Grade 11

Coldwater High School

Teacher: Ms. Finke

Grade 9

Crestview High School

Teacher: Mr. Etzkorn

Grade 11

Crestview High School

Teacher: Mr. Keith Langdon

Grade 11

Coldwater High School

Teacher: Ms. Finke

Grade 11

Coldwater High School

Teacher: Ms. Finke

Grade 10

Celina High School

Teacher: Mrs. Bertke

Grade 11

Coldwater High School

Teacher: Ms. Finke

Grade 11

Crestview High School

Teacher: Mr. Keith Langdon

Grade 10

Delphos St. John's High School

Teacher: Sr. Valerie Schneider

Grade 9

Crestview High School

Teacher: Mr. Etzkorn

Grade 9

Crestview High School

Teacher: Mr. Etzkorn

Grade 12

Crestview High School

Teacher: Mr. Etzkorn

Grade 11

Crestview High School

Teacher: Mr. Keith Langdon

Grade 11

Crestview High School

Teacher: Mr. Keith Langdon

Grade 11

Coldwater High School

Teacher: Ms. Finke

Grade 10

Lincolnview High School

Teacher: Mr. Leeth

Grade 11

Coldwater High School

Teacher: Ms. Finke

Grade 11

Crestview High School

Teacher: Mr. Keith Langdon

Grade 10

Lincolnview High School

Teacher: Mr. Leeth

Grade 11

Crestview High School

Teacher: Mr. Keith Langdon

Grade 10

Paulding High School

Teacher: Mrs. Sharon Bradford

Grade 11

Crestview High School

Teacher: Mr. Keith Langdon

Grade 12

Crestview High School

Teacher: Mr. Etzkorn

Grade 11

Crestview High School

Teacher: Mr. Keith Langdon

Grade 11

Coldwater High School

Teacher: Ms. Finke

Grade 11

Coldwater High School

Teacher: Ms. Finke

Grade 11

Coldwater High School

Teacher: Ms. Finke

Grade 11

Coldwater High School

Teacher: Ms. Finke

Grade 9

Crestview High School

Teacher: Mr. Etzkorn

Grade 11

Coldwater High School

Teacher: Ms. Finke

Grade 12

Tri-Village High School

Teacher: Mrs. Brenda Miller

Grade 11

Coldwater High School

Teacher: Ms. Finke

Grade 11

Coldwater High School

Teacher: Ms. Finke

Grade 11

Coldwater High School

Teacher: Ms. Finke

Grade 10

Fort Recovery High School

Teacher: Mrs. Lisa Ontrop

Grade 11

Coldwater High School

Teacher: Ms. Finke

A game of strategy, execution, skill, visualization, and discipline

Fundamentally sound offenses and defenses

Steal, throw, catch, hit, bunt, and field

Outfielder, infielder, catcher, and pitcher

Make the play get an out

Solid defenses win the game

Lead off, on deck, in the hole, or clean-up spot

Hit the ball to score some runs

Powered offenses attract the fans

Hard work inning after inning

Game over

Another victory for the Cavs

Conference champs to State champs

High school ball to college ball

Enrolled player to scholarship player

Baseball.

Grade 9

Crestview High School

Teacher: Mr. Etzkorn

The sky tears as the darkness bursts through

And the clouds will vanish leaving no trace;

The sky is now black and no longer blue

Signs of living not found any place.

The country grounds will crack and crumble

Like a glass doll shattering a part;

The mountains will start to tear and tumble

Like a person's love breaking a heart.

The oceans will dry leaving no drops

And the valleys will open and widen.

The animals will die, the bunnies, no hops

And the people will hope it will brighten.

This all would happen in a day or two.

If I spent my life not knowing you.

Grade 11

Crestview High School

Teacher: Mr. Keith Langdon

Why do we judge people

By their language and color

It should not matter

Whether red black or brown

Yellow orange or white

In God's eyes we're all the same

People shouldn't hate for such a silly thing as this

To judge by skin color

Is just flat out wrong

When will this come to an end?

