Class poem, English 2600, Literary LA FALL 2022

Because of the sun

LA is thought to be warm

Because of the people

LA is thought to be a world of actresses and Hollywood stars

You might come into LA with one thought

But you will definitely leave with another                 (Sam)

LA, the city where you take one free step and one shackled one

Being free is worth money, it’s worth time

LA, the city where we’re indebted to history                         (Camila)

Los Angeles and its diversity with its recognition.

Different types of people visit, move, are native here.

The crime that happens here is uncalled for, but it happens anyway, despite the population.

Everyday life is normal, but when I really think about what makes me an Angeleno

it is not the city itself,

 but our communities blended as a melting pot, creating a vast, diverse culture.

Reaching the beaches and mountains in a matter of miles.

Social and socioeconomic status across the city.

Positive and negative things happen every day we don’t know about.

LA Live is a great example of the center of Los Angeles (Ezra)

“Los Angeles Traffic [CROP]” by fredcamino is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0.

Los Angeles, where 8 miles away

Turns into a 30-minute commute.

Where the neighborhoods seem worlds apart

With differing viewpoints, seemingly coming

Together in bumper-to-bumper traffic

All agreeing that the rain makes everyone bad drivers.     (Elizabeth)

Fire and rain can be plain and can be very healthy; however, but some people can disagree with this theme. But LA has its’ own special quality                  (Guillermina)

A city filled with crime

A city filled with fame

In reality it can get dangerous

Very hot summers and barely any rain

Los Angeles will forever be home                     (Zaineh)

The chill of the morning breeze, as quiet as a mouse

The cold of no sun but filled with light and life.         (Anibal)

Fame and glamour many outsiders think

Communities with roots that go unseen.                   (Miranda)

LA is fun and happy

Though it gets overflown with crime

From robberies and shootings

To car chases televised on our TVs

Treated as a normal tradition                                     (Xavier)

Palm trees, food, sports, clothes, movies, beaches, cars, and homeless.   (Jacob)

Religions and cults both exist in LA life

Have you heard about the Manson family?
Downtown LA Skid Row, drugs, homelessness

A city filled with traffic          

A city with life.                                    (Perla)

As our city lights and city sun beam over our heads

We lock our doors or else the Night Stalker will come for us

We hide our doe-eyed daughters from Manson

We run when we see the birth of smog and fire

Los Angeles never stops itself from being scared.                 (Liz)

A city that’s never quiet

You always hear a loud noise

At any given moment

Either a loud car engine

Or a random person yelling

And yet I never get tired of it

As the sounds remind me

I am home.                                                                  (Daniel)

Music is the home of LA where music is everywhere

Whether at the sports game or the beach in Santa Monica

Music is in the little coffee shops around the corner.

Driving in the middle of the night with your friends with the windows down     (Karen)

The sound of the plane,

The sound of the ocean,

The sounds of the traffic,

The sound of its notion.

A kiss goodnight

Under a starry night.

Yet not one of the stars

But the starry building lights.                         (Lauren)

The buildings look so glamourous

I almost wonder if they’re real

High heels and business suits

Just outside a man begging for food

A protest chanting “Black Lives Matter”

High floors and glistening windows

 continue to stand proudly

A mask encompassing it all                             (Jennifer)

The well-known city “Los Angeles”

A very diverse city

Many races, religions, backgrounds

Hollywood musicians, artists, actors, writers

A city full of traffic

Angry drivers, kind people

Downtown Los Angeles

Skid row, skyline

Representing Los Angeles

Dodgers, Clippers, Lakers, LA Galaxy                          (Jeremy)

Los Angeles Lakers” by Jerry Perezchica is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0.For traffic

LA the place where sports fans are more than just fans.

You’re either a Dodgers or Lakers fan or you are an outsider.

We root for the same team as if we were programmed to never leave.

Where our biggest idol Kobe was taken too early.

A single team can give you friends throughout a big city, but don’t switch up teams because then you’ll make various enemies.                                               (Elias)

Los Angeles, a unique metropolis I call home

To my left, I see rows of palm trees swaying in the wind

To my right, I see rows of vehicles gridlocked on the 405

One day, I see a businessperson demanding their perfectly-made coffee

Another day, I see someone kindly asking for money

A sunny day can quickly turn overcast in an instant

A nice drive on the interstate can turn into an altercation

I never know what will lay before me in the City of Angels

Los Angeles. It has and will always be deemed my home.     (Enrique)

Los Angeles, my gente, my home

From poverty down in Skid row

To the skyline of buildings that light up our city

My home

It’s not perfect

But it’s what we have built with so few resources

Communities that grew and bloomed 

From the cracks of our roads

Never meant to flourish

This is our

Home                                                                                                  (Kimberly)