Mercedes High School students & faculty Spring 2009.
Issue # 1
2008 - 2009
Cover Art by Albert Anciso
Speechless is MHS‟s new literary arts magazine but not the first of its
kind on campus. The last time MHS had a literary magazine was in
1989. It was called Creative Bits. Back issues are available at MHS
Library. This is an opportunity for MHS to showcase its artists. Art is
subjective and means something different to every single person. It is in
a constant state of change, so you can never really pin down what it is.
Speechless would like to send a special thanks to Ms. Gutierrez and Mr.
De Anda for letting us express ourselves through this magazine, along
with Mr. Root, the entire English and Art Departments for introducing
Mercedes artists to our community. Thanks again to all our writers, art-
ists, and the Speechless crew for checking “yes or no”.
Speechless NOTE:
Speechless will be coming out every semester and
will hopefully become an after school program for
creative writing at Mercedes High School next year.
No work or any part of this issue may be
reproduced (quoted, copied, photographed, video-
taped, or broadcast) without the written consent of
the artist or writer.
All letters to the editor are welcome; however,
please limit the length of each letter to one double-
spaced page of which some may be published in our
next issue with your consent. Include your name
and e-mail address.
For more information on Speechless contact E.
Noyola, B 4 or e-mail.
SPEECHLESS INTRODUCTION
Page 1 SPEECHLESS
Speechless
The Sins Issue
Issue # 1
Spring 2009
Speechless members
at large:
Arechar, Priscilla
Banales, Jose V.
Barrientes, Jennifer
Gutierrez, Diana
Noyola, Esmeralda
Robledo, Celina
Root, Robert
The views reflected within this issue do
not represent the views of Mercedes
High School; in fact, the views ex-
pressed by any speaker or character in
any statement, poem, drawing, photo,
painting, or short story do not necessar-
ily reflect the views of anyone at MHS.
This is art.
Drawing by Anonymous
Cartoon by Albert Anciso ~~~~~~~~ Page 9
Yes by Anonymous ~~~~~~~~~~~~ Page 9
Random by LeoVela ~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Page 10
Friday Night by Jose V. Banales ~~~~ Page 10
The Search for a Great Love by Jade ~ Page 10
Art by Monica Ybarra ~~~~~~~~~~~~ Page 10
Alright by Jose V. Banales ~~~~~~~~ Page 11
Sin = Pride by Baldemar Garcia ~~~~ Page 11
Art by Albert Anciso ~~~~~~~~~~~ Page 11
Romeo by Jose V. Banales ~~~~~~~~ Page 12
The Man I Never Knew
by J. Barrientes ~~~~~~~ Page 12
Cyclopes by Julie A. Rodriguez ~~~~ Page 12
The Tragedy of Barbie
by D. Gutierrez ~~~~~~ Page 13
Envy by Anonymous ~~~~~~~~~~~~ Page 13
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Cover Art by Albert Anciso ~~~~~~~ Cover
Wet by Anonymous ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Page 1
Child Fist Photo by Anonymous~~~~~~~ Page 2
Sleep by Kiara Morales~ ~~~~~~~~~~~ Page 3
Oppressed by Jose V. Banales ~~~~~~~~ Page 3
Ourselves that Scream
by Alex Hernandez ~~~~~~~~~ Page 3
Have you ever, have you
by Narcedalia Ramirez ~~~~~~ Page 4
...Sin by Sevi. Roque ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Page 5
...Sin Art by Sevi. Roque ~~~~~~~~~~~ Page 5
Lit by Krystal Rincon ~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Page 6
The Sins of a School Hall
by Coach Pete Martinez, Jr.~~~ Page 6
More Like You by Jade ~~~~~~~~~ ~~ Page 7
Loves to Eat By Isaac Grimaldo ~~~~~~ Page 7
Cartoon by Albert Anciso ~~~~~~~~~~ Page 7
Aguitado by Jose V. Banales~~~~~~~~~ Page 8
Shout of Sin by Alex Hernandez~~~~~~~ Page 8
Deep by Baldemar Garcia ~~~~~~~~~~~~ Page 8
Cartoon by Albert Anciso ~~~~~~~~~~~ Page 8
Love Into Hate by Maria Zuniga ~~~~~~ Page 9
Remember That by Jose V. Banales ~~~~ Page 9
Page 2 SPEECHLESS
Photo by Anonymous
By Alex Hernandez
Ourselves that scream
Hidden-
within the open air, the atmosphere
Lurking-
amongst the gracious beauty
of the world, of life
Creeping-
into our lives, our gentle minds-
at awful times
beckoning-
a murky shadow
to cloak ourselves.
