I Miss You

I miss you

I don’t know why I miss you

I don’t know if I miss the way it felt

When your hand touched mine

Our long talks and the way

We fit together as if we’d known each other

All our lives

I don’t know if I just miss your smile

When you looked at me

Or your lack of full attention for more

Than a few minutes

Yet your never ending list

Of adventurous things for us to do

I don’t know if I just miss

Having someone to kiss

Or knowing you will always be there

Or being able to say you’re mine

Or the letters

Or the laughs

Or the security

Or the comfort

I don’t know if I miss the moments and memories

Or the stars we gazed at

Or the times we gazed at each other

Or the secrets we shared

Or the mistakes we grew from

Or our hope for the future

Or our plans for our future

I don’t know if I just miss your cats

Or your family

Or your house

Or your touch

Maybe I just miss your presence

Maybe I only miss the thought of you

But all I know

Is that

I miss you

Don't Touch

Climbing carelessly across crimson crystals

Why were words wished away when

Mommy mumbled ‘move from my room’

She saw something slip solemnly

From frustrated fragile fingers

I tried to tug the treasures down

But tiny tots can’t try to be tough

Dazzling diamonds danced down to doom

Beautiful box breaks bity baby ‘boom’

Crimson crown cascading through carpet

A damaged dear, because I refused to hear

“My jewelry box is heavy, move away from baby.”

Good Luck

Good Luck

I still have my dad’s notes; I carry the worn out letters scribbled on yellow-edged pages pasted in a leather cover beside my hip, everywhere I go. In fact it’s the only thing I still have from earth. Well that and the rusty 2057 penny wedged in my jean pocket. It was a gift that I received my last full day on earth. I was given it by Ky Merkely, who had scrapped it off from the dirt in the space between our feet.

            He rubbed it on the inside of his nicely ironed shirt and placed it in my palm, wrapping it up in my fingers.

            “For good luck,” he smiled at me with sparkling eyes. I smiled back with the heads up penny blanketed in my hand. We stood there grinning at each other by the lake a mile from my house and a mile from his. We’d snuck out, more like told our guardians we were going on a walk alone, and met up in the middle.

            Ky Merkely wasn’t all that special just important. He was the first boy who had ever shown interest in me, or so Leela Beach said so. I never knew him all that well, in fact hardly knew him at all. Just that he was a pretty good looking boy from school, who apparently had been checking me out. Now that’s all I’ll ever know of him.

            When we parted ways that afternoon, looking back at each other, the thought never crossed my mind that that would be the last time I’d ever see him. I’m sure he never thought that either.

            And certaintly neither of us could have guessed that he should have perhaps kept the penny for himself, because he needed the luck more than I did.

Something!

