The Lonely Wanderer
The Lonely Wanderer
As the sun sets, and the dusk sinks into the world just like any night, the lonely wanderer treks up his mountain, once again. Nobody knows who he is, or where he came from. He’s essentially a folk tale, a ghost story. Some say he haunts the mountain he wanders every time the sun dies down, and the shadows set in. Some say he’s a ghost who roams the land. Only few have ever seen him. The few who have, say that he just roams up his mountain, he says nothing and pays no attention to anyone. No one who still breathes has ever met him. There is one man though, who has caught the eye of the wanderer. The wanderer spared a single look at the man. All the man says is that the wanderer held no expression on his face. But he saw something. His eyes, they were full of sadness. He doesn’t believe the wanderer is a ghost, and he doesn’t believe the wanderer is evil, or even bad.
In the end, nobody knows who the wanderer is, or where he came from. Maybe he had a family, a wife, some friends, but if so, that was all in the past. Nobody will ever know who the wanderer is or ever was. As the sun sets and the shadows consume the world, the lonely wanderer treks up the mountain, time, and time again.
Written by Xander Barton
Grade 8
The Voice
February 2024
Winter Contest Awards
Congratulations, to our award-winning artists!Gold ($100): Samara Raiche, "In Flight;"Silver ($75): Goldenrose, "The Worlds We're Stuck Between;"Bronze ($50): Amalie@kua, "When Shadows Meet."See the f...
YWP is Accessible!
At Young Writers Project, we are committed to being accessible to any teen writer or artist who wants to join us. We have upgraded our website to improve our accessibility so that everyone feels welco...
Fixing What Is Broken
When the world is at its darkest days,Turn the light on.When someone is lost,Find themHold themAnd assure themThat everything will be okay. When push comes to shove,Embrace everythingAnd make room for...
"One Dark Night Turned Extraordinary"
The moon and the stars and one dark night turned extraordinary. One night with my dad. We gazed At the sky, eyes wide, Drinking in the beauty. We looked as the bright lights emanated. We looked as th...
They Are Watching Us
They are watching us, if that’s what it takes. They are waiting, waiting, waiting, for our decisions that will mean their life or death, and that of their planet. We can wait, watch, hope they are abl...
Fearless & Aimless
I would caution you with tales of what happened to the aimless,but if you truly are aimless, you are also fearless.And you will have no fear of the danger in any story;you shall simply yearn for the a...
Forgotten
The forgotten things are hereAnd the forgotten things are thereAll the forgotten things are everywhereUp and down the streetJust beneath our feetAnd floating through the airForgotten things do not fee...
Vulnerable love
Crescent moon eyes with cheeks bunched up belowA smile and laugh that creates warm swellsThe small moments of interest you showYou ask what I am doing, so I tell.You tease, I tease back — these moment...
The Mirror
A wall of reflectionsI see you, as you berate yourself,day inand day out, about your imperfections. I am a wallbetween the youyou want to be,and the youthat you are. I show you the truth,or at leastw...
Mountain View
Rippling white-capped waves unfold –Like sea, the sky they brave. Treacherous white-capped tops –Like spilled milk under sun spots Drift to the edge of horizon –Of terrain that is infinite
Infinite Worlds, Infinite Universes
Books. They're doorways to infinite universes, each door holding a world unlike any other. If one world isn't to your liking, you can just open another door. There's a book for everyone, but if, in th...
The Watcher
Cars go by.Snow and rain falls.Seasons change.But through it all, she is there. In the same spot, everyday, all day, the watcher is there.Her sleek black hair effortlessly flowing around her gentle fr...
The Lonely Beetle
The green lonely beetle tracked long through high rivers and the underpass. By 6 pm it delivered a little girl with crooked cut bangs to a little tan house.An old dying maple once stood, its autumn le...
Her whispers
my intuition,she whispers,"they're worried,"she whispers,"it's not safe,"she tells me things i could not see with my eyesand always, i listen
Lost in Time
I'll find you in the golden hourI see your eyes in the treeswhen the world, for an hour, is rimmed with glowI'll look for you in the leaves. I'll find you in the pink hourI see your smile in the skywh...
One Night Only
Just to escape the hassle of home.Just to avoid the whisper-yelling into phones.Just to burst free from the stifling bedroom she kept with such love.She set out. If only to glimpse the eerie shadow th...
The Lonely Wanderer
As the sun sets, and the dusk sinks into the world just like any night, the lonely wanderer treks up his mountain, once again. Nobody knows who he is, or where he came from. He’s essentially a folk ta...