An original poem by Kiana Maria
Message from the author: “I wrote this poem in the beginning of quarantine as a way for me to come to terms with the world around me. I went through a huge growing stage during the quarantine, and this poem resembles the beginning of my growth. This piece was an eye-opening moment because this was the start of me being more appreciative, which in my eyes, is the greatest lesson of 2020, to be more appreciative.” an ode to the outdoors
an ode to the outdoors I took every ounce of you for granted The trees look sad Without people being able to breathe in What they offer The earth’s crust is so thin Every border closed We are a country of tourists, Yet we can’t have any visitors We are torn by disease and lies I miss the air I miss the leaves I miss my friends All I truly want is for this to end I forgot what the clouds looked like Tufts of marshmallow fluff floating Above the atmosphere If that’s even what they looked like Time feels obsolete Like it was never there to begin with I woke up last monday And I thought it was friday Nothing makes sense North is south And west is east I never thought I’d see the world upside down This time that we are living in, doesn’t even feel like time It feels like laggy space Just an empty vacuum What even is gravity Honestly, the only thing keeping us grounded is each other.

Kiana Maria
Kiana Maria is a 16 year old poet and activist who loves to share stories. Kiana is a part of her school’s Slam Poetry club. She has been writing ever since she was seven. Along with writing poetry for Zenerations, she writes for Gen Z Writes. She started a new teen podcast with Imanie Jeter called Teens Meet World. She hopes to become a lawyer to take on injustice within the court system. She is determined to make the world a better place in any way she can.