It's up to us to decide

Grade 11

Coldwater High School

Teacher: Ms. Finke

Don't look behind the curtain

There is bad ways floatin'

And you feel strange

Away

Don't say a word

Don't think of the worse

It could and will be better

Only if I let her

A letter filled with hope

I fed her with what I know

A letter filled with a show

Things are so slow

Don't look that way

Please listen to what I say

I won't lie to you

That's what I'll never do

Believe in what I say

No harm in any way

Feel what I need

Feel what I feel

Grade 11

Coldwater High School

Teacher: Ms. Finke

The free flowing water crashes on my bare feet

The smell of salt water strikes my nose like a boxer's punch

In the distance I can see the red rising sun

Silence erupts like a volcano in my ears

I feel extreme relaxation

My feet begin to burrow into the blistering sand

The benign beach stays vacant

With no one to talk to but myself

This is a time of deep reflection,

Grade 10

Celina High School

Teacher: Mrs. Bertke

So many ideas,

I cannot express.

So much to say,

I want you to know.

Feelings and emotions,

Just simple thoughts.

I don't know how to reveal them,

I'm not sure you'd even care.

Everything's unimportant,

Or at least that's what you show.

Deep inside, you care a lot,

Why mask the real you?

Are you afraid to lose.

When you could gain?

Afraid to show,

'Cause then you're not a man?

You've tried to explain and

I listened very well,

But you know . . .

I still don't understand.

You've got me where you want me,

Even when it drives you mad.

I won't pretend that you mean nothing,

Though you can't stand the other way.

I won't give you everything with nothing in return,

But we both know that's a lie.

I give all I can and you take it so lightly.

Someday I'll realize that

This was worth all the pain and confusion,

But right now it's overbearing--I'm so afraid to lose.

How much do I mean to you,

In comparison to the others?

Are you really happy or are you putting on an act?

I'm paranoid and losing the fight,

I'm giving in 'cause I wanna smile.

I've given up on crying though I'm still in torment.

I hide it all so I don't have to face it . . .

I've become the happy me . . . such a better place to be.

Now I understand.

Grade 11

Coldwater High School

Teacher: Ms. Finke

Behind the clouds the sun is shining

Warming everything she touches

She brings happiness with her congenial, golden glow

She cannot scrutinize my every move

The clouds conceal me from her view

The ominous clouds swirl in the heavens

As if they are painted there

By God's mystical hand

The gentle, soft, and whispering breeze

Leads the flag in its ballroom waltz

The delicate drips from above

Prance on the window pane and

Trickle down the glass as if they are tears

A day of merged sensations has just started

With much yet to be done

After awhile the day will be lost

Recollections of good and bad

Are what I have to treasure

Grade 11

Crestview High School

Teacher: Mr. Keith Langdon

what it must have been

to be drug into war

to not know where you'll end up

to not know who's next door

to not be prepared

for a shot in the arm

to not know where

you next day will begin

to not know if you'll live

to not know if the sky will lift

or if it'll always be dark

to not know who's trustworthy

or if we're all to blame

what exactly started this mess

why do we have to fight

over land god created?

Grade 10

Delphos St. John's High School

Teacher: Sr. Valerie Schneider

All girls may think that guys are jocks

And we never listen when they talk

But today I'll tell you they are deceived

Because we know more than they perceive.

You see, every word is carefully chosen.

They play with our minds, it has been proven.

They forever maltreat themselves verbally

Often quite viciously and disturbingly.

A classic example may be "I'm so fat"

When in fact she is so very far from that.

Literally translated it means "Love me, love me:'

It's just an attention-getter, any fool can see.

Now, fellows, there are other ones out there,

So don't get fooled by the deceitful snares.

Be on the lookout for "I am ugly" or "stupid"

They scream "Tell me I'm wrong. Be my Cupid!"

This may come as a shock to all your lady friends

Because we hit their secrets right on the heads.

They will deny it, but keep a strong mind to bear

And always remember the truth is out there.

