We're excited to announce the opening of the May submission period!

Please send any and all writing or artwork inspired by the prompt Mother's Day to the EmeraldYouthReview@emeraldparents.org, by May 1st. The contest is open to those in grades 4-12.

     Before the Coronavirus outbreak, my family lived an ordinary life just like any other Chinese American family in communities around the US. I love my family and I always feel proud of my family since my dad is always very persistent at his work, and my mom is an awesome woman, pushing through times to suit all of our family’s needs. My little brother is very loving and adorable, and is always very helpful to me whenever I need anything, although he can be annoying at times. I feel extremely lucky to have a family like this and I would never swap lives with another kid. ​

As the editorial staff, it is our pleasure to announce the works and artists selected during our inaugural reading period, centered around the prompt "How has the recent spread of coronavirus affected your view of your family?". ​

​ (Content advisory: description of historical, racial violence.)

          This is a day in February, one of our early days of sunshine – early enough so that we don’t take the light for granted. My mom and I are stepping into a Trader Joe’s near Greenlake. I move steadily towards a stand of free samples, while Mom stops and shifts the reusable bags in her arms – from Ranch 99 or H-Mart. By now news has reached us of the virus that is devastating Wuhan, and we’ve heard of the related xenophobic incidents in the States as well.

Today, I'm thinking about the words of the immortal Toni Morrison: "If there is a book that you want to read, but it hasn't been written yet; you must be the one to write it." 
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Such is the opportunity present in EmP's mission of solidarity -- all of us coming together to carve out a space of common values. For many of us, parents and kids, the spaces that we are entering are not ones where we have always been welcomed -- and in a way we understand that our task now is to make it so, not only for our own generation but for the next.