Unsuspected-
inside our emotions, that
determine our day
Lurking-
around in the humanity
of our hearts
Slithering-
into our spoken words
Beckoning-
a murky shadow
to cloak ourselves.
Shadows-
seeming simple yet, reality shows
the opposite
Struggling-
to lift also, difficult to mangle
the murky shadows
that scream:
Demanding and Crucial-
To lighten-
our souls, to feel
our heart-pound
with every beat-filled
with selfless grace
to lighten-
the path
to heaven.
Drawing by Kiara Morales
Page 3 SPEECHLESS
Oppressed
Everyday I must face being oppressed. If it ain‟t the color of my
skin, it‟s the way I‟m dressed. It‟s an everyday thing. Walking
in da parkin‟ lot, white woman locking her doors, store clerks
followin‟ me around the store. Didn‟t Cesar Chavez end dis crap
or is it kuz I‟m young? People pass judgment quickly everyday.
Sure the country I live in I love, but lovin‟ it makes u grow up
fast enough. Still, no one‟s getting treated fairly unless u gots
money or a white name like Michelle or Steven. Listen, I gotz
sum things I gotta get off ma chest. Y R we fighting a war over
in Afghanistan when Mexicans, blacks, and whites R killing
each other? Did we 4get bout the war in dis country? What
good is freedom if the rich just keep gettin‟ more freeah? Mi
raza and my gente runnin‟ around with no place or tierra. White
rich old women strikin‟ the lotto again is on the news everyday.
Why don‟t they do a human relations piece in the barrio? No,
they take their time interviewing more rich people.
By Jose. V. Banales
956 Pelon
"My hope in my life is to strive for beauty without vanity, strength without insolence,
courage without ferocity, and kindness
without pretense."
-Dante's The Divine Comedy
Have you
Would you notice
All the presents
Would you believe
The fake promises
Have you ever met
HER
Have you
HER that comes as the form of a reaper
in the form of one of these shadowing
HER every move
ANOREXIA
BULIMIA
SELF-MUTALATION
SUICIDE
Waiting
For that final moment
So doom can be HER demise
If you have met HER
Would you ever
Try to understand
And if you would
Could you
By Narcedalia Ramirez
Have you ever met
An
Anorexic
Have you
Would you notice
The skeletal frame
Would you hear
Its crying stomach
Or
Its whisper “shut up. You don‟t need more.”
Have you ever met
A
Bulimic
Have you
Would you notice
The yellow teeth would you hear
The toilet flushes
Could you smell
The decaying breath
Have you ever met
A
Cutter
Have you
Would you notice
The wristbands
Would you strain your ear to hear
Its cry
Not of the physical pain, but of the emotional
Have you ever met
A suicidal
Have you ever, have you
Page 4 SPEECHLESS
Loves to Eat
I love to eat
I love to eat
I love to eat
I eat everyday
Every second
Every minute
Every hour
24 hours a day
365 days a year
I love to eat
I love to eat
I love to eat
I eat when I‟m hungry
I eat when I‟m full
I eat when I‟m bored
I eat when I‟m excited
I love to eat
I love to eat
I love to eat
I eat when I‟m asleep
I eat when I‟m awake
I eat in my dreams
I eat in my nightmares
I love to eat
I love to eat
I love to eat
I eat when I‟m inside
I eat when I‟m outside
I eat when I‟m nowhere
I eat when I‟m somewhere
I love to eat
I love to eat
I love to eat
By Isaac Grimaldo
…SIN
..There are seven
And each one is just as bad as the last
Unified, yet each one stands alone
Watching…waiting
Singing their sinister songs like harpies
Trying to crush our souls onto
The burning rocks
Seven ingredients that
Form our downfall…
Envy who we ourselves grow and harbor…
He who drives us to horrible actions
Which we’ll come to regret.
