Reaper’s Vocabulary

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Alzheimer’s: 
they forget how to move, walk, eat. 
ALF: 
assisted living facility. 
Rehab
rehabilitation to postpone inevitability. 
PT: 
physical therapy. 
Hospice: 
where they go to “peacefully” die. 
The wake: 
a gathering held before a funeral. 
Apparently, you’re supposed to wear fancier clothes at this event. The viewing: 
where you’re expected to go, walk up. 
Speak to a dead body? 
Touch it. 
Imagine that that is still my Abuelo. 
The funeral: 
the burial.

Jillian Medina is finishing her junior year at PPCHS. She writes through the process of trial and error, as she feels she often cannot find the correct words or language. Despite this, she continues to write narratives and poems to practice her writing. Some of her favorite books are Just Mercy and The Spirit Bear; she loves them because they inspire realization. She is also infatuated with films, like The Trial of The Chicago 7 and Your Lie in April, which both have taught her something new, whether it’s about history or musicians. “Reaper’s Vocabulary” won first place in teh 2021-22 Free Verse Poetry contest.

Published by theatala

the atala is designed, curated, & edited by the Pines Charter Chapter of the National English Honor Society. It showcases original student poetry, fiction, creative nonfiction, literary criticism, and art. Like its namesake — the small, bright butterfly that grew from near extinction to rising numbers in our part of the world — this little literary journal aims to grow our love of writing and expand our community’s appreciation for the literary arts.

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