Sarina Simpson
As I trudged through the mud surrounded by bland, brown foliage I felt myself grow frustrated at my dad for forcing us to go hiking after it had snowed for three days. The mud made the hike exceptionally laborious, as we had to constantly avoid the sodden path by going in to the thorny brush.
As I looked to my right, however, I saw a peculiar plant that appeared to be one, sole leaf sticking up from the ground. It was completely vertical, and strikingly green in relation to the dreary backdrop. I found it odd that this solitary, strangely oriented plant that I had never come across caught my attention amidst my arduous walk, but found it interesting nonetheless.
As we continued our walk, I saw the same plant but in patchy, uneven groups. Not all of the plants, however, were singular leaves. Others consisted of multiple, usually four or five, that spread out with the biggest leaves horizontal to the stem and the smaller leaves, who still needed some time to grow, stuck upwards, awaiting their time to gradually divagate from the others. Their vivid green color was even more striking as the leaves took up more space, created a softly curving cover for the ground below them.
Seeing these fascinating specimens made my dull, monotonous walk a little more interesting. The simplicity of their beauty became obvious as the sunlight falling through the tress revealed a transparent quality to the leaves, showing that resplendence will shine through even when the world seems barren and desolate.
English 110 Honors Spring 2020 
I like how you use a shift in tone from a dreary walk to an opportunity for discovery to emulate how bits of positivity can grow in even the darkest of times. I always enjoy the beginning of spring because every small pop off life seems so much more special, much like the small skunk cabbage you discovered on your muddy hike. I hope next time you go outside there’s less brown and even more green! I also really like your attention to detail of the plants. By providing extra details about the leaf orientation and their “transparent quality”, you allow the reader to truly see what you are seeing. Finally, your ending anecdote about how light can still shine through in even the most desolate places sheds some light on the current dark state of our world. Great job and I hope you are well!
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^ Cally Carmello
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I absolutely loved your word choice. Your piece was very interesting to read and flowed great throughout. Your description of the skunk cabbage makes it sound physically very simple, but I like how your word choice made your discovery of the plant seem intriguing and complex. “…resplendence will shine through even when the world seems barren and desolate.” was my favorite line because it really tied together with the description of your walk but was also uplifting. Awesome piece!
-Danielle Hoban
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The imagery in your writing throughout the whole piece was so descriptive and definitely painted a nice image in my head of what you were experiencing throughout this whole entire hike. I love how you started out talking about how miserable you were, but then transitioned to a more positive tone with the discovery of the plant. I really liked your description of discovering the skunk cabbage. Especially when you wrote, “It was completely vertical, and strikingly green in relation to the dreary backdrop.” I could really imagine in my head how green the plant was and how it was like a breath of fresh air when you saw it popping out from all the dreariness around it. I also loved how you ended on a positive note, stating that even when the world dark and you are going through difficult times, there will always be a light shining. I think especially at a time like this, your writing reminds us that we can overcome this feeling of frustration and helplessness and provides is with a positive outlook on life.
-Joanna Lee
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