repentino. the american school foundation, a.c Mexico city
kaleidoscope
MMXIV
volume III, Issue I
cover artwork by sendra uebele
volume three, issue one. The ASF International Magazine welcomes a wide range of submissions in English or Spanish: photography, illustrations, poetry, prose, short story, essay, and creative movie/ book reviews. The ASF International Magazine, Repentino., values originality and creativity above all else; therefore, only previously unpublished works will be considered. Plagiarism will not be tolerated and the person will be banned from the ASF Literary Magazine due to this circumstance. All submissions will be reviewed and analyzed by the staff of the ASF Literary Magazine, (Repentino. Magazine) an after school organization, and the English Department. Once accepted, Repentino. Magazine has permissions to use your work in print and advertisements. You may submit as many selections as you’d like, although no more than 5 pieces maximum will be eligible for publishing. We want to give everybody a chance! Submissions are welcome from anyone including students, teachers, staff, parents, and alumni of the American School Foundation A.C. as well as international artists and writers. View our submission criteria and submit your work to: http://repentinomagazine.tumblr.com/aboutsubmit The American School Foundation, A.C. Bondojito 215, Colonia Las Americas, Mexico City, Mexico 01120 Tel: (5255) 5227-4900
Repentinomagazine
asflitmag@gmail.com
@repentinomag
asf@asf.edu.
Repentinomagazine
letter from the adviser
letters from the field Repentino. Simply put, there HAVE been many surprises over a three year period in reinventing ourselves amid the art, writing, and visual arts that have come to reshape the foundations during this growing period. However, what is not a surprise is the talent that I feel is there, and then well, yes there IS the surprise of realizing there is talent that you could not predict. Every time I look at staff that surround me each year, justifying a need for the arts connecting to the world around us, I can’t help but believe each of us carries away a piece of what the true meaning of Repentino. is supposed to be. It does my heart well to see the future around me embrace what is possible armed with creativity, and only willing to let it go to another that promises a possibility to do more with this gift. The legacy of our staff, indeed, has been to build a feeling of hope, possibility, and creativity, with a foundation of the arts. I feel every moment I spend with a staff and group of artists that make Repentino. what it is today, I grow a little myself. In discovering this year’s theme of Kaleidoscope, the idea that no boundary or region is out of reach is made only possible with the talented and young staff that surround me now, known as Repentino.. I find it always humbling to be in the company of giants, those that are not held down by any form of adversity and complication that often we do encounter in the real world. Welcome to the land of Repentino.. Harry Brake Adviser
To the curious soul we call Reader,
letter from the editors
In creating a literary magazine, a clear idea of a unifying factor, of the essence or feel that one wants to capture through the collection of art and literature in the literary magazine, must be present from the beginning. Often, finding the ideal works to include in order to achieve this, or even knowing with certainty what the literary magazine should represent, is difficult. For the Repentino staff, this was no exception. What makes Repentino unique? When representing the magazine to curious individuals or groups, the latter question, in some phrasing or another, never fails to pop up. Capturing Repentino’s uniqueness has been one of our key goals in the long process that is its construction, and something that, though much effort from each and every staff member, we are fairly confident that we have managed to do successfully. Repentino. is a collection of moments- moments recorded through art, photography, and writing, moments that capture the passion of our artists, and display them to the world. Additionally, this particular issue of Repentino. is a product of the countless hours of labor, approximately 51.86 litres of the collective sweat and tears of a dedicated staff, and immeasurable amounts of love. Repentino. makes the creator’s thoughts matter. Furthermore, there is nothing more diversifying yet unifying in Repentino.’s composition than its international quality- as our artists and authors are from any part of the world, any sort of lifestyle, and every sort of disposition, moments from every point of the spectrum are captured; nevertheless, this very quality is also the unifying effect in the magazine. Because Repentino. is an agglomeration of such distinctly different perspectives and artistic takes on various themes and ideas, this issue is what we would like to call a “kaleidoscope”. Through complementary and contrasting elements, these works have been curated and unified into the kaleidoscope that is Repentino. All in all, Repentino., through its exceptional, touching, thought-provoking, and distinctive works, represents an amalgam of thinkers that captures the magazine’s audience. Thus, this is how we would answer the aforementioned question: the divergence yet continuity is the very aspect that makes Repentino. unique. We can only hope that as you are turning the pages of this magazine, you will find yourself immersed in its content and you, too, will be as inspired as we were while creating Repentino Alia Suhaimi & Claudia Robles-Gil, Editors-in-Chief
1
er
by Sharmila Sachdev
7 Saying
e ur at
co T nt ab en le ts
lit
4 Global Glimpses from One Journeyer’s Travels No
of
by Kimberly Murstein
9 Girls
by Kimberly Miller
9A
Restless Ocean
by Lucas Fiorita
10
la playa
by Ana Duclaud
11 Spins
by Kimberly Murstein
12 The
ka·lei·do·scope noun
Stranger
by Lucia Serrano
13 Her
by Valeria Bravo
15
a constantly changing pattern or sequence of objects or elements.
