Down the Rabbit Hole
Michelle T.
Like Alice’s tea party, where madness meets grace,
We gather round tables in this learning space,
Cups brimming with stories from far-away lands,
Ancient rituals poured through modern hands.
“Who are you?” asked the Caterpillar, perched high
As we wrestle with words and meanings that fly,
Through cultural mazes and wonderland dreams,
Where nothing is quite like it initially seems
The Queen shouts, “Off with their heads!” but we know
Minds must stay free for wisdom to grow,
In this home away from home we’ve found,
Where humanity’s questions tumble round and round.
Like Alice who challenged the cards as they fell,
We question the stories that old textbook history tells,
In the margins and spaces between black and white,
We paint our own worlds, bring shadows to light.
Through looking glass windows of humanities halls,
We chase the white rabbit through academic walls,
For we’re all mad here, in our quest to be free,
Where wonder binds all possibility.
Original PDF
Audrey B.
Alice, like us, was beginning to get stressed
Busy busy bee
So much to do
The choice of relaxing seems so much better
The choice between doing your work
Or pushing everything into one day
Choosing relaxation is foreshadowing a bad day ahead
More calls, more emails, more reminders
The weekend is my light during the week
Sticky notes are always around
10943, call park service, transcripts, appt @3
How do “real-life” adults keep track of all their stuff
Do they use sticky notes too I wonder if anything will slow down
Everyone and everything has been moving way too fast lately
Can we hit pause of Earth real quick
I know everyone can use a quick breather
Busy busy bee
Original PDF
Vanessa B.
Being raised by parents’ points of view of good and bad and don’t have a choice of deciding on our perspective of their lives.
Original PDF
Bio
Stuart C.
Disillusioned by rigid classes, the students of tea
Find a lack of decree
To be the true feeling of free
Where do we go from here?
Class is free of fear
From prompts and word counts
The Cheshire cat is about to pounce
Still which way do we go?
Ideas bounce to and fro
Now we walk long enough
But the journey is far from rough
Original PDF
Jackson M.
"Alice like me is caught in an illusion
An illusion of safety, an illusion of security. Alice eats to get big, American food
system.
Another fallacy of the health food pyramid. There’s no way we need that much dairy.
The ‘Got
milk?’ campaign was a lie. Wonderland is a lie. Kids are vaping in middle school and
they feel
like the caterpillar. 14 year old girls are listening to Lana Del Ray and acting like
the queen of
hearts. If the Mad Hatter existed in real life he would be arrested outside a 7-eleven.
America is
an illusion. A looking glass. We see only what we want to."
Original PDF
Anthony W.
Alice like me is confused and unknowing
Having to things she doesn’t understand what she's doing
Walking endlessly in circles doing the same thing over and over
Alice will never know what to do and same with me
Ignorance is bliss but for people such as I it isn’t.
I dislike those who tell lies like second nature and hide the truth. The truth should
be spread among the youth.
I sit and wait for the deceit to end but I know, like Alice, it will never end. So
some spouses will lie, the president too, to be honest everyone will event but as
long it doesn't hurt someone it's cool.
Original PDF
Lynnéa H.
Sofiia D
На самом деле есть русская версия Алисы, я смотрела её в детстве. Пытаясь вспомнить
её сейчас, я не могу понять нравилась мне она или нет. Я помню только что я определенно
смотрела её.
Во времена детсва, все просмотренные нами фильмы и мультфильмы кажутся лучше, чем
они есть на самом деле. Смотря на этот мультфильм, своими повзрослевшими с течением
времени глазами, он вызывает у меня ужас. Возможно так происходит из-за рисовки советских
мультфильмов или же из-за атмосферы, вложенной в него.
Original PDF with English translation
Solstice-Rose Polaris Dream Millwee A.
Childish dreams, what I hold dear. Identity. Time. Real and not. Colorful.
Alice’s story is from a different time, but her adventure still enthrals
children today. There are many popular stories that escape the real world, to name
a few: Peter Pan, The Wizard of Oz, Narnia—think of Snow White, she runs away from
death and reality to a secluded fantasy land—escapism and portal fantasy.
Predators, villains, protagonists, psychedelics, identity, poems, Alice
in Wonderland has it all. It is like real life and not. A distortion in a mirror.
Nonsensical, but true.
Our world seems to prioritize fast moving, constant stimulation, we don’t
have time to sit and ruminate, no time to appreciate the little things in life, like
a cup of tea. Our class “tea time” is an escape from the busy world, it is a breath
of fresh air, a portal to another world of perception and stories.
Rabbit holes:
Alice in Wonderland Syndrome ( and )
Original PDF
Lena L.
Free form dreaming,
Alice was just a girl living
Just girl, dreaming all through,
Hop ho, to and fro all around
The grasp of society never free
Can’t be free
Deadlines, attention spans falling
Falling like alice, away from the known
Into the unknown, the strange,
Food pairings not working,
Tasting things not there
Never there free
Dreaming never real,
All the time floating through
Screams and yelling,
Never agreeing, never obeying,
Not understanding,
Can’t be free
The trials of life never done
Woking what people mean
Finding out all the words
The feelings of oneself and others
Always falling never there
Never there free
Original PDF
Nic V.
To each his own
Some drink Russian style
Two scoops of sugar
Some say that’s a crime against tea
Others drink it with milk
Some say that’s a crime against tea
Some drink it black
To each his own
Everyone has a preference
Tea, from a bag
Tea, from a mana-tea steeper
Tea, loose leaf
To each his own
No one is incorrect
Others are tea snobs
Only loose leaf steeped in a pot
With a specific pot
Others enjoy tea for the company
To each his own
My grandma and I enjoy tea the same way
With two scoops of sugar
My mom likes hers without any sugar
Me and my grandma are the biggest tea drinkers
We drink tea and have chudux and udax, seal oil and dry fish
When we were low on seal oil, we would lick the dry fish and sprinkle some salt
Always with Lipton tea
Original PDF
Lorenzo E.
Cultural exchange: the grounds of England
Instead of dinner, they choose a tea
By chance we create our own wonderland
The Queen of Hearts’ head in the guillotine
Like thousands of subjects’ heads the blade threw
The large crowd rejoices “Off with her head!”
Decenter before we take it from you
The unbound land practices how to shed
In the tea we learn how to dedicate
A system of perspective and action
Talk over tea and croissants to classmates
Each of our tables represents faction
Like a strong nation we come together
A greater unity of the writers
Original PDF
Hazel L.
A Collection of 3 Haikus:
Stream swirls from the cup
Aromatic smells fill the air
Peace in every sip
Mad hatter in dreams
Tea swirls in endless riddles,
Time bends, lost in cream
Tiny cups, red roses
All wanting what we don’t have
The grin fades in tea
Original PDF
Jack G.
Boil a leaf and leave it be
That is how you make a tea
Many sip to be free
But I like a cup of coffee
I have one in the morning
I have one in the night
Without it, life is so boring
I drink until I see the light
An addiction, many people plead
I ignore the comments politely
It's messing with our brains, I read
I can't care, even a slightly
Original PDF