Grade 9

Crestview High School

Teacher: Mr. Etzkorn

He is wrong for her

Can't she see he is so wrong for her

Everyone can see it but her

He is bringing her down

Crushing her dreams and not caring how

She changed

We can all see she has changed

She is never at home, always with him

He treats her like a slave

He can't do anything for himself

He insults everyone's opinions

When you do it back, he pouts like a baby

He is immature and selfish

Loud and obnoxious

She could go so far without him

Can't she see he is wrong for her

He is wrong

Grade 9

Crestview High School

Teacher: Mr. Etzkorn

Buried well in deep soft sleep

Dreaming of bright roses red

A sense of security he does keep

Thinking he's in his warm bed

Slowly awaking from his peaceful night

His hands clumsily roam the air so black

As he blindly reaches for the light

But only hard wooden boards do they smack

His eyes jolting open in fear A sealed wooden lid so close

Not but two inches beside his ear

He asks what am I doing in this pose?

Buried alive and ended is his life's term

He now sleeps among the worms

Grade 12

Crestview High School

Teacher: Mr. Etzkorn

A long, lethargic journey

Through gray, and light, and rain

Trees huddle closely

To keep the wild in.

Through the huddle

And spaces clean

A mysterious light is seen

Where leaves once green

Now withered and dry

Crumble on the ground

Their reddish hues

Through fog slightly blue

Emit the lavender shade of light

In the drowning of twilight.

Grade 11

Crestview High School

Teacher: Mr. Keith Langdon

To love with incredible feeling

And live a fairy tale beyond all attainable hope

Partnering one's soul with that of another

Knowing that this was written in the stars

All fears of becoming engulfed by emotion

Are abandoned, free-fall overtakes life

And all ties to the real world are forever severed

Is this foolish? Or is there a reason for this glorious chaos?

Overanalyzing all possible conclusions in hope

Of one choice being wrong or right

But they are neither, the true answer lies in the

Inhibitions of the heart.

Grade 11

Crestview High School

Teacher: Mr. Keith Langdon

A young boy begins to cry

But soon the tears will fade

As he makes it through another day

Just like the rain

That falls to the ground

It will soon fade away

Just like the boy's tears soon faded

They will always fade someday.

Grade 11

Coldwater High School

Teacher: Ms. Finke

They called us losers

And they said we sucked

But we didn't care

'Cause the TROJANS rocked

At Padua Park

They watched us play

They said we'd lose

But we'd win someday

Year-after-year

Game-after-game

We tried so hard

Yet it ended the same

Several years

Had arrived and gone

My Last was coming

Could we win just one?

We practiced hard

Ready to play

The game was on

Was today our day?

We tried so hard

We couldn't be stopped

We finally won one

Yes, the TROJANS rocked!

Grade 10

Lincolnview High School

Teacher: Mr. Leeth

If the sky were pink, how would it be

A little girl's room is what you would see

Barbies and blankets and lots of new toys

Music and stories filled up with joys

Stuffed animals and dolls fill up the room

When it gets dark, you hear a big "BOOM"

The sounds when you're scared sounding so bad

Wishing that daylight is something you had

The sun will come up, pink is right here

Knowing that playtime is just about near

Grade 11

Coldwater High School

Teacher: Ms. Finke

Everyone has hair.

Some people think about their hair, and don't care.

Hair can be very fun.

Some people put it in a bun.

Some hair doesn't behave.

I like to keep it shaved.

There are many types of hair, that you don't know.

I like people who have an afro.

All of your hair is really dead.

In the morning people have bed head.

People have hair up their nose.

Many athletes have corn rows.

Some girls keep there hair long.

They also have it blond.

Guys look like a mutt.

When they go to the salon, and highlight their cut.

I've seen guys with a muff.

Guys with bald heads look really tough.

My barber's name is Bob.

Some guys put gel on in blobs.

Hair can grow all over men.

They like to grow it on their chin.

I would get really scared.

If everyone lost their hair.

So what I am trying to say.

Is you can have your hair any way.

