Student’s Writings

The students were tasked to craft a “Once Upon a Time” story.

 ETHAN…imagines telling such a story to his own children to deliver a lesson on the need to sometimes let go of friendships that can drag you down.

  The Story Of The Trio

After my years at TCS and CCBC, I became a successful electrician and a commentator for the NFL. I am now happily married, and my wife gave birth to twins whom I love dearly. I enjoy reading them fantasy stories, but one night, I decided to read them a story from a young boy’s life.  

Once upon a time, in a far-away land, a boy arrived at a school far from home. He was entering the 4th grade and didn’t know what to expect. He was entering a world of different people, different languages, and a different system. His first day was interesting; he was mostly quiet, but he managed to make two new friends: Bird and Thomas.

From 4th through 7th grade, they grew even closer. They became best friends, inseparable or so they thought. Then, they found out their school was closing for good. The “fabulous trio” was about to be split up. Thomas and the boy stayed together at a nearby school, but Bird had to move to a different school in another city.

At the new school, the boy and Thomas found themselves in the middle of trouble. They hung around people who tried to influence them to make bad choices. Even though the boy and Thomas wouldn’t participate, people always say, “You are who you hang around with.” The teachers began to target Thomas; they simply didn’t like him and wanted him out. They even tried to accuse him of having drugs, when in reality, it was just acne medicine he took to prevent breakouts.

Toward the end of the year, it was time to pick high schools. Thomas chose MSJ, Bird went to Catholic High, and the boy chose a small school called TCS. The whole gang was split, but the boy knew they were only a phone call or a short drive away. The boy’s years at TCS were fairly good, despite many ups and downs.

Thomas and Bird, however, faced much rougher times. Bird struggled the most; she was diagnosed with depression and a neurological disorder that affected her speech. Thomas fell into a “rabbit hole” that became difficult to escape. He started hanging out with people who brought out the worst in him, eventually leading to shoplifting and drug use.

The boy still sees them from time to time, but the relationships have changed. He remains close with Bird, but he often avoids Thomas because he has become unstable.People call the boy crazy for still trying to find ways to pull Thomas out of the hole he dug for himself. But what people don’t understand is that the boy grew up with him. They played with toys and video games together; they were close with each other’s families. It is hard to let go of someone like that.

Now, the boy sits up at night wondering: What if things were different? Could Thomas’s story have changed?

As I finished reading, my kids looked up and asked, “What happened to the boy after that?”

I smiled and said, “You’re looking right at him.”

Ethan Jobita Jemadari

April 10, 2026

The students were challenged to write a scene from their life (real or imagined, but uniquely personal) from the perspective of a “second self”—a ghost-like and dispassionate observer of the action.

 MOHAMED…takes us back to his roots in Mali and a soccer game on a sun-parched patch of red dirt where two well-worn sandals marked the goal and a lesson in self-confidence was learned.

That One Touch

The sun had already started to press down on the red dirt road by the time he stepped outside. The morning in Bamako was loud and bright. From the doorway, he watched his older cousin tie a worn sandal with a piece of string, like it was something important, like it mattered more than anything else they had planned.

He didn’t say anything at first. He just stood there, one hand on the doorframe, squinting into the light. A breeze moved past, carrying the smell of dust and grilled meat from somewhere down the street. It made his stomach remind him that he hadn’t eaten yet, but he ignored it.

“Are you coming or not?” his cousin asked without looking up. He nodded, even though his cousin couldn’t see him yet. Then he stepped forward, the ground already warm under his feet. The two of them started walking, not in a rush, but not slow either… just the pace of boys who had something to do, even if they hadn’t fully decided what it was.

They passed neighbors who called out greetings, voices overlapping, laughter mixing in like background music. A group of younger kids chased a flat, half-deflated soccer ball nearby, their shouts echoing down the street. He watched them for a second longer than necessary, his eyes following the ball as it bounced unevenly. “You’re gonna play later,” his cousin said, finally glancing at him. “Stop staring like that.” He looked away quickly, pretending he hadn’t been thinking about it.