Cursive, print, lighter, or darker

Pencil, crayon, brush, or marker

Paper, wall, table, or chair

Jeans, t-shirt, or simply the air

As long as I can create something

I won't feel like a nothing

A drawing of a flower, for you to get better

A very, very long, no, never ending love letter

A story of a young boy, that's stored in my mind

A painting of a girl who's hair can shine

As long as  I can create something

I won't feel like a nothing

I like the feeling of that piece of wood

Stuck between my thumb and pointer finger, knowing that I could

Draw, write, doodle, scribble, whatever I wanted to

And I know I really will do, because

As long as I can create something

I won't feel like a nothing

Written by: Mrs. Bieber

Just Outside the Pool Gates

Green towels all in a line

Yellow pool rules sign

Blue water turned that way by the chlorine

Brown sand, thrown in, that makes the water gleam

Red bikinis on itty-bitty waists

White concrete walls, which cracks are filled with paste

Orange Popsicles being licked up

Black pop poured in a cup

These are a few of the things

That my eyes to me bring

Green flip-flops that are sure to be there all day

Yellowish-gold curls bouncing away

Blue water moving with a fast pace

Brown sandy hair swishing across a boy's face

Red lips moving with a flirtatious motion

White skin being lathered with sunscreen lotion

Orange sun glowing in the afternoon sky

Black and red trousers swimming by

These are a few of the things

That my eyes to me bring

Written by: Mrs. Bieber

Like a River

Our love is like a river

Fowing smoothly along

Like a love song

The path is indecisive

But whatever it will give

It will be between you and I

Sometimes though there's a storm

And our love is no longer warm

The river jumps and splashes

There are cracks and gashes

There's argues and fights

Painful days and long dreamless nights

But in the very end

The river is my friend

The water brushes my toes

A drop touches my nose

The river draws me in

But if I fall too far in

I'll lose my breath and drown

Into your love once again

Written by: Mrs. Bieber

If I Had an Apple Seed

If I had an apple seed

I would plant a tree and clime to heaven

If I could have all the speed

I'd race across the waters to help Japan

If I were to grow the longest hair

I would build a hammock for myself to swing in

If I could breathe underwater, I swear

I would search for Ariel, the little mermaid

If i could have a song written about me

It would be my first dance song on my wedding day

If I could be anyone I wanted to be

I would       just       be       me

If I were able to fly higher than high

I'd be writing this on the moon

If I just watched the day go by

I wouldn't sleep until I regained what I missed

If I could only just have a flower

I'd pluck the pedals and chant, "he loves me... he loves me not..."

If I were in the highest tower

I'd go to the top, then ride down fast on the elevator

If I were to be an animal for a day

I would be a cat, so I could get massages all day

If I were on a beach, just by the bay

I'd sink my toes into the sand and gaze at God's gifts surrounding me

If I were the richest on earth

I just might go crazy

If only some people knew they were worth

No more than myself, I wouldn't have to make such an effort to be pretty

If I could turn around and go to the past

I would simply fix my hair from this morning

If today were my last

I'd give it all to you 

Written by: Mrs. Bieber    

Just on the Edge of the School Yard

Green pines swaying in the breeze

Yellow daisies swarmed by bees

Blue sky swamped with fluffy clouds

Brown squeals tiptoe without a sound

Red robin gliding above

White rabbit caring for her bunnies with such love

Orange sun starting new for the day

Black crow squiring away

These are a few of the things

That my eyes to me bring

Green bike riding down the way

Yellow school buses, where kids play as they may

Blue van running to get to school

Brown teenage boys trying to act cool

Red roofs placed on top of

White houses with jets soaring above

Orange flip-flops that lay by my side

Black roads with colorful cars parked on the side

These are a few of the things

That my eyes to me bring

Written by: Mrs. Bieber

Miracles

            Holly Ann woke to a terrifying shout.  Tears ran down her face as soon as she heard it, but she didn’t make a sound.  It wasn’t because she had been awaken and it wasn’t because she thought that someone was hurt; it was because she was scared.  Of course she knew exactly what the shout was from, but she liked to tell herself that it wasn’t what it really was. 

            Holly Ann jumped out of bed and slipped on her slippers.  She climbed upstairs and grabbed a bagel.  She had to get breakfast herself lately, and in fact, she really was doing most everything on her own.  She was waking herself up for school, which wasn’t entirely hard with all the shouting, getting ready for school and since she didn’t know how to use the washer and her mom hadn’t done the laundry lately, she had to reuse some of her dirty clothes, and of course, walking three blocks to get to school.

            But today was Sunday.  Holly Ann missed the days when she and her family went straight to church on Sunday, but they hadn’t gone since the year before.  She knew for sure that today wasn’t the day her parents would come to her and say they were going back to church.

            Holly Ann finished up her bagel and hopped on the counter to get a glass of water.  Then she heard a louder scream and a howler.  Next came a crash, or maybe it was more like a shatter.  There was loud cry that she could hear and then a boom sounded.  She suddenly didn’t want a glass of water.  All she wanted was to get away from the screams.  She slowly slipped off the counter and headed towards the back door, down the hallway.