Grade 11

Crestview High School

Teacher: Mr. Keith Langdon

Shots firing that black sky

On the ground many lay

Clouds so dark, the ground so red

Still up the hill soldiers are led,

We don't have to fight to gain

It only brings more heartache and pain

The toughest days to go through

It's a shame; the lives left are very few.

Grade 10

Lincolnview High School

Teacher: Mr. Leeth

I feel like a piece of trash

Something that has been passed around

I want to jump off a building

And crash into the ground.

My heart is broken

I don't know what to do

Please don't' forget

I will always love you.

I can't go on

Living this life

I have no choice

But to pick up a knife.

I know this will cause many people pain

But I feel so empty I think I'm going insane.

I love you so much find that's no lie

But I give up

And I want to die.

You deserve so much better

You deserve so much more

I pick up the gun

And fall to the floor.

I guess this is where

Everything has to end

You were a great guy

And a wonderful friend

Grade 11

Crestview High School

Teacher: Mr. Keith Langdon

Travis is my name,

Poetry is not my game.

This poem is really lame,

There's nothing quite the same.

Poetry I cannot tame,

Words that I tend to maim.

This puts the art to shame,

For this will get me no fame.

Grade 10

Paulding High School

Teacher: Mrs. Sharon Bradford

Precious in its form

Remembrance is always there

Special things took place

Truly no one else can compare

I opened my eyes

To a world full of love

Always thanking God

Since I know you were sent from above

I let you be part of me

You let me be part of you

We became as one

Our love is undeniably true

Grade 11

Crestview High School

Teacher: Mr. Keith Langdon

Screaming fans await to hear

The greatest drummer ever some say

Ability that rose to higher tiers

Astonished crowds when he played

His moment came to perform "Moby Dick"

Led Zeppelin even named a song

After his creative use of "Four Sticks"

Bonzo stays in people's hearts for long

September 1980 ended this great man

40 measures of vodka made him drown

To finish the days of the band

When the balloon finally crashed down

Grade 12

Crestview High School

Teacher: Mr. Etzkorn

Envy overcomes happiness

Jealousy soon becomes rage.

Boom! It started,

Too early, too late, on time.

The needlessly needy wail

The spoiled fulfilled laugh

Cackling, sneering, frowns.

Whispers subsiding, joining

Thousands of imitations

Clicking and clacking upon you.

Pain, inevitable, gruesome pain

It is glorious, yet aggravating.

Why is this happening here? Now?

The past is present, the future is cast.

Now is gone forever . . . Wait!

It's oozing, glistening in a puddle.

Feelings emerge, enlarge, burst.

Rage dissipates, jealousy hides.

Happiness overcomes envy.

We are all the same.

Grade 11

Crestview High School

Teacher: Mr. Keith Langdon

It tears apart families

And has too much gore

Too many people die

For the sake of the country

A country that promised peace

It's destruction in which it promised it wouldn't be . . .

War . . .

We want YOU . . . to die in the U.S. Army.

Grade 11

Coldwater High School

Teacher: Ms. Finke

When I ponder about the past,

I think of a women who made every moment last

I remember the life lessons she taught me

and all the wonderful advice she gave.

I can still see her beauty

and her smile that lit up the sky.

I can still hear her laughing

and I remember how she made feel when I began to cry

She would tell me to lift my head up,

for everything would be all right.

Tomorrow would be another day,

another moment, another time.

She was more than her cucumber salad,

and the apple dumplings she loved to make

She was a wonderful person,

who knew how to brighten a bad day.

I remember her strong will,

and her very loving heart.

I am going to miss her

for now we are apart

I know that she is watching me,

telling me to shed no more tears for her.

Because now she can be happy

watching everyone from up above.

Heaven just received a magnificent woman,

a women that means everything to me.

I know I will be a good person

because my grandma will always be a part of me.