Greed who comes in forms of bad motivation
He causes us to squeeze our loved ones to the core for more.
…He’s always competing with Envy…
Lust, which convinces us that she loves us…
…but she’s a terrible liar…
Wrath…who invokes himself
Even when we don’t deserve it.
Pride, she holds envy’s hand
Forever unified…
Complementing the attributes
That drag us down ever so slowly.
Sloth…oh she’s a clever one.
The way she wears her mask
To lure us into a rhythmic numbness.
Oh how nostalgic…
But the most universal of the seven…
Could very well be the worst.
Glutton. Who agitates us more.
So similar to Greed yet profoundly different.
He lives like a parasite…
So as by their strength
Of their illusion
Will draw us into confusion.
And so we shall know security….
…Our morals’ closest enemies…
by Sevi. Roque SPEECHLESS Page 5
Lit
Brother,
Hermano!
porque me mataste?
never
think
alcohol
body
light me up
Mad
haunt
CRAZY!
With hate,
Sister By Krystal Rincon
Drawing by Sevi. Roque
Page 6
The SINS of a School Hall
As I walk the halls the sights and sounds are Sins that frighten even an old school teacher.
A student walking the halls or sitting in the cafeteria and going no place, that is a sin.
The teacher that sits by the computer instead of standing by the doorway to greet the students and won-
ders why the halls are so congested, that is a Sin.
The boyfriend that makes his girlfriend cry and forgets the pain his mother may feel because the tears
are seen at home, that is a sin.
The teacher who doesn’t reach out to a student instead belittles the child into thinking they will never
succeed, that is a sin.
The student who complains about the food and leaves it on the table knowing that in another part of the
world a mother cries because her own body cannot create the nourishment for her hungry child, that is
a sin.
The teacher who gets to school late or even to the classroom yet writes up the student for being tardy,
that is a sin.
The student who is afraid to speak English because others giggle at their pronunciation and yet their
own Spanish sounds like a high school text, that is a sin.
The teacher that hates to change their teaching ways hoping that the new curriculum will disappear,
that is a sin.
The students who think the easy way can be found in drugs, alcohol and easy money, that is a sin.
The teacher who smiles only at the end of the day, that is a sin.
The student who sits alone and has no friends while others walk by without even a glance, that is a sin.
To have “No Pride” in your school, that is a sin.
The greatest Sin is the student that wastes his God-given talents and never gives his mind a chance to
create and share with others.
The unforgivable Sin is the teacher that does not give their “Heart and Soul” to his or her profession.
SPEECHLESS
By Coach Pete Martinez
You may find these words simple and meaningless, but I feel a need to share them with you.
Let me tell you of the joys you bring to my life because I know that in you, I will always find someone I can turn to for
acceptance and understanding
You are simple and humble and your beauty lies deep within
You criticize yourself for not being formally educated, but your experiences make you wiser than anyone I know
It lightens my load knowing that you are just a phone call away
You have helped me through some of life‟s little tragedies more times than I could ever repay
We have shared so many wonderful moments
And some I would like to forget
There have also been some secrets and jokes I simply can not forget
You have a gift for healing and mending broken hearts with words that lift my spirit when I felt I could no longer go on
The way you share yourself is something I wish I could
you are so enduring of my pains and good times too
Your words are reassuring and bring back a smile to my face
Because of you, I know that life‟s simple pleasures should never be taken for granted
I have a mother of my own, but somehow I wish she could be more like you.
