Radley – Desborough Creative Writing Exchange
2019-20
Exchange organised and collection edited by: Mr James Sheldrake & Miss Lauren Humphreys
Contents Foreword
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Aaron Binney, Hyunjo Kim, Ranulph Youngman Sullivan
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Hayden Moore, Bernardo Mercado
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William Owen, Tino Mushonga
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Dylan Bavazzano
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Julian Bracken, Ed Ellison, William Owen, Iestyn John
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Dylan Evans
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Oliver Hervey
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Will Matthews, Oliver Hervey, Hayden Moore
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Bernardo Mercado, Dylan Evans
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Hayden Moore
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Tino Mushonga
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William Owen
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Dylan Bavazzano, Ranulph Youngman Sullivan, Tino Mushonga, Samuel Toombs
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Samuel Winyard
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Ranulph Youngman Sullivan
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Foreword Two hours ago, as I write, the Prime Minister announced the most significant easing of the lock-down measures in England thus far, and it would therefore be easy for this anthology to be overshadowed by the current public health situation. Indeed, our final exchange was held via Microsoft Teams. After introductions and a bit of writing, Shells from Radley (already beginning to grow a bit weary of the format) were paired off into channels with Year 9s from Desborough (for whom the novelty of remote learning was yet to wear off). Extra teachers were in the meeting to watch me have a go at hosting it – such serendipitous opportunities for collaboration between the two schools continued online as they did in real life. It was about as successful as I could have hoped, and you will read some of the fruits of that afternoon in this collection. However, as with all virtual education, the mere fact of the medium should not be allowed to distract from the meaning of the encounter. The success of that session was as reliant on the willing participation of the boys as was any other. Of that, they should be proud. Three times this last academic year, a group of selected Shells from Radley College have met a similar group of Year 9s from Desborough College to write together. This Creative Writing Exchange is a small thread in the ever-expanding tapestry of collaboration between the two schools, and exchange happens at every level: boy, teacher, leadership, governance. You will notice from the contents page that many of these pieces have a single author. The sessions were so designed that even where the product is individual, the process has been collaborative. Indeed, there were a few moments where boys from the two schools were having such a good time with each other that the writing fell by the wayside for a bit – in some ways, there could be no higher triumph. You will notice similar styles of piece cropping up in this (roughly alphabetical) anthology. In the first session of the year, I asked the boys to write different sections of a modern version of The Canterbury Tales. The work was not quite of such stellar quality to make it worth including 3
the whole thing, but fragments of it have made it into this collection. In the second, Lauren introduced them to the sestina form, where the lines of each stanza have to end with one of the six key words of the poem in a strictly-controlled pattern, before a final stanza includes them all in three lines. Returning to prose for the final session, I asked them to craft a 100-word reflection on the theme of Youth. Thanks are due to many. At Radley, to John Sparks who runs the Radley-Desborough partnership with vigour and generosity and to Alex Nash, Head of English, who has supported this venture as part of a renaissance of creative writing in the department. At Desborough, thanks are due to Lorna Hutchinson, who did so much to get this collaboration up and running, Lauren Humphreys, my opposite number, who has helped this collaboration go from strength to strength, and to Trevor Crook, who has ferried Desborough boys up the M40 with patience and been excellent value during the sessions. Final thanks are to the boys, who engaged with this all with terrific good humour. As soon as it became clear that this term would be significantly disrupted, we took the view that as much as possible across the school should go ahead in whatever format could best be devised. Due to the efforts of all those above, especially the boys, this is another element of school life that emerges from lock-down with, as W.E. Henley put it, its head bloody but unbowed. JASS, June 2020
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A Modern Canterbury Tales: Fragment 1 Aaron Binney, Hyunjo Kim, Ranulph Youngman Sullivan An exhausted crowd awkwardly swayed; There was not a single sound. The clinking pints were a sonorous sermon Until five came around. Suddenly the clock strikes five, And the beer-pints clanked. The boisterous candles danced and twirled: People’s expressions were blank. The noise began to grow and grow, And people were now merry. There was lots of shouting and singing With people drinking sherry.