Parque Mexico
by D.J Hamilton
16 Robo
Materialism
by Nicole Chaput
17 Stairway
Optimism
by Sallie Fullerton
18 Soft
by Gurutam
19 When
I’m Done
by Kimberly Miller
19 Insomnia
by Robert Soto
20 My
Love
by Conrad Frey
23 Mount
Olympus
by Alice Kanitz
25 Invisalign 2
by Gurutam
ar t Azul
5
by Sissi Li
Nudes
7
by Lucia Ocejo
Alienation Creates Overthought 9
by Namalas
Thames
10
by Sissi Li
by Santiago Evans
From the Field
2
11
Dissolve
1 Letters
12
Stop Pretending
by Tamara Noel
Table of Contents
Out of the Blue
26 Staff Biographies 31 Colophon 31 Acknowledgements
13
by Tamara Noel
Open Mind
14
by Namalas
Untitled
17
by Bryce Clark
Flora
18
by Sendra Uebele
Broken
21
by Monica Avila
Wings of an Angel 21
by Ana Lucero Villasenor Penela
Circulo de Quintas
22
by Lucia Ocejo
Height Street
24
by Natasha Kimmel
3
Global Glimpses from one
Journeyer’s Travels True beauty, defined. Is it even possible? Found among what is evident and readily seen? Or by delving deeper through the inevitable marring of life and time? London, years have passed since my innocent eyes once viewed you Your regal stance remains, though modern twists and turns have you further shaped and cloaked Your pockets now gush of ethnicity, sub-cultures abound Sensed through exotic aromas and lyrical voices One punk rocker’s settled for a new Underground; still running fast and furious Changing, modernizing, New Delhi, your capital seat empowers Opportunities to be found for those those from afar A bustling and hurried mix of cultures, voices, and trades Striving to maintain solidarity and personality A journey to Agra to view a tribute; a wondrous marvel built by a grief-stricken king Kolkata, my own family tree springs from your mighty roots Spirituality, so sincere, bursts forth from dust, debris, and urban grit A hazy Brit fog follows you still, though teatime and sweet ‘mistis’ are uniquely your own Dignified classes of the cultured kind, speaking with the loveliest, lilting voices Quiet cat, so tranquil on your perch. What an intense, daily grind must you take in?
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Paris, your people stand tall, proud, and distinguished as your revered Tour Eiffel Through time and connection, we can see their warmth and charm Flawless structure, efficiency, and flow But upon their shoulders, your ancestors bore the years of desolation, famine, and war-time woes Something your present generations will not know Returning home to la Ciudad, your emblem bears its eagle’s pride A rich history steeped in victory, sadness, and resolution Current media spreads bitterness, through words of narcos, murder, and crime But I know your sweetness, smiling faces, heldfast traditions, and family ties Devout and faithful are your kind, holding dear reverence to Our Lady of Guadalupe Our common threads -- some strong, shiny and new; some old, unraveled, and fraying. True beauty, revealed.
Sharmila Sachdev
Azul photography
sissi Li 5
Nudes oil on wood
Lucia Ocejo
6
Saying No Kimberly Murstein
Saying No, is swallowing the sky whole and milking a cow into inky black jumping over the moon, bumpy, like the outside, of my chest, full. It’s raising arms trembling in the sky to make them strong and forcing their muscle into heat. It’s taping a closed for business sign under the cress of your cheek and crying to the men who obey your suggestion. It’s licking the rim of your cup, a long cigarette tip, and never consuming them whole or the pills. It’s kissing but not telling that your hymen broke, it’s blood and latex and rashes, it’s being teased and staying home at night, it’s gravel in your gut, it’s opposing the president but refusing to support him, it’s warnings and scratches and gum popping in class, it’s finally feeling like you’re an individual then a slap across the face and a chill at the core of your bone.
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Alienation Creates OveRTHought sharpie & digital art
namalas
8
Girls
Kimberly Miller
A Restless OCEAN
I know you’re waiting there on the other side of the brick wall for the bell to ring. While I sit and dream of summer and an ice cream cone the coolness of chocolate marshmallow dripping down your chin.