They reached the open field, a stretch of dry land with patches of grass that somehow survived the heat. It wasn’t much, but to them, it was everything. A few boys were already there, arguing about teams, pointing fingers, making their cases like it was serious business.

He hesitated at the edge of the field. From here, he could see everything without being seen too much himself. The older boys were louder, more confident, calling out positions before the teams were even set. He felt small for a moment, like he didn’t belong in the same space.

His cousin nudged him forward. “Don’t just stand there.” He stepped onto the field. The game started messy, like it always did. Too many players crowding the ball, dust rising with every step. He stayed on the outside at first, unsure where to move, waiting for the ball to come near him instead of chasing it.

Then it did. It rolled out from the chaos, slow and almost inviting, stopping just a few feet away from him. For a second, everything else faded, the shouting, the movement, even the heat. He moved. Not perfectly, not like the older boys, but fast enough. He tapped the ball forward, then again, feeling it stay close to his foot. Someone yelled behind him, but he didn’t look back. He just kept going, his steps getting more confident with each touch.

When he finally kicked the ball toward the makeshift goal,two sandals placed a few feet apart, it didn’t go exactly where he aimed. It curved slightly, hit the edge of one sandal, and bounced in. There was a pause. Then noise. Not loud cheering, not anything dramatic just a mix of reactions. Some annoyed, some impressed, some already arguing about whether it counted. But his cousin’s voice cut through it.

“I told you,” he said, laughing. He didn’t smile right away. He just stood there, breathing hard, looking at the ball resting behind the sandals like it had always been meant to end up there.

Mohamed Cisse

March 20, 2026

The students were challenged to write a scene from their life (real or imagined, but uniquely personal) from the perspective of a “second self”—a ghost-like and dispassionate observer of the action.

 HECTOR…transports us into his future as an electrician who falls from a ladder and into a coma wherein he returns to his TCS youth and a second chance at a life not to be taken for granted.

Scene from A Life

It has been close to 20 years since I graduated from TCS. The years went by, and all I did was work. I managed to get into the electrical union. Everything was going fine until that fateful day. I had to climb up onto a ladder. I made it to the top then I lost my balance. The last thing I remember is hitting the ground with a loud thud.

I woke up, and for some reason, I was in a place that resembled a movie theater. I walked around for a bit, and it seemed that the theatre was pretty empty. Every door was closed, except for one. I walked through the door and found a seat that looked comfortable. I didn’t know what to expect. Then, out of nowhere, the lights turned off, and something started to play on the screen.

A person was sleeping on their bed. An alarm started to ring, and the person got up. They sluggishly walked out of the room. Once they walked into the bathroom and turned the lights on, I saw myself start brushing my teeth. I dressed myself and walked out of my house. I got into my beautiful 2009 Toyota Camry, and I sat in the car for a bit before driving away. I miss that car so much. After all these years, it is still my favorite.

I parked the car somewhere near the school and walked into the classroom. I had almost forgotten how the room looked. (The school had closed a while back, and I lost touch with most of my classmates.) I shook Mr. Tom’s hand and turned in all of my assignments. I looked around the room and saw all of my classmates talking and laughing. It was kinda weird to be back at school after so many years. I saw myself go through the motions of the day. I almost regret not enjoying my younger years more. Now I am old, with knee pain, and my hair has started to fall out. Seeing myself so much younger and full of energy almost made me want to jump through the screen and go back into the past.

The screen turned off, and I sat there for a moment. Eventually, I fell asleep. This time, I woke up in a hospital, where there were bright lights that blinded me. I sat up, and a doctor came over to inform me of my condition. He told me that I had an accident at work, which sent me into a coma. And by a miracle, I had managed to survive. Being given a second chance in life, I will make sure not to take it for granted. And I will stay far away from ladders. 

 Hector Rivas

March 20, 2026

Having just seen a play about Baltimore, the students were shown two videos offering further perspective on the city—the opening scenes of “Hairspray” and “The Wire.” They were then tasked to share their own views.

JUDAH…takes us back to the city’s founding in 1729 and the realities of slavery.