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A Modern Canterbury Tales: Fragment 2 Hayden Moore, Bernardo Mercado Then, having introduced themselves, They heard a fearsome sound. They climbed around the windows there And saw colours off the ground. With brakes there came a screeching sound – The bus slowed to a halt. The bus broke down and then picked up, The doors turned with no fault. A storm of people did disperse – A tall hat in the crowd. They didn’t need to find a shield – Behind their pints they cowed. A flash of blue, that yellow hat, Green spots and dusty shirts – The taxi-driver, cards at hand, He tries to charm, he flirts.
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A Modern Canterbury Tales: Fragment 3 William Owen, Tino Mushonga The police arrived, the police arrested, The police saved a life. Ducking and screaming, blood streaming, They saved her father’s wife. Her mother was an army medic, Always saving lives. Sadly there was only one She could not keep alive. Surrounded by the threat of death, Rising through the ranks, The soldiers falling all around Driving army tanks. The gang hierarchy was destroyed. This won her a promotion, On a bus to Canterbury Filled with high emotion.
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Dylan Bavazzano When you’re a teenager you experience many different things, from emotions to friends and personal life. All of these come and go at different times which is the unpredictable part of it. However, there is one thing that you will experience and that thing is enjoyment. When you get to hang out with your friends and do clubs within school or even out of school, you get the best feeling. An unforgettable feeling! Getting to spend time away from your family and any problems going on at home and getting some fresh air and freedom is the best feeling that you can get when you are a teenager.
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Julian Bracken, Ed Ellison, William Owen, Iestyn John He was deprived A whirlwind of thoughts They drifted through my soul Stealing my emotions They changed my hopes and dreams Where do I go, what do I do? There’s nothing I can do My only memories have been deprived The only thing that I valued floated away – my dreams I was left alone with my thoughts And my emotions I needed to free my soul I can feel it wilting, my soul I’m left with nothing to do I’m losing my emotions They’ve left me deprived I hear them in my thoughts Maybe soon I’ll get lost in my dreams
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I no longer have dreams I am trying to find my soul I could not find any thoughts What will they do? My life was deprived Hatred filled my emotions Constantly I hated my emotions I loved but abhorred my precious dreams I no longer feel deprived I had unchained my soul But only this won’t do My ignorance no longer clouded my thoughts I felt as though I had retaken my thoughts The hatred had been wiped from my emotions Recovery was the only thing left to do I could finally follow my dreams I had cleansed souls I was everything but deprived!
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Dylan Evans Everything. It hit me like a wave. The cold water shock slowly paralysed my body from head to toe. Pouring down on me like a ton of bricks. The alarm clock faintly ticked as is turned 00.01 am and I was a teenager. These next years would be the best and worst times of my life. Teachers, homework, bullies: being a teen wasn’t going to be any easier than being a child. Then adulthood would bite me and university would fly by and I would graduate, masters and get married. But for now, I was a teenager and I would have to deal with everything else in between. 00.02. This is what it feels like to be a teenager. But for now I had to sleep.
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Oliver Hervey The feeling of becoming a teen is growing into something different. You begin to gain respect for your elders. You begin to gain freedom and you feel all round more special as a person. You get freedom. You get your own space. You're freer to do what you really want to do with yourself. You feel as if you have loads more space, control over what to do with yourself. You have waited – for as long as you can remember all you wanted to do was become a teen. You have finally arrived. You are now there. It feels special. You feel grown up.
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Will Matthews, Oliver Hervey, Hayden Moore He slipped into a fake reality This was all he ever wanted to do When he was awake he was so confused This was the only place he could properly release A place in which he was not trapped This place was unlocked by sleep He felt most free in his sleep Away from this reality When he wakes up he feels that he is trapped There is nothing he can do Stuck in a place where he cannot release The world left him confused Any other place for him made him feel alone and confused For him the only relief was sleep In this void of imagination his inner self was released Here he didn’t have to wear a mask – like reality His life was controlled by the people around him Nothing he could do when he drifted from consciousness – his troubles were trapped
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He was so tightly trapped, Unaware, confused, He tried everything but nothing seemed to do, Except sleep. However, he was afraid of the reality. He could not release. When he is awake he doesn’t want to release He feels constantly trapped In the real reality He feels constantly confused He can’t wait for the day to end to drift to sleep He was stuck with nothing to do
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Bernardo Mercado, Dylan Evans They say that six metres of separation Is enough to divide To cross any obstacle Is a struggle Trapped in the dark But any sliver of light gives you hope The most valuable resource – hope, However, so easily destroyed by separation Then you’re trapped Trapped and divided In a constant struggle The line, waiting to be crossed Eternally waiting to cross, Eternally hoping But always a struggle Waiting for your dreams to be divided Knowing eventually you will be trapped Crossing the line, a struggle A fear of being caught, a fear of being trapped, Meaning constant separation Meaning that there would be no other attempts to cross That there would be no hope, That there would be a divide for ever.