Lucas Fiorita
Chant of endless waves, One loud crash disturbs my sleep At the calm beachside
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Thames Sissi Li photography
La Playa
Está Alfonsina caminando en la playa extensa. La niña puede sentir la discreta brisa suavemente rosando su quemada piel, y puede escuchar el constante rugido de las olas. Sus pequeños y frágiles pies se hunden en el suave talco, uno tras otro, dejando huellas tras ella simbolizando un momento ya pasado. A lo lejos, puede ver a su familia tratando de hacerla regresar a ellos, pero lo único que quiere Alfonsina en ese momento es libertad. Libertad de ser una con la playa y el mar ; un completo desprendimiento del mundo que la rodea. Quiere la sublime soledad que solo una playa desierta le puede ofrecer. Ignorándolos, la niña toma la decisión de correr. Alfonsina se desplaza con la gracia de una gacela, disfrutando el momento, paso por paso. Para abruptamente, y observa su alrededor. Con una plenitud e inocencia admirable, la pequeña es trastornada por lo que esta viendo. El cielo es de tonos rojizos incontables y las nubes parecen pequeñas ovejas, libres y extáticas. Es en ese momento que llega una ráfaga
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de viento, librando su cara del pelo que sutilmente la ocultaba. La niña observa el océano meticulosamente, preguntándose que tesoros se pueden encontrar debajo de su imponente superficie. Alfonsina da minúsculos, preventivos pasos hacia el infinito. De pronto, siente el ligero cosquilleo de la espuma en sus diminutas extremidades. Observa con detalle su ondulado cuerpo, reflejado gracias a la tenue luz del espectro anaranjado fundiéndose lentamente en el horizonte. En ese momento, la niña se encuentra en un estado de paz profunda, como si estuviera de regreso en los brazos de su madre. En ese momento, Alfonsina le pierde temor al mar. desierta le puede ofrecer. Ignorándolos, la niña toma la decisión de correr. Alfonsina se desplaza con la gracia de una gacela, disfrutando el momento, paso por paso. Para abruptamente, y observa su alrededor. Con una plenitud e inocencia admirable, la pequeña es trastornada por lo que esta viendo. El cielo es de tonos rojizos.
Ana Duclaud
pastels
Dissolve Santiago Evans
www
“Cats” was highlighted in pink Endless descriptions of Buttercup from the Power Puff Girls No fuss about the English essay On Hamlet due next week The confusion of why Cinderella’s voice Seemed tremendously different Upon meeting her at Disney world It was quite strange to read Nothing of trifling lovers
What good was a diary When she had learned to like A little grape Opaque in muted crystal On a sunken summer night
Spins Kimberly Murstein
11
Lucia Serrano
I don’t remember the fresh paint strokes As I saw myself there Created by swirls Lost in his color world
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I don’t remember the promises Or the way he proposed When he said some day We would live as we liked I don’t remember the summer days When youth rushed through my veins When my ring shined bright As it danced with the sun I can’t remember the way it fell apart As it crumbled into paper And how my whole future Was painted deep black There was no color There were no swirls There was no dance There was only his frame And I started from outside I can’t remember the fights When he said he was done For I no longer fit in In the canvas of his life
Not even a name crosses my mind As I pass this stranger on the street.
2b & 3b pencil
I don’t remember the way we met The way he says my name Or his smell of paint After working at noon
I can’t remember my empty finger As it stroked the missing ring And I stared at the empty doorway Acknowledging its dull, pale grey
Stop Pretending
I know I know this man, But the memories cease to come As I stare back at them Through the crowded path
I can’t hear those screams again Or the cries or the tears As I begged him not to leave For he was everything to me
Tamara Noel
Stranger
A pair of emerald green eyes lock on mine As I walk down the street
Her
I could see light coming from under the closed door. With my small hands, I reached for the door knob and slowly opened it, careful, to pass unnoticed. The air was thick with the smell of perfume. I was wrapped around this delicious fragrance, afraid to move and ruin this moment. Seconds later, I heard the unmistakable sound of silk, running through her fingers. I walked towards the door that leads to the dressing room and quickly hid behind a huge wooden closet, which was only far enough apart from the wall to let a tiny girl like me fit through this gap. When I moved my toes, I could feel the softness of the rug under my bare feet. As I reached down to feel this fabric, I heard the clicking sound of a necklace closing and looked up, pulling the loose strands of my hair back. There she was, in front of her mirror, so flawless and beautiful. I watched as she ran her long and skinny fingers through her golden hair, making it look as priceless as all the diamond jewels wrapped around her neck. As I leaned against the wooden closet, she turned around
Tamara Noel
2b, 3b & 5b pencils
Out of the blue
and looked at me with her eyes as blue as the sky. We both stayed frozen for a couple seconds until she smiled. That smile was so comforting and warm, a smile only worthy of her, my mother.
Valeria Bravo
13
OPEN MIND
14
sharpie & digital art
Namalas
For Sven A man looks up from his reading at the afternoon joggers all a jog: the shirtless buff boys huffing and puffing, and the muscle boys muscling at the weight bench.
Parque MĂŠxico
He notices too, the long parade of old men with young wives pushing the baby strollers by. The child is a candle, a spark we strike against the gathering dark of age and decrepitude.
