E.P. Yorke launches poetry book

As we approach the end of the school year, for most students, the last thing on their minds are academic affairs. But not at Edward P. York High School, which today launched their first anthology of poems. According to the Head of the Humanities Department, Carmita Velasquez, while the book includes the “mandatory” love poems, the young writers have also addressed important social issues.

Carmita Velasquez, Humanities Dept., E.P. Yorke

“This booklet features poems from students of first to fourth forms and we try to include poems in the four major languages in the country, which are basically English, Spanish, Creole and Garifuna… It’s been hard work you know, we actually began from as of last year. We had a department meeting and how the idea came about was, we, at school we have a number of clubs activities and one of the English teachers had a poetry club and students were coming forward with good poems, so we said okay let us see if we can actually do an anthology of the poems. And so we had a department meeting and we came up with the idea of working towards an anthology, compiling the whole collection of poems.”

Lynelle Martinez reading Poem

“I want to be caught up in this world forever

I know it’s not real but please,

Let me be overwhelmed by this feeling

This feeling that everything is so magical

So perfect, so right…”

Lynelle Martinez, Poet

“Both of my poems are reflection poems having to do with most teenagers find times when they feel hopeless and it reflects on wanting to be happy and finding peace.”

Velasquez says work on “Emotions and Inspirations”, which was produced by the students and staff of Edward P. York High, started in 2002. The book sells for five dollars each and includes the work of nineteen poets. Copies are available from staff and students.