 POV Baltimore in 1729

It was just an ordinary Monday. Everyone was in World History class. I don’t really remember, but I was pretty sure Mr. Meade was talking about slavery when everything went wrong. Normally, Jason would’ve been the only person to fall asleep, but this time me, Danny, Riley, Mohamed, Ethan, Jordan, Kennedy, Madisyn, and Khori all fell asleep at the same exact time. 

When I woke up, the sun was beaming in my eyes, and when I looked around, I finally realized, I was no longer inside the classroom; I was on a cotton plantation!

Massa: “N*gger why is you standing there actin’ like you just woke up from a dream? Pick the f*ckin’ cotton n*gger.”

Mohamed: “Oh I’m so sorry Massa. You have to excuse my friend over here, he just got off the boat.” 

Massa: “Well keep him in check, wouldn’t want you boys to have any problems, now would you?”

Mohamed then turned to me and said with a confused look on his face:

Mohamed: “What’s up with you? Is you trying to get us whipped?”

Me: “What are you talking about, bro? Where are we, and why is that dude dressed as a slave master and why does he remind me of Ruth so much?

Mohamed: “I don’t know who this Ruth is, but I do know that if you keep actin’ like this, you finna blow up are cover.”

Me: “What are you talking about?”

Mohamed: “Don’t you know? We finna escape with Harriet Tubman tonight”.

Then Massa yelled out that we have to go inside, and everyone headed toward the slave shack. Inside the shack were Danny and Ethan. They were sitting at a table and seemed to be planning something. 

Danny: “Harriet Tubman is supposed to arrive at 9:00 tonight. If Kennedy is able to distract Massa, since she’s a house slave, then we can abandon her and escape by 10:00 all in one night. Ethan, do you have anything else you want to say?” 

Ethan: “I like fried chicken.” 

Danny: “Yes we all know you like your fried chicken, Ethan, but we need to be serious right now if we want to escape tonight”.  

Then, the clock finally hit 9:00 and we heard a yelling sound and Harriet Tubman rushed into the shack, but it wasn’t Harriet Tubman, it was actually Khori.

Khori: “Ya’ll ready to escape this hell hole?”.

And with that, everyone in the slave shack jumped out and started running toward the North Star. While we were running, I looked back and saw Kennedy far behind us trying to outrun Massa.

Kennedy: “Guys wait for me”.

Danny: “Forget her. We have to keep running”. 

Eventually, we made it to Canada and we never saw Kennedy ever again. Oh, and also, we never saw Ethan again since he saw a rock that he thought was fried chicken and broke his mouth and fell off a cliff. The End.

 Judah E. Patterson

March 3, 2026

Having just seen a play about Baltimore, the students were shown two videos offering further perspective on the city—the opening scenes of “Hairspray” and “The Wire.” They were then tasked to share their own views.

RYLEE…offers a humorous take on birds, softball, and Oreos.

Experienced City

On Wednesday, we saw a play called No Mean City. The play went into the history of Baltimore, which was nice in all honesty, but one of the main things that stuck out to me in the play was the Baltimore Orioles, which was really the only thing I resonated with.

 For background, growing up, I would often hear my dad speak about Orioles and Ravens. Which happened to lead my family to go to an Orioles game. Now as my dad spoke about the Orioles, I thought he was referring to the cookies Oreos. So when we appeared at a stadium, I was confused to say the least. Especially because I didn’t grasp the concept of being at a baseball game. I likely went to  more baseball games after that, just not ones I remember. I

It wasn’t until I started to play softball that I actually understood the culture of baseball. No, I’m not talking about the white American culture of it, but more of my 10u team singing chants, spraying water on each other because of the severe heat, and our pants being covered in brown chalky dirt from sliding into home plate. But for me at the time, that was the culture of softball. It wasn’t until later that year when I went to an Orioles baseball game that I saw a universal connecting string between people who hit balls with bats. Or in other words, It was me seeing the professionals using the same techniques to hit and catch the ball that I realized we all have the same goal, which is to make a home run. So I would say it was that day that I felt my connection with Baltimore, also known as Bird City.

Rylee Breeden

3/16/26