Chapter 510

“like a tiger who just caught a deer / it makes me happy when my cat Persephone is happy / the black and white cat she is / sleeps next to me / and when I love on Persephone / I know I am loved.” —I HAVE WINGS, “The Right to Be Cared For” By Piper

“Rest is a sleepy cat / Rest has a bed car that / Sylvester the Cat drives / who is her friend.” —I HAVE WINGS, “The Right to Rest” By Loniah #PoetryAnthology #AudioPoetry #CreativeWriting #LiteraryArts #PoetryForKids #HooverElementary #Oakland #OaklandYouth #YouthArts

“My cousin Sebastian is short and a bit small like a baby bird / and a growing plant. His hair is / short like cut grass / and a little bush and his personality is energetic / like the power of electricity.” —I HAVE WINGS, “The Right to Have a Family” By José

“I love that the Bay Area is so diverse. Many people speak more than one language, and our accents do not matter. The Bay Area has so much to offer, from vibrant arts, and cultural scenes, to a lot of great food.” —510 JOURNAL, “Why the Bay Area Feels Like Home” By Sarah

“free house floats / going to the sunlight / to meet the butterflies / the free house goes / to the sun to greet / the butterflies.” —I HAVE WINGS, “Freedom of Movement” By Janney

“Amidst the carefree chaos of the city, I lay on the damp, dew-graced grass, under the lilac sunset and reach my hand up to the sky's canvas, tracing the daisies and dahlias.” —510 JOURNAL, “Across From the Conservatory” by Amalia Madrid-Lilly

“Have you ever seen this person before? / the guy’s name is Rest / Rest lives in a world with clouds and pillows / wears a pillowcase the literal color white / Rest likes to sleep and he likes to sleep for 22 hours.” —I HAVE WINGS, “The Right to Rest” By Eric

In celebration of National Donut Day, we bring you a poem from WHAT IF AN ARTIST RULED THE WORLD, an anthology of poetry created in collaboration with students at North Oakland Community Charter. Click the link in our bio to purchase your own copy of this delightful anthology!

“I will never forget where I came from. / Born in Oakland, / Raised in Oakland. / Oakland is my origin / and my heart stands with my morals.” —510 JOURNAL, “The Bay is My Origin” by Jennifer Phanissay

We celebrate Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month with an excerpt from a poem by Mae Cham. You can read the full poem in House Where the Earth Quakes, an anthology of poetry by Oakland teens.

“windows open / sunlight shining / I am in a greenhouse / listening to the most / beautiful rainforest / I love it because it’s like a zoo / no cages.” —I HAVE WINGS, “Freedom of Movement” By Elijah

We celebrate 510 Day with an excerpt from a poem by Cartier Lei. You can read more poems by Cartier in House Where the Earth Quakes, an anthology of poetry by Oakland teens.

Happy National Sun Day! She really sees it all. #NationalSunDay #AcornElementary #LightMakesTheStormBlind #PoetryCommunity

In celebration of National Jazz Day, we bring you a poem from WHAT IF AN ARTIST RULED THE WORLD, an anthology of poetry created in collaboration with students at North Oakland Community Charter. Click the link in our bio to purchase your own copy of this delightful anthology!

We celebrate Earth Day with a poem from LIGHT MADE THE STORM BLIND. The young people of Acorn Woodland came together to write poems for the world. To purchase your own copy, click the link in our bio!

“Rest has no friends because / Rest likes to eat dreams / and every time she is sad she cries like thunder / but she has three million followers / because Rest’s TikTok is about ASMR sleeping videos.” —I HAVE WINGS, “The Right to Rest” By Bryan

In the spotlight: Quincy Russell, one of the fabulous youth authors published in the latest issue of 510 JOURNAL, a literary journal written, edited, and compiled by Oakland youth.

“It all fit together in a way, he noted, as the different people would pause to let another take the spotlight. Rain continued to pound on their umbrellas with the strength of twenty hammers. ” —510 JOURNAL, “Rain, Resilience, and Resolution” by Serena Cai

“I feel safe when I’m with my family/ like on New Year’s/ I feel safe when I’m sleeping like a hem in its place/ because my whole family is there/ but when they leave the hem gets unstitched.” —I HAVE WINGS, “The Right to Seek a Safe Place to Live” By Britney

We celebrate National Meatball Day with a poem from Acorn Elementary from the anthology LIGHT MAKES THE STORM BLIND. To read more, click the link in bio to purchase your own copy!