            Suddenly she stopped in her tracks and paused to stare at the family pictures hanging up on the hallway wall.  It was only about a year ago when she was just seven.  They looked happy, the whole family.  Her mom was smiling with a sparkle in her eye, her dad looked like he was laughing.  And she looked like she had just got back from Disneyland.  She longed for those days when her family was all happy together and there were no fights and arguments.

            Holly Ann continued down the hallway and out the sliding door.  It shut tight behind her.  She shivered in the cold morning air, but she enjoyed the breeze.  She stepped out of her slippers and stepped off the porch.  Her toes wrinkled in the wet, dewy grass.  Then she lifted her gown up a bit and tiptoed farther into the yard.

            The sound of the birds made her smile, and she hadn’t smiled in a long time.  She closed her eyes and lifted her nose in the air to smell all the wonderful flowers.

            She skipped to a patch of blossoms and plopped down right in the middle of them.  She was startled by the cold wet grass, but then settled in.

            Holly Ann wanted to cry out all her tears, but she knew that would surely make a flood because there were so many tears inside of her.  She felt as if she were going to explode with all the sadness that was locked and kept inside of her. She just wanted to . . .

            Suddenly she forgot what she was thinking about when a pink blossom seemed to tickle the edge of her button nose.  Her eyes crossed as she realized what it was.  At first she thought that it was a little person; no, maybe not just any person, but a princess.  Her mind went blank and she did see a little tiny princess.  The ball at the end of the stem transformed into a little head with familiar brown curls, blue eyes, and button nose.  The long stem part was an actual body that flowed with the pink dress covering it.  The pink princess danced and twirled in the sun.  She smiled and giggled as she skipped along to a pile of stones, but, it was not just stones, but a stone castle.  The great tower must have been at least eight stories high.  More and more blossoms fell from the sky.  Some were yellow, some were orange, but not a single one was just as cheery and pink like the first.  Then a giant leaf flew across the sky and landed in front of the pink princess, followed by a tall and thick stick. 

            This must be the king and queen, Holly Ann thought as she saw them step towards the pink princess with a warm, welcoming, and loving hug.

            Holly Ann watched in amusement as the little family embraced each other.  They were all so happy.  They smiled and giggled and sang a love song.

“Come on, let’s dance!” The princess cried in excitement.

  Then they all grabbed hands, including the other blossoms and leaves and sticks, and spun in a circle until they all fell down in laughter.  They giggled some more in delight. 

            Then the princess, king, and queen all skipped in pure happiness to the stone castle.  Holly Ann noticed that the king and queen were very much in love.  They were always near each other, hugging, dancing, holding hands, and at one time the king held the queen in his twig arms and kissed her.  The pink princess was grinning from ear to ear.  She wandered in the field that lay in front of the stone castle, standing in between the two, now holding each hand. 

            As they reached the stone steps, the king and queen stopped in their tracks.  They turned towards each other with their daughter spinning in circles in front of them and whispered something to each other.  It was a soft gentle whisper with kindness and love in it.  There was no shouting, or loud voices, but a soft whisper. 

            The words that were spoken were, “I love you.”

            Holly Ann couldn’t imagine when the last time her own parents had said those words to each other or acted in this manner.  This family seemed similar to hers.  Perhaps it was.  But no, it couldn’t be; they all loved each and were happy.      

            Suddenly the pink princess was no longer a beautiful princess.  It was only a blossom starting to lose its color.  The brave king was simply a torn up stick.  The queen was just a ripped up leaf.  As for the other blossoms; they were things that you would find in the trash.

            Holly Ann blinked twice and stood to her feet.  They were weak now from sitting too long on the ground.  She wearily lifted her gown and tiptoed to the porch where her slippers lay. 

            Before she could even fully reach the back door, she could hear the shouts and screams that were heard almost every day now coming from her mom and dad.  Tears swarmed in her eyes as she thought of the times when her family was just like the royal family living in the stone castle atop the green meadow.  She wanted more than anything to continue to cry her heart out, but a small part of her, way down deep, just knew that there was still hope.  She trusted God that one day they would all be happy again and maybe even go back to church as a family.  She believed in miracles.