Hamilton
He watches fresa women workout, lifting their heavy makeup, their face-lifts and boob-jobs bouncing to the tae-bo-bo-tox beat. Their marvelous manicured nails match their skin-tight, lycra light, water wicking workout clothes. We all are running.
D.J.
We all are running from something.
We are infinite numbered Napoleons thinking this a battle we can win. But Time is more patient than the Russian winter. and Time, like Wellington, knows our every, futile move. The man keeps reading. And reading, as the light slowly fades away.
15
Robo Materialism Today I stand gliding through the flat and dull life our corrupted society has to offer. This makes me cry. myyyy mascaraaa ruuuuuns in constellationssssss Today a comment by one of my classmates blinded me. He said “It’s better to be sad in a BMW than in a bike”. All I could do was sneeze. At first, I thought he was either drunk, or I was deaf. “Repeat that”, I motioned. He was not drunk and I was not deaf. He was just a robo materialist. A victim of a scary society. I cried even more when I realized this crime was not a product of my insane imagination. What kind of world do we live in? A BMW does not make you happy. I would go for the bike. Why be stuck in a German luxurious car with faux wind moving your hair when you can have an adventurous ride in a bike? I bet about five people would come up with millions of reasons to support the BMW statement. Many few would stick to a bicycle because robots are not even able to pedal, they can’t even stand the lousy and breezy wind in their face for once.
Nicole Chaput 16
jazz musicians
iron wire and aluminum sheet
Bryce Clark
because once we’re at the top there’s no hope. It’s not transitory anymore it’s just spent and you are not above me where I can see you, but standing by my side, equally confused with no one to follow.
stairway optimism
In the station you are beautiful which is saying something because fluorescents make me sick, but I still want to touch your skin, maybe brush your ankle as you climb the last step
sallie fullerton
Walking up the stairs in 30th street station, always walking up the stairs, this is the part of the night I like best because emerging from the swollen ground, following your feet up each step there has never been so much purpose and direction in the world.
17
18
color pencils
Flora
InSOMNIA Robert Soto
Sendra uebele
Do you ever make a mistake, and remember it for the next eight years? Every night the floodgates of my mind screech open, every blunder from the past decade rushing out to trample my consciousness. The thunderous rumble keeps me from slumber. Both pillows ran out of cool sides long ago, and the human-shaped crater on the mattress only gets deeper. The alarm clock flashes in brief reminder of my weariness. 4:04 a.m. Sleep not found. A tiny coup d’etat brews in my head. It decides if my mind will not rest, neither will my body. Covers are whipped off the bed, I leap out like a coiled spring. The moment my feet touch the floor, my body becomes a rag-doll.
When i’m done
It hit me today as I was running, my feet striking the ground in panicked rhythm, ears burning with the loud music from my headset, that there may be a day when I’ll miss feeling the wind in my face, the sweat down my back, even the pain in my knees that today I can still ignore. I keep going faster and faster down the hill, or sometimes up it. But more likely it’s then that I run slow, my muscles hating me for it. I hope I don’t see anyone on those hills when I can’t go anymore, or maybe when I just don’t want to. But there may be a day when there won’t be a choice of going or not going. It’s then that the hills will beckon and my body will ache, unable to accept the challenge. What will I feel then but stiffness and pain, perhaps a flicker of regret? I should have run longer and faster on those days when I could have, choosing instead to slow down and go home, thinking there’d always be tomorrow or the next day or the next to challenge myself. But those days will be gone, the freedom of the run a memory. I think I’ll miss this terribly when I’m done
Kimberly Miller
soft Gurutam you are soft which doesn’t mean fat but that I am safe and comfortable when pressed against you bites become brushstrokes and every cry is a midnight whisper are you awake? I am afraid I just looked up at the sky and realized I was dangling from the bottom of the globe over a spatial abyss but you are soft so I will hold you from falling away and you are soft so I can’t feel that I’ve reached you touched you but I trust I have you are soft to be confused with air and to breathe is to kiss
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Conrad Frey
At 8, I found pack of my uncle’s Torched Lucky Strikes. I would sit in my room with a smoke between my lips, Tasting the sweet, musky tobacco. Thinking to myself: if only I had the courage, I could inhale and float away from the world like ash in the wind. At 9, My grandma gave me a shiny red Swiss Army Knife. I would sit on my own under the oak tree at recess, Feeling the blade with my thumb. Running the cold blade against my lips Feeling the ice cold of the steel. Thinking to myself: if only I had the courage, I could flow away from the world like a drop of crimson blood. At 10, I stole a rope from my Boy Scout troop. I would sit on the edge of my bed with one end of the rope around the fan And the other around my neck Feeling it pull against my straining blood vessels. Thinking to myself: if only I had the courage, I could climb the rope and fly away from the world like an uncaged bird.