If you ever fell like you aren‟t appreciated, or I have forgotten to thank you, please always remember my simple words;
this gift I give to you
These words mean so much to me, hope they mean as much to you
By Jade
Page 7 SPEECHLESS Cartoon by Albert Anciso
Aguitado
Me encuentro aguitado como un perro abandonado
Como quisiera borrar todo el mal pasado
Nomas quedan recuerdos de lindos pensamientos
Como quisiera explicarte todo lo que siento
It‟s sad to see you leave.
I just can‟t believe I wasn‟t there for you
like you were for me
I know I did you wrong
Wish I could take it back
If I could, then I would
Never knew what I had „til I lost it all
Still got you in my heart
by Jose V. Banales
956 Pelon
Page 8
Shout of Sin
I shout a secret
in a whisper of words to your ear
“have you ever sinned
like maybe said cheers?”
A sin is a sin
we all have our share
even when forgiven
we tend not to care
We continue our misbehavior
but stop it must
we should not hold pride,
greed nor lust
So pour out
all the wrong you think or do
to allow you through to heaven
a judging will be of you.
By Alex Hernandez
Deep
What should you do when your heart feels broken?
There are so many words that have been unspoken.
I don‟t get it, why can‟t I just be happy?
I‟m always down, always feeling crappy.
I guess I can‟t handle change so well.
I‟m acting out, can‟t you tell?
It‟s moving so fast, leaving me behind.
Why can‟t time just freaking rewind?
I try pretending like nothing is wrong.
Relying on my happiness with a catchy song.
Hoping I won‟t cry or frown, yet I cry when no
one‟s around.
I try my best not to show how I feel.
Emotions I do conceal.
I‟m hard to understand, but it‟s just how I planned.
Someday I‟ll be filled with bliss.
Not completely happy, but it‟s better than this.
This feeling has me so tired;
I believe someday my heart will get what is most
desired.
By Baldemar Garcia
SPEECHLESS
Cartoon by Albert Anciso
Page 9 SPEECHLESS
Yes
I should’ve not broken up with him. I can‟t
believe you called it off the day before his birth-
day. That‟s cold. He wanted to get married. I’m
16. What does he think? No estamos en un
rancho. I‟m surprised anyone wanted to marry
you at all. Yeah. It’ll be hard finding someone
else que me aguante. What didn‟t you like about
him? Nothing I can remember. That’s stupid.
Maybe I was just scared. Scared of what? He
was too nice. Is that even possible? Yes. How
can someone be so understanding? I don’t think
he really liked me if he didn’t mind that I would
go out with my friends and other boys were there.
He never seemed jealous. Do boys have to be
jealous in order to prove that they care about you?
No, but it helps. What if he was, but didn‟t show
it? Don’t say that! That would be terrible.
Because it means you are an idiot? Yes.
By Anonymous
Remember That?
I‟ve been doing a lot of thinking lately. Listen,
this all started when I was at the park the other
day. Remember that? I saw this guy get on one
knee and heard him say to his girl, “Casate
con migo.” My Heart stopped right there when
I saw the look on her face. Baby, I swear she
didn‟t even know what to say. She couldn‟t
even breathe, but her tears of happiness gave
the cover away. I witnessed the beginning of
something so true. I wanna make you feel the
same way too. It‟s been so long that we‟ve
been together and I want to take the next step.
Make it last forever. I want you to close your
eyes. I got a surprise for you. I think it‟s time.
I feel that it‟s that time for you and me to shine.
Girl, will you be mine? Can you feel my heart
skip a beat? Just thinking about you makes me
weak. It‟s been a while. „Til this very day. It
took me this much to figure out what to say.
For some reason it never crossed my mind. I‟d
figured we always be together
„til the end of time.
By Jose V. Banales
956 Pelon
Take It Easy
Slow down, you‟re growing up too fast.
Stop before it‟s too late.
For these fun times just won‟t last.
Take it easy, have a blast.
Don‟t rush past the opened gate.
Slow down, you‟re growing up too fast.
Walk barefoot on the sand or play on the grass.
Learn to love life; don‟t learn how to hate.
For these fun times just won‟t last.
There will come a day when you must fill your pockets with cash.
This is not the time to look at the date.
Slow down, you‟re growing up too fast.