                                          Written by: Mrs. Bieber

The teeny tiny pink and yellow polka-dotted Umbrella

            The teeny tiny pink and yellow polka-dotted umbrella.  From the making to the shop to the pig tailed girl to the blue sky to the mini old woman to the boy who wasn’t at all shy.  The teeny tiny pink and yellow polka-dotted umbrella.

                     The teeny tiny pink and yellow polka-dotted

                                                      Umbrella

            There once was a young man with five little daughters.  Now in order to provide for his five little princesses, he made small little things to sell, such as miniature aprons, tiny tea sets, and itty-bitty baby dolls to put up in his shop.  But his most prized possession was the teeny tiny pink and yellow polka-dotted umbrella.  Then one day when he had finished making the teeny tiny pink and yellow polka-dotted umbrella, he set it up in the shop.  The teeny tiny pink and yellow polka-dotted umbrella sat in that shop window for days on end, through the rain, the hail, the hot sun, and through the snow.  Then one cold winter day, a small pig tailed girl skipped her way up to the window where the teeny tiny pink and yellow polka-dotted umbrella stood.  You could tell by the way her face lightened up and how she tapped her mom excitedly and pointed at the teeny tiny pink and yellow polka-dotted umbrella that she so wanted it.  Sure enough the next morning her mother stopped by to pick it up.

            On Christmas day after all the turkey was eaten, all the presents were opened, and all the joy was fulfilled, there was just one teeny tiny present left in a small little home where a pig tailed girl lived.  The pig tailed girl opened the present and to her surprise inside the present laid the teeny tiny pink and yellow polka-dotted umbrella.

            The pig tailed girl took that the teeny tiny pink and yellow polka-dotted umbrella, everywhere.  She took it to school and from school, to her best friend, Abbie’s house and from her best friend, Abby’s house, to the grocery store and . . . not from the grocery store.  She’d left the teeny tiny pink and yellow polka-dotted umbrella alone at the grocery store.  When  the pig tailed girl went back to where she’d left the teeny tiny pink and yellow polka-dotted umbrella, she didn’t find the teeny tiny pink and yellow polka-dotted umbrella anywhere.  The pig tailed girl cried for hours longing for her the teeny tiny pink and yellow polka-dotted umbrella.

            The teeny tiny pink and yellow polka-dotted umbrella was left alone outside the grocery store.  That night a store came upon the teeny tiny pink and yellow polka-dotted umbrella.  It went up and up and up and away into the sky drifting far, far, faraway.  It finally landed in an empty bright green flower pot right next to a small purple house.  A mini old woman stepped out of her small purple house to pick up the newspaper when she noticed the teeny tiny pink and yellow polka-dotted umbrella.  The mini old woman fell in love with the teeny tiny pink and yellow polka-dotted umbrella at first sight.  She took it out with her on rainy days, walks to the park on sunny days, and she even took it to her grandson’s house when she visited.  That’s where she left it.  Alone at her grandson’s house.

            Now the mini old woman’s grandson was not at all shy, and he wasn’t the smartest boy on this face of the earth.  The non shy boy used the teeny tiny pink and yellow polka-dotted umbrella for everything you could think of.  He used it for a sled when it snowed, a bat for baseball, a cane for when he pretended to be an old man, and even just a plain old umbrella.  A teeny tiny pink and yellow polka-dotted umbrella in the rain.  Until one day some neighbor boys teased the non shy boy for using a teeny tiny pink and yellow polka-dotted umbrella.  They called him a girl until finally the non shy boy got tired of it and threw the teeny tiny pink and yellow polka-dotted umbrella out of his car window on the highway, while his mom was driving.

            The teeny tiny pink and yellow polka-dotted umbrella was left alone on the highway.  It was already pretty beaten up form the non shy boy, but now every car that passed ran right over the teeny tiny pink and yellow polka-dotted umbrella, except for one tiny blue car.