My Love
At 11, I discovered the heat of the inside of my mother’s oven. I would sit with my knees on the cold floor, Feeling the rust of the oven rack on my cheek. Thinking to myself: if only I had the courage, I could roast here like the red-hot embers of a dying fire. At 12, I climbed atop my dad’s sixty foot grain silo. I would sit with my feet hanging off, feeling the brisk wind across my face, The grain dust blowing into my eyes making them well up Thinking to myself: if only I had the courage, I could fall away from the world like my heavy, glistening tears. At 13, I cleaned up. I took my mom’s advice and went to church. I found god. Hell, I found the Father, Son and Holy spirit. - And for a while it worked. Like a friend who moves away and you promise to keep in touch, I would go weeks without thinking of courage. Of jumping. Of bleeding. Of burning. Of breaking. I would go weeks without thinking of death. But I’m 21 and still dreaming of death. I sit at my desk with a pen in my hand like Macbeth’s dagger. I only write in red. Warm, oozing, dripping red. Thinking to myself: if only I had the courage, I could love you and all would be cured.
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photography
Broken Monica Avila
WINGS OF AN ANGEL photo manipulation
Ana Lucero Villasenor Penela
21
Lucia Ocejo
Circulo de Quintas oil on wood
22
Mount olympus Alice Kanitz for D.P.H
I it’s the rain that makes the flowers grow and death dies itself when a fearless, feeble warrior dies. similarly, the rain that falls today, tonight, reminds me of you, looking at the same moon as I (perhaps), and death dies itself when a fearless, feeble version of me thrives. II Two stray cats walk into the moon and beyond. My world is an alleyway, a series of washed-up stained photographs that don’t make sense, (and I’m trying to make sense of them—I really am) and the smell of coffee. That goddamn coffee gets me everytime. III the coffee makes sense. IV we are utterly ordinary. we are utterly infinite. we are part of the universe, molecules of air and water and hope, particles of matter. we are utterly hopeful. we are utterly extraordinary.
V Life looks beautiful when you’re in love. Crooks are not crooks, they’re just misguided. Chipped cups aren’t chipped, they’re just special. Your oddities are charming, like the chipped cup, or the coffee, the coffee that you heated yourself and drank in the morning (because you couldn’t stay awake otherwise), and that I tasted when I went for my daily fix of you. VI You are the coffee to my chipped cup, the infinity to my extraordinary life. You are the world with no boundaries; I am the rain that makes the flowers grow. I am the cat in the alleyway, watching the misguided men be named a “crook” by other misguided men who don’t believe that the series of stained photographs makes sense. You are made of particles of light and molecules of hope and you are the universe and the universe is you.
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Natasha Kimmel
24 digital photography
height Street
Invisalign Let's teach our children that there'd better not be a gap between the front teeth when they kiss that boy, when they kiss that girl, because he'll recoil in disgust like a blind toe slipping into its shoe and finding it already occupied by a dead mouse and she'll publish a Facebook research report of your child's alien dental geology. On that note Let's teach our boys that when they kiss boys it's just a phase. Let's teach our girls that when they kiss girls it means "You're just very good friends". Let’s teach our children that if they hide in the closet long enough, one day they’ll be cleaning their rooms in preparation of leaving home and they’ll rediscover their true selves abandoned beneath years of dust and pretend they never happened and they’ll walk off to college shells of clothing with no bodies underneath. Let’s teach our children that their GPA numbers times their SAT numbers times their AP numbers times the weight of all the gold leafed diplomas and medals and trophies of academic achievement is how heavy the counterweight will be when we trebuchet them over the wall of their own inadequacy and into college.