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They say that six degrees of separation Is enough to divide Just a river across People work on through their struggle Either unseen or trapped Only the light can renew their hope They say not to mine for hope Or you’ll feel the separation Endless bars. Not just you trapped – Your body, soul, all. Divided. The line, your enemy, your struggle. The line – impossible to cross. 01:00. The windows keep me trapped, Staring over a line I can only dream to cross. Reality keeps us divided. We drop down to a crawl. We hope That the fence is down. To end the separation, The years away, the years of struggle.
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Hayden Moore Being a teenager is the gate to adulthood – you can't get away with things like you would if you were younger, but adults still don’t trust you enough to do the things that you want to do. There is a constant battle between what you want to do and what is right to do. Decisions are very hard to make by yourself at this age as you are so used to others running your life for you. This age is where you show all the work that your parents have put in to making you a decent human being. It shows all of the successes they have had at raising you and also things that could have been done better. Some people might say that what is done around you when you were younger makes a difference – for example, a young boy who has experienced violence at a young age might turn out as a bully, whereas if the boy was raised in a loving family and learned from his mistakes then chances are he would do much better in life. When you become a teenager you take all of these experiences, good and bad, to make decisions.
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Tino Mushonga Many say that during this period in life, you experience your best years. I am nearing the completion of my second year as a teenager and I can confirm that so far it has been a rollercoaster of a ride. Many events have led me to where I am now, such as receiving a Radley sports scholarship. Being a teenager allows us to develop emotionally and physically. It is the line between childhood and adulthood. People become more mature and learn what to say when. You will observe and learn new things quickly and almost every aspect in your life has been changed. Your health may feel variation in moods and you react to every small topic. It is a fantastic period as you feel awkward and new. You feel constant change.
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William Owen This Is What It Feels Like To Be A Teenager. It feels like some sort of limbo. You are no longer a child and don’t get treated like it. You also get given more freedom than when you were younger but you also don’t have the complete freedom of an 18 year old. There is the weight of upcoming exams that could change your entire future career. Also, the end of Year 8 looms ominously ahead and the prospect of choosing the subjects which could limit what careers you could have in the future. The mental trauma of growing up can completely change the way you view this world and what you contribute to the world. Jim Henson once said ‘When I was young, my ambition was to be one of the people who made a difference in the world. My hope is to leave the world better for my being there.’ This quote shows that Jim knew from a young age that he wanted to help the world and people around him. The choices he made defined who he became in his life.
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Dylan Bavazzano, Ranulph Youngman Sullivan, Tino Mushonga, Samuel Toombs Driven the ball across the freshly cut grass. Fielded just by the wicket Thrown in a field of white As it exceeds the length of the field Caught by a man in the crowd This is cricket Families were enjoying the cricket Only a few metres away from the grass The singing of the crowd Erupted as they got a wicket Heard from the other side of the field A tsunami of flags in white The ball is red, the kit is white It’s traditional test cricket Stood deep in the field I run across the grass Towards the pitch as our team celebrates a wicket The bowler’s achievements elate the crowd
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Samuel Winyard My excited eyes feasting on the colours around me. Hungry for adventure, wishing for more. No stresses, no worries, no fears – apart from the dark. As I grow the colours change and fade away with my moods. My hunger for adventure is still there, with bigger and exciting dreams to fulfil. I have stresses, worries and fears, but now not the dark.
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Ranulph Youngman Sullivan The innocence of childhood; those care-free days on the beach in Hong Kong; world is my oyster, picking up shells from the ocean bed, no responsibilities, giggles and laughter, security and safety, little regard for the future, living in the moment. Now, with youth, they all seem an ocean away. The challenges of youth are all too real as the horizon no longer stretches before me but is obscured by the waves of life.
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