            The tiny blue car stopped in front of the teeny tiny pink and yellow polka-dotted umbrella.  A small young woman stepped out of the little blue car and reached down for the teeny tiny pink and yellow polka-dotted umbrella.  The small young woman took the teeny tiny pink and yellow polka-dotted umbrella home with her that night.  She ripped the rest of the handle out and cleaned it, of course, before she placed a little orange blanket and a small purple blanket inside.  Then she placed her itty-bitty two month old baby in the teeny tiny pink and yellow polka-dotted umbrella.  The small young woman wouldn’t wait to call up her father and explain to him what she had found and what she was using it for; for this wasn’t just any ordinary small young woman.  She was the oldest daughter of the maker who made the teeny tiny pink and yellow polka-dotted umbrella.

           

The teeny tiny pink and yellow polka-dotted umbrella.  From the making to the shop to the pig tailed girl to the blue sky to the mini old woman to the boy who wasn’t at all shy and finally to the small young woman with her itty-bitty two month baby, who was the oldest daughter of the maker who made the teeny tiny pink and yellow polka-dotted umbrella.



Written By: Mrs. Bieber

Tank Too

           Finally, we were finally there.  We had been traveling for hours on plane, from Seattle, Washington, to Oaxaca, Mexico.  We'd decided to become missionaries, me and my husband Justin.  We'd been married for three years now, and after the Doctor gave us the news that we would never be able to have kids, we decided to go into missionary life with some friends of ours.  We'd always wanted to, but we thought we'd be to busy with our kids.  Now that we knew that wasn't going to happen, we headed to Mexico.
            We already had a an apartment all nice and ready for us, so all we had to do was get our luggage and go. 
           "Mellisa," I heard Justin's voice calling me, "Welcome to Mexico!" He smiled and gave me a big hug, before we went to go look for the luggage.
           Finding our luggage was sort of a mess.  At first we couldn't find any, then when we finally found one package, only to find out that it was really someone else's.  We eventually found all our luggage and hauled it out to a taxi.  Now was our chance to practice our Spanish.
           I asked the taxi guy nicely if he could bring us to the apartment at 324 Rosetta 14th st. in Spanish.  I couldn't believe we finally made it!  We were missionaries in Mexico!
           When we got to our apartment, we were too excited to not to go out and explore.  So we went out to some shops.  Everyone had something to sell, and they wanted it to be sold.  We went into the Zocalo and had a great time.  We could have stayed there forever. 
           When we got a little bit tired, we settled down at a really nice restaurant.  They served us chili powder covered peanuts for the appetizer, and I ordered some beef and cheese tortillas with beans and chips as the side, while Justin ordered some mini tacos as rice for the side.  There was so much left over food that we had to take it to go.
           The only thing Justin and I hated about Mexico, was having to watch all the poor, weak Mexicans struggle to survive on the streets.  We'd see kids asleep on their mothers lap every now and then.  We gave some money to those that played a song on what ever instrument they had.
           We were getting ready to head back to our new home, because there was so many dogs, we were scared one of us would get sick, so we gave the rest of our food to a family on the street, a mother with two little boys curled up on her lap.  But as we headed back, we saw something that we'll never forget.  We pulled up around the corner of our street.  Justin was a bit in front of me, so he saw it first.
           "Oh, Melissa, do you have any of that food left? Your never going to believe this."  He grabbed my arm and pulled me over.
           He was right, I couldn't believe it.  Standing there right in front me was the most fragilest, weakest, yet cutest thing I'd seen all night.  It was a little girl with a small side bun, holding hardly any hair. She had on a torn-sleeved little Mexican dress.  She was probably about three, but it was hard to tell by how little she was.  At first I didn't know what to do, but then I maneged to interpret the sign she was holding,
           Please help, it read, No food, No home, No mama.  It was in too nice hand writing to have been by the little girl, and besides she was much too young.  The note made my eyes water as I told Justin the food was all gone.
           Justin kept saying that someone  probably just used her to get food, but in the end we had to take her in, just for the night at least.
           Justin left a note taped against the apartment wall asking if she belonged to anyone, while I got her a nice warm bowl of chicken and noodles.  She really ate it all up, she didn't stop to take one drink, until she was finished.  I gave her one of my old shirts to use as a gown to sleep in.  When I got her in bed I couldn't stop thinking about how scared she must be, she obviously couldn't speak any English, and maybe not even Spanish.  I was also scared to have to give her away, back to the street, where her mom probably lived.  I tucked her in all nice and tight, laying in the living room, by the fire and told her goodnight even though she probably couldn't understand.  As I was leaving the room, to see if Justin was finished making the sign, I heard a small squeak.  I turned around and heard the little girl say in very hard-to-understand-but-English-voice, "Tank, too, tank too."
           I turned around and gave a bright smile, to the little girl, all curled up and snuggling with the pillow I'd given her, "Your, welcome." I said back.
           Suddenly I knew exactly what I had to do, I dashed into the front room and found Justin just walking in.  I ran up and gave him the biggest hug and whispered in his ear, "Justin, can we keep her. Like as our own child?"