Let’s teach our children that School is for learning to live, not love. Who needs emotional experience anyway? Nothing attracts the ladies like saying I’m doing my post-doc in phrenology. So I spent five thousand dollars to fix my son’s face. So I took his trees and transform them into textbooks. So I teach my boy that it’ll be worth it when he has to tell his buddies Sorry, I can’t. I have to study. One day, he’ll be staring down a suburban sunset as he reclines in the Mexican-raised garden of his multi-million dollar home with a busty, cultured wife who he won with his parallel chops and the emotional tools of a thirteen year old on one arm and a twenty-four gold karat watch on the other. Join me and like loving, concerned mother birds let us vomit the partially digested bugs of our hard work and wisdom into the mouths of our hungry, flightless young
Gurutam
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Harry Brake adviser
staff
Alia Suhaimi Editor in Chief
Alia. Not to be confused Co- Conspirator in with the early 2000s R&B cahoots with a lively singing sensation, but instead Repentino. staff, born & with the Malay word for “ginger”; raised in Pennsylvania, transfor I, too, am both spicy and Southplanted in Delaware, fulfilling East Asian. I am also, at this point of his dream in Mexico, Mr. Brake is a my life, a dancing queen (young and sweet, only 17). graduate from SRU, believes in the holiness of I spend my youth creating art, bickering with loved Cross Country, & feels motivating others is ones, consistently missing deadlines, and bloghis greatest gift from his family. Addict ging. I am the manic-pixie girl-who-wears Lilian Ilitzky to blogging, running, eating, NANO, pigtails-with-flower-crowns-and-dreamshis Repentino. staff, & his dogs, he Public Relations of-one-day-going-to-art-school that feels he is living the dream day 17, Mexico. Lilian is a those indie films warned you to day. very outspoken and loud about. person. She loves to interact with others and help whenever she is needed. She is not exactly Clau Robles Gil artistically talented but her co-editor in chief Karin kisel social skills help make Born and having lived the Public Relations her a great member first nine years of her life of the PR team. officer in Mexico, Clau moved to Who am I? That is not Boston in 2005 and returned an easy question to answer. (with a love of art, reading, writing, I am wanderlust, a daydreamer, and music) to complete high school at a pessimist and optimist, I am up for ASF in 2010. She lives for indie music, sushi, dayadventure and a challenge. My passion is dreaming, nights at the beach, conversations by the to travel and explore the world around fireplace, and the feeling of a sharpened pencil me. I am happy to be alive, but most payton alley poised over a blank page. She will be double importantly excited to see what PublicRelations majoring in Psychology and English at the world has in store for me. I was born in Kuala Tufts University, and although uncerLumpur, Malaysia, and tain about life after college, she has have had the pleasure high aspirations for the future. of moving from country to country my entire life.This has helped form my hobbies, which include playing soccer and reading. My favorite place to be is at the beach. I appreciate alexa gonzalez Alice Kanitz art, which is one of the treasurer reasons why I joined Secretary 17, Mexico. Alexa is the magazine. alice was born in a very quiet person who porto alegre, brazil. tries to keep to herself. She her aspirations include enjoys learning and loves math. having pink hair and making a Art is not her strong suit which living out of her passions for makes her great for working as theatre & poetry. she is strongly the magazine’s treasurer. against capitalization.
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Stephanie Wiesehuegel Layout editor
Minji kim layout assistant
Who is Stephanie? I was born in Mexico She’s a 17 year old girl who gets City in 1997 and have confused quite easily. She’s intelbeen raised in Mexico City ligent, but she doesn’t like to flaunt it. my whole life. Consequently have She’s a nerd. She’s tougher than she looks attended ASF since first grade. I am (just ask her friends). She likes to dance and have fun, very passionate over sports and 20th cenand listens to her music a little too loud. She likes Daniela tury literature, and modern art. I enjoy stargazing and reading comic books. She’s clumsy working for Repentino. as a layout Jessurun and accident prone as well and yet plays varsity assistant editor and as a treasurer. layout STAFF soccer. She also hates being told what to I am honored to be part of Being as amazing as I do, but because she’s not unreasonRepentino. magazine. am its hard to find activiable she’ll listen anyway. Usually. ties that are as cool as me but joining Repentino. has exceeded all my expectations. There is so much to it that i had never considered and it is definitely Eric Parton Chloe Cho something ill miss now that layout STAFF layout STAFF I’m graduating from ASF. I was born in Dubai, UAE. Born and raised in Korea, she See you in the loony I’m British/Mexican. I was speakis having her first year in ASF. bin staff of 2014! ing to my friend Elton and he said Passionate and warm-hearted, she my voice was too loud. I have a vainspends her free time mostly playing cello glorious ego also, but I gracefully purred, and watching Pixar movies. This is her first “Elton, nobody is subtle”. One day I’ll be an time joining Repentino. as a layout staff and oil baron somewhere off the Gulf of Mexico but she is just waiting, patiently, for the day to come. I’ll live in my home in the country in southern The day to flip and read her first Repenmaria choi France. I play the guitar and banjo and I tino magazine that she and her friends layout STAFF want to take up the accordion. I like had made, who devoted their time I have been living in to write and draw but I think it’s every Monday to create an unique, Mexico for 6 years and one and the only magazine. better I keep that to myself. have attended ASF since 8th grade. I like to listen to music and hang out with my friends. I joined Repentino. in Isabel Raz-Guzmán Yeeun Hong 2013 as a layout staff and am layout staff layout STAFF very glad to have made the Born and raised in Mexico City. Born in Korea and raised in decision of forming a Being part of the ASF in Mexico City Mexico, I have been attending ASF part of the magazine. since 1st grade, Isabel has always enjoyed since 7th grade. I love hanging out reading and writing in spanish and english. with friends, but I also like to spend my A fan of literature and art, Isabel is the type to time alone watching movies, reading books, always have her nose stuck in a book (for most of the listening to music and doing other geeky stuff. I time) or be doodling something on the margins of her recently joined Repentino. in the Layout staff, school papers. She is also an athletic person, she and it has been a wonderful experience colespecially likes to play soccer, and is part of the laborating in the magazine. Motto in life: girls varsity team at the school. “Accept what is, let go of what was Travelling has always been a favouand have faith in what could be.” rite for Isabel and she hopes to learn more languages as she grows older.