Grade 11

Coldwater High School

Teacher: Ms. Finke

Tennis shoes squeak and little ones shriek in excitement

As the massive clusters of energetic children

Squirm around each other

To experience the thrills of the congested playground

They work aggressively to escape the confined habitat of the tiny classroom

They announce their freedom

During the climax of the school day:

Recess

The chilly spring breeze

Cools the sweating classmates

As their beating hearts race

To finish the games of fun

The high-pitched whistle signals

And screams at the young students

To end the plays of this time:

Recess

Grade 11

Coldwater High School

Teacher: Ms. Finke

My childhood is ailing on its deathbed

I can't be a kid for long

My how the time has passed

Where have my youthful years gone

It seems that I was a child only yesterday

A child who had made a tremendous wish

Growing up in Coldwater, Ohio

There was one thing on my mind

I dreamed of playing football

And wearing orange and black on Friday night

I played football daily

From first grade up till sixth

And treated the high school players like kings

Mimicking every move they made

Throughout all, the dream was on my mind

In every hard fought game I played

The years passed by quickly

And I entered junior high

I'll never forget how great it was

To play in the first real game of my life

As fun as seventh grade was

I longed for something more

I couldn't wait for time to pass

For my high school days to come

The years flew by once again

And my freshman year was through

Before I stopped to think about it

My sophomore did too

My junior year was better yet

Than any year I'd had before

We worked immensely hard

made it back to State

and beat St. Henry once more

Things were going fine

As I started preparing for next year

Until I stopped one day and pondered

One more year and my football is through

So now I'm taking back

All the wishes I've ever made

For the years to flash before my eyes

For my childhood to die

I would want nothing more

Than for all the clocks to break

For time to stand still now

On what chances I still have left

My new wish now beyond a doubt

Is to tear up that old one and throw it out

Grade 11

Coldwater High School

Teacher: Ms. Finke

When I am an old lady,

I shall wear anything that I desire

With my own therapeutic age-defying make-up

Which I shall have derived from the finest roses

And I shall spend my retirement checks on paint

And brushes and canvas, and say that we

Have no money for descent bottle of wine

I shall squeal my tires on every turn

And be the best race-car driver ever

And paint whatever I want

And toilet paper fake people

And make up for the sobriety of my youth

I shall journey to Europe

And paint in France

And learn to fly an airplane worth 2.6 million dollars

I could wear outfits that do not coordinate

And eat a five-quart bucket of chocolate swirl ice cream in one sitting

Or only eat bread and water for a week

And hoard old love letters and pictures and ticket stubs and memories

But now I must live sensibly

And eat right

And not splatter paint on the walls

And set a good example for the children

I will go only slightly over the speed limit and not squeal my tires

But maybe I ought to practice a little now

So people who know me are not too shocked and surprised

When suddenly I am old and start to wear anything that my heart desires

Grade 9

Crestview High School

Teacher: Mr. Etzkorn

Peaceful and calm, it lies gentle, unused

Without many souls arriving lately

Deserted for years, it remains abused

Like a kid with a violent family

Stepping inside, the darkness surrounds me

A fright'ning chill creeps down my tingling spine

A hush of silence runs through like sea's breeze

Turning around I glance at things divine

I turn to the frosty windows surprised

The thing I view shocked and astounded me

Bringing me closer to death I surmised

What would become of this, hung from a tree

I did not believe what I saw before

A lynch mob in all white sheets in uproar

Grade 11

Coldwater High School

Teacher: Ms. Finke

When I am an old woman, I shall wear go-go boots

With a halter dress which will look stunning on me

And I shall spend my retirement checks on tubs of whipped cream and Bing Crosby CDs

And all the shoes I want, and say we've no money for milk

I shall let my front yard grow two feet high

And wash my hair in the rain and make faces against the car window

And come home at five in the morning

And make up for the sobriety of my youth

I shall sleep in on the weekends

And grow thirty lilac trees around my house

And learn to ice skate

I will wear handkerchiefs on my head and become more grouchy

And eat a box of Cheez-Its in one sitting

Or only angel food cake and monster cookies for a week

And hoard matchbooks and pencils and Life Magazines and pictures of my youth

But now I must clean my house

And shave my legs every day and not skip

church on Sundays

And set a good example for the children

I will stay nutritious and mow the lawn

But maybe I ought to practice a little now

So people who know me are not too shocked and surprised

When suddenly I am old and start to wear go-go boots

Grade 12

Tri-Village High School

Teacher: Mrs. Brenda Miller

She dreams of starry midnight skies,

Heavy Colorado snows, and beaches where the winds blow.