I‟ve heard it said there are only three things that last;
Hope, love, and Faith.
Slow down, you‟re growing up too fast.
Laugh, dance, and play without haste.
Hang with your friends. Find a good mate.
Slow down, you‟re growing up too fast.
For these fun times just won‟t last By Jennifer Barrientes
Cartoon by Albert Anciso
Page 10 SPEECHLESS
Random
Love is everything you could possibly imagine. It‟s pleasant, devastating, and absolutely
deadly. And because of what love is people may actually be willing to change their everyday
lifestyle in order to gain this treasure.
Truly, love is mind control. The beautiful girl in high school can easily use her charms to
control any male with a weak mind. Once a male is in grasp, the female can tell the male to do
anything and when they part the male, depending on how strong the bond is, will feel like a
thousand rusty knives just penetrated his heart. While the enjoyment was delightful, the pain was
multiple times worse. Several people wonder if it‟s worth it.
Love is a gamble. While everyone has almost an equal chance in the world to love, the
outcome of a relationship is random. Some people may do anything for love, making them do some
of the most mediocre things. Love may as well be considered blind. The only thing they see is the
person they want to be with and are distracted from reality.
One misconception made by many people is that only opposites attract. Anyone can love
anyone or anything. Love for sure has no limits to where it can reach and can be found even in the
foulest places. You can‟t hide from it.
You can see, love controls, dominates, and is inescapable. What is love? It‟s everything but
visible.
By Leo Vela
Friday Night
What is love?
Is it the feeling I get when your lips touch mine?
Holdin‟ back
…I held back on the things I knew that god meant to be true
…I never saw through the fog
…I thought to myself about those things.
I knew I loved you and god, was it true?
I keep falling in love with you.
I hated not knowing if you loved me too
…awaking one day knowing what I wanted was you.
How could I tell you? Help me explain.
My heart feels like I have been detained.
One thing I held back that was true
That I knew I needed to get through to you
…I‟m in love with you.
By Jose V. Banales
956 Pelon
The Search for Great Love
Have you ever had a great love?
Love that fills your heart with joy and
sorrow
Feeling that can lift you and hold you above
Tingle and flutter you pray will be there tomorrow
The kind of love that can make you smile and
laugh
Hurt and pain that smoothes over with just a touch
Emotions that grow and begin to pile
Bursting with fire that burns, oh too much
Words fill your head, words you‟re too afraid to
utter
It makes you breathe so hard, you heart skips a
beat
Bewildering thoughts that make you stutter
Your temperature rises like summer‟s
heat
Waiting, wishing, silently hoping,
Someday it will come, there‟ll be no more
moping.
By Jade
Art by Monica Ybarra
Alright
You came to me one day,
I felt that everything was alright
until it hit one night
It felt dark as if there was no light
Something just didn‟t feel right
My body felt tight
I thought I was going to lose my sight
Someone called and said you were in a fight
When I arrived, I saw you were alright
Then, out of sight
a car pulled up and nothing seemed right
I heard two things and saw blasts of light
I yelled hoping you were alright
I laid by your side
And cried as you died.
By Jose V. Banales 956 Pelon
Page 11 SPEECHLESS
Sin = Pride
So much pride, in your cocky little mind.
So much pride that you overflow deep inside.
Too much pride is one of the capital seven sins.
Too much pride, in a battle you will never win.
Pride is the deadliest sin of them all.
If you don‟t care, just listen to me because soon you will fall.
You walk with your chest puffed up and self-obsessed.
Telling yourself and everyone else that you‟re the best.
You think you‟re so good because you‟re cocky at everything
You have no self-control because the sin is now controlling.
It‟s pretty sad to know too much pride has gotten your sanity.
In reality you‟re just a puppet full of vanity.
You love to show a cocky attitude to others.
Especially to your own damn brothers.
You think you are superior, but you are just inferior
Look at yourself, homie, look into a mirror.
So much pride, in your soul deep inside.
Too much pride, overloading is your mind.