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izabela lackowska
Ana duclaud
literature assistant
My name is Izabela and Literary editor I’m from Poland. I’ve been I was born in Mexico City living in Mexico for 5 years and have lived here all my now and I joined Repentino. life. I have always been passionlast year when the I decided to take ate about literature, which is why risks and get involved with my commuI take so much pleasure in sharing nity. Apart from that, I’m attempting to be a runner, a it with other people. I am also passionate about stage manager at the theatre, a science/math tutor, as well music, which is why I´m going to study opera singing as a piano player. Is that who I am though? Wouldn’t in college. Working in Repentino. has been an say those things aren’t a part of me, but if you’d incredible experience and I believe that it is a try to guess what I’d like to do with my future, great way for all artists to freely express fiona you wouldn’t say it’s something to do with themselves. chemistry. I wonder where my path will hernandez take me. Strange things happen to literature staff those who don’t expect anything. Fiona’s personality is
Monica Avila literature staff
crazy. She loves everything and everyone. Her passion is books, TV shows, and movies. She laughs more than enough.
ernesto ramos literature staff
I am the only Middle Schooler in My name is Monica Avila and Repentino. where, with the endless streak this is my first year as staff for of rhymes that should rhyme but somehow Repentino. Throughout my life I don´t and lame fan-fictions ALWAYS featuring have always wanted to push my borders, a man in a trench coat texting his bomber to blow and I believe that being part of this amazing up a landmark, I have been given the opportunity to magazine pushes them to the limit. I have an weed out bad pieces of writing in the way I most enjoy incredible passion when it comes to writing and to: by criticizing every last sonnet in the Literary Staff reading, and I must say that I sure wish that one Google Doc and telepathically telling the author day I can become a famous journalist. I am that I love how Repentino. is an international simply a girl, who has huge dreams and magazine because now I don´t have to expectations for the future, and I know samantha kim live in the same country as he does. I that being part of the Repentino. staff wonder what the Layout Staff thinks literature staff is helping me achieve my goals. while they put these bios in… This girl has two names and two personalities. Sam and So Yeon Kim and she is from Korea. She has a nerdy side but she gets crazy before cassandra esteve you know it. Books and literature staff music are her life. You would think that after
alejandra gallardo literature staff
I joined Repentino. because I thought a Spanglish literary magazine in Mexico City was pretty unique, and I wanted to be a part of that. I enjoy reading and writing, especially when it’s on my own time at home because I can read and write whatever I want to while occasionally drinking a hot chocolate.
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writing so many college essays talking about myself would be easier, but it is not. I am a senior in highschool and my fast approaching graduation both excites and terrifies me. I love learning about everything, but especially about people. Through Repentino. I have met and gotten to know a lot of extremely interesting people who have taught me so much about art, literature and life. Repentino. has increased my hunger for life and kindled my love for Mexico.
Lucia ocejo art editor Born and raised in Mexico sonia anwar-ahmed City, I received my educaart assistant tion from the American School Writing an autobiography Foundation, and about to start my is quite the challenging task. undergraduate career at Massachusetts Half Spanish, half Sudanese, but College of Art and Design, Boston at my 18 years of age. really just Africana at heart. Delved My entire life I have been surrounded by artists: my father into the arts since I can remember. Creative an architect, my grandmother a painter, and my aunt people inspire me. Intellectual people fascinate a worldwide known sculptor (Yvonne Domenge). me. Travelling is my absolute passion. Growing up in such an art-stimulating environLike I said, writing an autobiography is mariana ibarra ment made me become interested in the quite the challenging task. literature staff world of the arts. Art is a way of life; art Fun, creative and not very is not a luxury but a necessity. easy to explain. I am series of paradoxes but that just makes life more interesting. I really like art, but in the end it is literature I am in love tiana tutt with. I have a creative soul and victoria merino art staff active imagination and it is literature staff Tiana was born in Los Angeles, all this that drove me The basics: my name - Victoria California where she fell in love with towards Repentino. Merino, my age - seventeen, my R&B and hip-hop, taking its music and dance gender - female, my role in with her to Mexico City for her four years in Repentino. - literary staff. The specifics: my high school. She always has her earphones in and name - Vic to my friends, Yoya to my family, loves Alicia Keys. She also enjoys all sports, especially and Guajis to the special ones; my age - seventeen basketball and swimming, visual art, writing, playing the years since my birth in Mexico City on September guitar, the outdoors, literature, and graphic design. 2nd, 1996; my gender - female under biological People tend to think she is quiet...until they get to distinctions; my role in Repentino - select Nina Sachdev know her. She hopes to see as many places in works in both spanish and english literature the world as possible. After graduating this that best represent our theme. staff year, Tiana will spend the next few Nina Sachdev is someone years of her life studying in Boston, who fulfills her passions with Massachusetts. activities like writing stories and playing the piano. She becomes too attached to characters in erika bleed her favorite novels, but Luis Landa art staff would love to be the Throughout my life I have had literature staff creator of some of lived in several countries including Born and raised in a these one day. Switzerland, Thailand and Mexico, little town called Mexico becoming trilingual in English, French City, Canada, Luis Landa has and Spanish. I have had the most amazing been a completely riveting individopportunities to travel different countries around ual from day one. He is just such a the world. I wish to continue traveling the world, cool guy that everyone wants to knowing that in the future I will most likely be like him. What a cool guy. never settle down in one place. I have Simply the greatest guy. always had a passion and devotion for art which I love to do in my spare time, yet I am thinking about pursuing a career in law.