She wants to take him there

And show him how much she cares.

She thinks he's from up above

A gift sent from God with love.

When he speaks it gives her tingles from head to feet.

He seems surreal

But his spirit is true.

So she waits for the time when her dreams will be too.

Grade 11

Coldwater High School

Teacher: Ms. Finke

To tell you the truth I hate school

Except when the last day rolls around

Where no one cares what you do

And I hate family night

Unless we go out to eat

To tell you the truth I hate people who won't shut up

Except when they are telling me something I want to hear

And I hate Gospel music

Unless I've gone deaf in both ears

And, if the truth be known, I hate writing poetry

I would normally never write it

Except when it's for a grade

Which I need to go out

And I hate the color yellow

Except when it's in a tall frosty glass

And to tell you the truth I hate Brown-Nosers

No Exceptions

Grade 11

Coldwater High School

Teacher: Ms. Finke

I had closed the door to my heart

and I wouldn't let anybody in.

I had trusted and loved, only to be hurt

but I wouldn't let that happen again.

I had locked the ramshackle door and tossed away the key

into that misty night as hard as I could.

I would never let love enter there again

my heart was closed for good.

Then you waltzed into my life

and convinced me to change my mind.

Just when I thought that tiny key

would be impossible to find.

That's when you held open your hand

and proved to me that I was wrong.

Inside your palm was the miniature key to my heart

and you had it all along.

Grade 11

Coldwater High School

Teacher: Ms. Finke

Every single day of one's life

they say good-bye.

Good-bye may be the word of all words.

Having both its positive and negative effects.

People come into our lives

as fast as others go.

Some leave an unforgettable impact while

others you wish had.

Saying good-bye for the moment

is as easy as saying hello on the next date.

However, saying it and

not knowing for sure if you will

ever see that one again has unbearable pains.

Good-bye for the moment actually will sometimes

give some people things to look forward to.

One always knows that sooner or later

that good-bye that was said earlier will now mean hello.

This cycle repeats itself over and over many times

until the last moment arises.

Having to look someone in the eye

and say good-bye forever is

something no one should have to go through.

Saying good-bye to a loved one knowing that both of you

have to somehow now go on without each other.

This may just be the hardest thing you ever have to do.

Use the moments with friends and

close loved ones wisely because

you never know when the time

will come when good-bye needs to be said for the last time.

When this time approached, say

good-bye with all you have since

it may be the last words someone hears.

Never lose sight of all the memories you had with that person.

Keep them in the back of you mind because from now on you must

start all over saying good-bye to people as they come and go.

Grade 10

Fort Recovery High School

Teacher: Mrs. Lisa Ontrop

Do you ever wake up in the mornin'

And you just don't know

Who you are or what you're doin'

And times are goin' slow.

Do you ever wake up in the mornin'

With a smile on your face

'Cause there's a place for everything

And everything's in its place.

Do you ever sit and wonder

Just what it's all for

Why you just keep closin' all those windows

Just to open up that door.

The sky is wide and miles high

And that's where dreams belong.

And I think there's good in everything

But you know, I could be wrong.

But then why, oh why, oh why

Must I try, and try, and try

Just to get along,

And just to carry on.

There's a soul in every person

A song in every soul

And everybody's dreamin'

Of the day they let it go.

And there's a dream in every household

In every boy and girl

And one day they'll rise above

And take hold of their world.

The ride is wild and every child's

Just waitin' to get on

And I think there's fun in everything

But you know, I could be wrong.

But then why, oh why, oh why

Must I try, and try, and try

I can't just get along,

And I won't just carry on.