Isabella Kloster
Senior Isabella Kloster has been filling out the many journals that lay around her house with poems and illustrations since her junior year.
Kloster has always found herself writing poems that fall into two categories – emotional and empowering. When an idea pops into her head she types a note in her phone and writes them in one of her journals later.
Kloster has always been drawn towards literature and decided to incorporate pictures to go with her poems.
“The artwork is meant to enhance the poem by using an image that meshes well,” Kloster said.
Kloster, along with 11 other seniors in Johnson County, is a finalist for the literature award. She was nominated by her art teacher Adam Finkelston and has the opportunity to win a scholarship up to $1,400 for first place because of her poetry. She wasn’t going to turn the opportunity down to win the Shooting Star award.
Kloster doesn’t typically like to share her poetry with others because how personal some of them can be.
“You tell people you write poetry and they immediately ask to read it, but most of my poems are connected to different parts of my life,” Kloster said. “I can go back and read them and instantly know what was going on then.”
But thought of having the judges and other finalists read her poems hasn’t been a big worry of hers. Two people Kloster does share her poems with are seniors Caroline Edge and John Gorman.
“With [Edge] I’m used to bouncing ideas since she sometimes helps me write songs,” Kloster said. “And with [Gorman] we had a poetry swap where I got to read all of his in exchange for him reading all of mine.”
Kloster’s friends believe that her nomination is well-deserved because of her hard work and dedication. Edge says that Kloster has an ability to procrastinate, but when she sets her mind on writing a poem, she’ll get it done. Edge also feels like she has earned the finalist position because of the passion and expression she puts into her poems.
“When she is super overwhelmed she focuses that energy on making something productive,” Edge said.
Gorman appreciates how easy it is to relate to her poems.
“I can connect with [her poems] because they’re emotions that I’ve felt,” Gorman said. “And I believe these poems showcase and express emotions and ideas that everyone goes through at some point.”
He also enjoys how he can connect to what she writes and how she conveys her thoughts in her poetry. Gorman believes Kloster uses poetry as catharsis.
“All the poems I read are personal, but at the same time relatable, and I think that’s the best form of art – when it’s so raw and touches everyone,” Gorman said. “Not many people can do that using words and images.”
Bri Jantz
Senior Bri Jantz was ready for the audition. She filled out the finalist form, perfected her resume and sent photos her playing her cello. She practiced at least an hour a day for weeks leading up to her audition. She would be playing the first and second movement of Sonata by Vivaldi.
But the morning of the audition, she realized she wasn’t going to get a chance to perform. Jantz had fallen ill with food poisoning.
“I was in a mini panic because I knew the policy, and I was scared they wouldn’t let me make it up, which turned out to be the case,” Jantz said.
Since Jantz was unable to inform the organization earlier about her absence, they told her she was not able to make it up, disqualifying her and making her ineligible for the scholarship.
“It’s out of my hands, so I just have to keep moving forward,” Jantz said. “I’ve never been the type of person to dwell on failures. I try to just learn from them.”
Still Jantz knows the hours of practice she put into perfecting her audition song – and doesn’t want her hard work to be a waste.
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