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alejandra garcia general staff
miranda ruano international acquisitions
Sensational creativity, kind, and passionate for photography. Loves traveling and believes that good things take time and personality captures the heart.
kim Simmons funraising & event manager
Hey! My name is Kim and this will be my 5th year in The American I am a 17 year old writer and School Foundation in Mexico City. I’ve Austrophile who happens to be been part of staff since 2012! Not that long obsessed with linguistics and travago there was only 6 other people in the club elling. In ten years you will find me which made progress very difficult and stressful. in Dublin or Vienna working as This year there are a few dozens of new faces a psychologist and a historical who are constantly there to help and show fiction writer on the side. the real reason Repentino came to be! maite Now with a larger staff we can acgarcia-lascurain complish everything and anything layout staff while having fun doing it :) Fan of travelling, music and art. 18 year old chilanga who spent formative years in Brazil with an unusually weird group of people I call family. Drawing, reading and music occupy my short periods of freedom. Joined Repentino. layout staff looking for seemlessly artistic opportunities.
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col oph
on
Repentino. Magazine, Volume III, was produced by the literary magazine staff in afterschool activities at the American School Foundation in Mexico City, and was printed by Ideas Publicitarias, in Mexico City. The cover artwork was done by Sendra Uebele and was printed into couche, 200 gms. The cover finish is matte. The cover font is Bebas Neue.The font title font is Basic Title Font and the body copy font is Baskerville Old Face. The inside of the cover is couche, 135 gms, printed with matte 4 x 4 inks. The finish is matte. The interior was printed with 4 x 4 inks and the print is offsett. The dimensions of the pages are 21 x 28 cm, the final size being 21 x 56 cm. The 2013-2014 issue includes 30 pages on 150 gms. paper in full color.
special thanks The 2013/2014 staff of Repentino. Magazine would like to thank the following people for their contributions, generosity, support and inspiration.
ASF Upper School Administration ASF Bear Boosters ASF Caja ASF English Department ASF MaintASF PA Associaton Adele Harrison Adi Alsaid Alejandro Ehrenberg Amy Gallie Andrea Terminel Ann Marie Ferry Antonio Rodriguez Bernardo Letayf Charlie Meltzer Claudia Salazar CSPA Staff Dafne Ordonez Camacho Daniel John Hamilton Dave Ehle David Kitchin Davin DeSantis Dinner Dance Cruises Elizabeth Rivera Eric Urena Jazz on the Park Hostel
Edmund Sullivan Esther Duran Guy Cheney Harlequin Publishing Hugo Cabrera Janet Castelpietra Jason Schell Justin Moodie Kathleen Zweibel Kirk Holderman Kristin Dixie Lauren Dickson Leonardo Trias Mariel Calderon Mary Alvarez Mary Kathryn Fuynt Peter Bogyo Raphael Martin Rebecca Castillo Robert Wilson Rocio Itirralde Tanya Huntington Teruhi Yoshioka Tulio Lugo Ximena Avi単a
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Accurately depicting the myriad voices that went into producing it, Repentino. sets out to be a kaleidoscope and delivers an amalgam of the universe. With it the students of ASF have created a broad, hopeful, and visually stunning publication.
- Andrea Terminel
worked with the Mexican Consulate of Arizona, GQ Magazine and Vogue
"When all of a sudden, presto-changeo, Repentino reappears to showcase the arts and show us the kind of magic they are capable of working on a new generation."
-Tanya Huntington
Columnist for The Guardian and Letras Libres
Simply put, a collection of talent and hard work.
- Adi Alsaid Author of the novel Let’s Get Lost