By Baldemar Garcia
Art by Albert Anciso
The Man I Never Knew
There you stood, tall and lean
Just like I‟ve always been told.
I don‟t remember you, I hardly even knew you.
You were there when I arrived,
I was there when you departed.
I‟m not sure you really knew me either.
You are the man I call father, the man I wish
I could have called “Daddy”.
Time was so cruel to us.
Your life was short, but your gift lingers in me.
Your friends tell their stories
And Mom holds her memories and shares them with me
But, that is not enough.
I dreamt about you and in my dream
You held your arms open.
I don‟t know what to make of it
I just wish it was real.
I know someday we‟ll meet again.
I don‟t wish it soon, for I too
Have those who need me here,
And they call me “Mommy”.
By Jennifer Barrientes
Romeo,
Stop looking for your Juliet.
She will come to you.
Sometimes life may make it seem as if this isn‟t true,
but believe me, you‟ll pull through
She‟ll come to you
Just hope you let her come close to you.
by Jose V. Banales
956 Pelon
Page 12 SPEECHLESS
Drawing by Julie A. Rodriguez
"Envy and Arrogance and Avarice are the three sparks that have all hearts enkindled." -Dante's The Divine Comedy: The Inferno
SPEECHLESS
Envy
All other capital, seven, or deadly
sins pale in comparison to that of envy.
While you‟re more than likely nodding
your head, wondering why wrath would
pale in comparison to one such as envy, the
simple fact you must understand is that
envy is the root cause of the mortal sins. In
Silence of The Lambs, Hannibal Lector
questions FBI agent Clarice Starling on the
possible motives of a mass murderer;
during this discussion Lector reveals why
the wrath of this killer was invoked. “He
covets.” Lector continues to articulate,
“We begin by coveting what we see
everyday”. In this he unveiled a truth in all
of us. How is lust invoked? We covet.
Wrath? We covet. Envy of what we see
everyday forces us to covet things until the
inevitable unleashing of Envy‟s relative
sins.
SPEECHLESS Page 13
THE TRAGEDY OF BARBIE (With apologies to William Shakespeare)
Friends, women, consumers, lend me your ears; I come to bury Barbie, not to praise her. The sexist exploitation that men create lives after them, The true nature and value of the fair sex is often interred with their bones; So let it be with Barbie. The noble toy company hath told you Barbie is a role model. If it is so, it is a grievous fault, And grievously have women answered for it. Here under the leave of the First Amendment and on behalf of all women Come I to expose Barbie. She is my nemesis, a goal unattainable; But the toy company says she is the ideal, and the toy company has its finger on the pulse of humanity (able to distort the natural progression of the role of women). Barbie hath brought many captives home to Mattel, With whose hard earned dollars did the toy company’s coffers fill; Does this in Barbie seem honorable? When the poor preteens have cried for ownership, parents have cried foul; Yet the toy company says she is the ideal,
and the toy company has its finger on the pulse of humanity (able to distort the natural progression of the role of women). You all have seen her on the shelves: statuesque, blond, blue-eyed, richly dressed and accesso-rized with jewelry, shoes and purses to match, swimwear, casual wear, sportswear, evening gowns, holiday garb; Townhouse, beach house, travel van, sports car, hair salon, great friends and steady beau all within reach; An empty-headed beauty with no visible means of support or skills who plays dress-up mocking professional women spouting such empty platitudes as “Math is tough!”— An ornament, a plaything. Yet the toy company says she is the ideal, And sure they have their finger on the pulse of humanity (able to distort the natural progression of the role of women). I speak not to disprove what the toy company seeks to accomplish, but here I am to speak what I do know. Women often suffer unrest, jealousy and resentment; Perhaps it stems from the fact that we have failed to attain the ideal that is “Barbie.” For we all did love her once, not without cause; What cause withholds you then to say “NO” to the manufactured ideal? O judgment, thou art fled to blatant exploitation Preying upon the hopes and dreams of young women eve-rywhere. And men have usurped their power. Bear with me; My heart is in the coffin with Barbie. And I must pause or lose the identity of my soul. By D. Gutierrez