                                                          Written by: Mrs. Bieber
       

Dear Santa

Dear Santa,
              For Christmas I want a puppy.  You see I'm an only child and I don't have anyone to play with, so I think I would have a lot of fun with a puppy.  I promise I will keep it in a safe place to sleep at night.  I'd feed it when it gets hungry and I'd make sure to bring it to school for 'Show-and-Tell' at least one day, maybe two.

Dear Santa,
              For Christmas I would like to own a new bike.  You see my daddy works in the morning, early in the morning.  And sometimes my mommy ends up working too, so i have to walk to school.  I know it's only three blocks, but the snow freezes my toes off!  I'd make sure to ride it everyday, even when my mommy says she can give me a ride in the car.  I'd use it all year long!

Dear Santa,
               For Christmas I want a Barbie house.  You see Ken and Barbie just got married and they have a baby girl named Kelly.  I think it would be nice if they got a good place to stay rather than the old shoe box, they're staying in now.  I'd always play with it and decorate it all nice just for Barbie and her new family.  They'd love it!

Dear Santa,
              I want a baby doll, Santa, please.  You see the one I have now, well, the head just fell off.  I'd treat it like it's real.  I'd change it's diaper, I'd always feed it, and put it to bed with, of course, a good night kiss.

Dear Santa,
              Pony tails!  What I really want for Christmas is pony tails, Santa.  You see my hair is getting longer and I don't have very many pony tails.  Sometimes I loose them.  I'd always wear my hair up, if only I had some pony tails.  Most likely some pink ones.

Dear Santa,
              For Christmas I'd really, really, really like a friend.  You see I just moved into a new town and I don't really know many kids.  I'm shy and not very good at making friends.  One girl already made fun of my pink and yellow polka-dotted dress I wore for the first day.  If I had a friend I'd bring her everywhere.  She'd come to my birthday party and hear all my secrets.  I'd treat her like the best.

Dear Santa,
              Thank you for a wonderful Christmas.  I ate lots of pie, so much I got a stomach ache.  I helped my mommy with decorations, and that was fun.  I didn't get a puppy, new bike, Barbie house, baby doll, or even pony tails.  I don't even have a best friend . . . yet.
              I got some small gifts on Christmas, but my mommy and Daddy said they can't spend a lot of money right now, they have to spend it on my soon-to-be-best-friend.  Who says sisters can't be friends?
                                                Thanks a ton, Santa,
                                                                            Alexis



                                                 Written by: Mrs. Bieber

Summer's Here

Butterflies floating in the sky

No one asks why

Beautiful green trees

Surrounded by bumble bees

Warm wind whistling like a flute

Cold water spreading on your bathing suit

So many smiles

And sand castle piles

Your free

And so full of glee

The grass so green

Such a beautiful scene

You sit and watch for hours

The pink, purple, blue, and yellow flowers

It's time for love

To feel so above

The sun shines in your eyes

Time to tell your friends byes

Because it's vacation time

Time to bind

And it's clear

Summer's here

Written By: Mrs. Bieber