Climb into My Mind: A Book of Poems, Essays, and Short Stories

By Martina Manicastri

Climb into My Mind is a book jam-packed with poems, essays, and short stories. The topics addressed are those that pertain to school life, political and social issues, family and love. Meandering through the maze that is my mind I present a different perspective on how I, as a teenager, look at the way situations unfold and how they affect me. This is not quite a typical book, yet it is easy to relate to as you find comfort in knowing that you are not alone in the world. The section, What I See in the Mirror, is an introspection of my deepest
feelings. Undoubtedly, we all experience bad and depressing times in our lives. We often feel as if no one understands what we are going through, but I hope the poem themes in this section will create a connection with you.

While some of the poems tackle both pleasant and unpleasant experiences, the stories introduce you to new characters, which bring an imaginative and lively angle to the world around us with a bit of a twist. A few of the stories and poems are funny, whereas others are more serious as they deal with political events and social awareness bringing different perspectives to controversial topics such as gay marriage and teen pregnancy.

My hope is that this book comforts, intrigues, captivates, and amuses you. So what are you waiting for, grab a ladder and climb into my mind.

My Voice

I feel the tattoos on my back sting, but I know that one more scar wouldnt change the memory it has left behind. With no reason to live, I feel ready to take that final step. I rise from my spot and give my fingers a break. I glance down at the tobacco leaves I have picked, knowing I am not allowed to stop. But why should I care? I have no voice, I serve no purpose. I am just a slave. I stand still looking in his eyes full of hate. He whips out his weapon as I begin to walk away from my work area. I never turn my head as he yells for me to turn back. I keep marching at a steady pace until I see beyond the fields a man of my kind with a voice -- a voice that is strong, that is making others listen; a voice that has power, and speaks only for change. This makes me turn around and sit back down, knowing my voice wont take long to be heard.

• Language: English
• Publisher: iUniverse
• Release date: Oct 20, 2011
• ISBN: 9781462053728

Martina Manicastri

Martina Manicastri lives in New Jersey with her parents, brother and three dogs. She was born in Rome, Italy in June 1998 and moved to the United States when she was two years old. Martina idolizes Robert Frost and she finds him to be an inspiration. One of her favorite poems by Frost is, A Late Walk. In May 2010 Martina received recognition from the New Jersey Center for the Book/Library of Congress Letter about Literature National Competition for an essay she wrote about one of her favorite books, Touching Spirit Bear. She was chosen as one of 86 honorable mentions out of a total of 2,000 entries in New Jersey among school-age students. Martina uses her writing as an outlet to the real world. It is a way for her to deal with some of the emotional roller coasters life forces you to ride. Even so, she entertains family and friends with her expressive, witty, and sometimes poignant stories and poems. Martina hopes to inspire others with her book and to show them that working hard at something most desired can become a reality.

Book preview

Climb Into My Mind

A Book of Poems, Essays and Short Stories

MARTINA MANICASTRI

iUniverse, Inc.

Bloomington

Climb Into My Mind

A Book of Poems, Essays and Short Stories

Copyright © 2011 by Martina Manicastri.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the publisher except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

iUniverse books may be ordered through booksellers or by contacting:

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Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Thinkstock are models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Thinkstock.

ISBN: 978-1-4620-5374-2 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-4620-5373-5 (hc)

ISBN: 978-1-4620-5372-8 (ebk)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2011916136

Printed in the United States of America

iUniverse rev. date: 10/13/2011

Contents

Acknowledgments

The Petals of Life

Shh! Don’t Tell

Soaring High

Dimensions

My Kingdom

My Happy Place

Ghost Town

Tidal Waves

Vying for Victory

Blind

Drug Me Until I’m Numb

Life

Hide

Buried Within

My Stolen Identity

Trapped

Happy Birthday to Me

A Brownie’s Life

White Blood Cells Unite

A Fight the Manicastri Way

A Recipe for Love

Spring

My Grandpa and I

My Closest Friend

Joe

Gypsy

I Now Pronounce You

Husband and Husband

Conquer Lavender

A Nightmare in the Forest

Lie to Me

My Voice

Gay Pride

An Unbreakable Bond

A Not So Happy Ending

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Acknowledgments

I would like to say that I definitely owe my parents big time and I cannot thank them enough for letting this dream come true. I also have to thank my big bro, Steven, for making me laugh and introducing me to the things I now know and love and for always finding some way to cheer me up even if the reason I’m upset is because of him. I’m sending a big shout out to thank my best friends, Joe and Sam, for being with me and inspiring me. I would also like to thank Ms. Patricia Marois, my sixth grade English teacher, for introducing me to the world of writing and showing me that I can do anything I put my mind to. My last thank you goes out to Mr. Donato DeStefano, my seventh grade English teacher, for teaching the one period I looked forward to and showing me that writing can be creative and fun to do. Without these people by my side this book would have never become a reality.

With much love and appreciation,

Martina

COMING OF AGE

The Petals of Life

I am gently lifted and planted into the cycle of academics. By the end of kindergarten I have burst through the soil and my stem stands tall. With each year of elementary school I grow a leaf, and my stem grows longer. By the time I am ready to move into middle school, I have formed a bud. As a flower with large hopes, I expect middle school to be a place to grow and excel, but I soon discover it’s like a harsh winter about to kill me and my peers. Not only do I have the burden of snow, but the speed of the wind and the force of the rain crash down on me too. And when I finally feel the snow melting away, the wind calming, and the rain stopping, my hopes reform and give me a sense of warmth.

During the spring I muster up my strength and start to stand tall again. Except this time, I have my petals that are all the same deep red. As time goes by, I notice that the colors start to change because I have learned so much that it would be impossible for me not to evolve. Soon the summer comes along, and the dry heat starts to shrivel my petals. With there being so little water around I feel myself begin to wither, and it only gets worse when the weeds invade. Slowly they begin to take what little water I have stored and I suffocate. Luckily some one notices and removes them from my home.

The fall is back