DigitalCommons@C.O.D.

Title in English- Transcultural Communication in the United States
Abstract in English- Home to hundreds of traditions and languages, the United States has a unique opportunity to actively engage in a cross-cultural community. Participation in this community allows one to understand the diversities and similarities between customs and traditions. Once immersed into this diverse society, one can navigate between cultures and gain multicultural competence

Warner, Aleena

La Comunicación Transcultural de los Estados Unidos

McNerney, Joan

The Prairie Light Review 
Volume 43 
Number 2 Spring 2021 Article 10 
Spring 5-1-2021 
April Blue 
Joan McNerney 
College of DuPage 
Follow this and additional works at: https://dc.cod.edu/plr 
Recommended Citation 
McNerney, Joan (2021) "April Blue," The Prairie Light Review: Vol. 43 : No. 2 , Article 10. 
Available at: https://dc.cod.edu/plr/vol43/iss2/10 
This Selection is brought to you for free and open access by the College Publications at DigitalCommons@COD. It 
has been accepted for inclusion in The Prairie Light Review by an authorized editor of DigitalCommons@COD. For 
more information, please contact orenick@cod.edu. 
April Blue                    Joan McNerney
This is when we search for
color to transform cold grey.
Rainfall begins its magic 
high lighting sky blue.
We see stacks of luminous clouds
as plants pop out and forsythia 
bursts into sparkling yellow stalks.
Just today a breath of warmth
brought alive crepe myrtle buds.
Aromatic lilac bushes cluster in
soft bunches while birds and bugs
encircle them.  Ten pretty trees
all dressed up in lustrous greens
boogie through noontime breezes.
Get ready for this blast-off of spring!
                                                            
                                                      
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McNerney: April Blue
Published by DigitalCommons@COD, 2021


English

April Blue

DeBoni, Nina

The Prairie Light Review 
Volume 43 
Number 2 Spring 2021 Article 59 
Spring 5-1-2021 
Ode to Baseball and Men in Masks 
Nina DeBoni 
College of DuPage 
Follow this and additional works at: https://dc.cod.edu/plr 
Recommended Citation 
DeBoni, Nina (2021) "Ode to Baseball and Men in Masks," The Prairie Light Review: Vol. 43 : No. 2 , Article 
59. 
Available at: https://dc.cod.edu/plr/vol43/iss2/59 
This Selection is brought to you for free and open access by the College Publications at DigitalCommons@COD. It 
has been accepted for inclusion in The Prairie Light Review by an authorized editor of DigitalCommons@COD. For 
more information, please contact orenick@cod.edu. 
Privilege as in he can love with the mask off.
Whereas the ‘coach’ demands that I keep mine on  
like a uniform,  
to keep up appearances.
Maybe that is why I only love men in masks.
They know the lonely that comes with the facade,
but who knows what really lies beneath?
In the shadows they could be anyone or anything,
safe in the dark to love  
without fear of losing.
Fancy-dress party. Natalia G. Toreeva 65
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DeBoni: Ode to Baseball and Men in Masks
Published by DigitalCommons@COD, 2021


Ode to Baseball and Men in Masks

Burm, TJ

The Prairie Light Review 
Volume 43 
Number 2 Spring 2021 Article 66 
Spring 5-1-2021 
Collage Meemo 
TJ Burm 
College of DuPage 
Follow this and additional works at: https://dc.cod.edu/plr 
Recommended Citation 
Burm, TJ (2021) "Collage Meemo," The Prairie Light Review: Vol. 43 : No. 2 , Article 66. 
Available at: https://dc.cod.edu/plr/vol43/iss2/66 
This Artwork is brought to you for free and open access by the College Publications at DigitalCommons@COD. It 
has been accepted for inclusion in The Prairie Light Review by an authorized editor of DigitalCommons@COD. For 
more information, please contact orenick@cod.edu. 
71
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Burm: Collage Meemo
Published by DigitalCommons@COD, 2021


Collage Meemo

Kennedy, Rachel

The Prairie Light Review 
Volume 43 
Number 2 Spring 2021 Article 67 
Spring 5-1-2021 
Memories 
Rachel Kennedy 
College of DuPage 
Follow this and additional works at: https://dc.cod.edu/plr 
Recommended Citation 
Kennedy, Rachel (2021) "Memories," The Prairie Light Review: Vol. 43 : No. 2 , Article 67. 
Available at: https://dc.cod.edu/plr/vol43/iss2/67 
This Artwork is brought to you for free and open access by the College Publications at DigitalCommons@COD. It 
has been accepted for inclusion in The Prairie Light Review by an authorized editor of DigitalCommons@COD. For 
more information, please contact orenick@cod.edu. 
1
Kennedy: Memories
Published by DigitalCommons@COD, 2021


Memories

Murray, Karlette

The Prairie Light Review 
Volume 44 
Number 1 Fall 2021 Article 17 
Fall 12-1-2021 
Quidditch Generation 
Karlette Murray 
College of DuPage 
Follow this and additional works at: https://dc.cod.edu/plr 
Recommended Citation 
Murray, Karlette (2021) "Quidditch Generation," The Prairie Light Review: Vol. 44 : No. 1 , Article 17. 
Available at: https://dc.cod.edu/plr/vol44/iss1/17 
This Artwork is brought to you for free and open access by the College Publications at DigitalCommons@COD. It 
has been accepted for inclusion in The Prairie Light Review by an authorized editor of DigitalCommons@COD. For 
more information, please contact orenick@cod.edu. 
Everything is Beautiful
Everything is beautiful.
Bathing in a sea of stars,
I float like a balloon
Tethered to the earth by
Just a fragile string of gravity. 
I reach out to eternity,
Trace patterns in the sky ...
Stories told across millenia. 
I’m traveling through time. 
I close my eyes and slowly sink,
The air around me, in me, through me, 
Is humming in crystalline harmony 
Two hundred voices strong. 
And if you close your eyes,
A river, a silent and beautiful current,
Fills you from within …
And I expand, become two-hundredfold. 
You kiss me for the first time.
In it, I feel the first and last 
and every kiss between.
My first imperfect love.
For just one perfect moment,
Nothing hurts
And everything is beautiful.
I reach out to accept the humble spoon,
The unassuming plastic 
Now a momentary chalice.
Transubstantiation. 
I taste its precious contents,
Close my eyes in sheer euphoria.
One hundred years of craftsmanship;
Each dances in its turn across my tongue.
The sweet, the sour, oak and juniper.
I gladly pay whatever price
To worship at this temple once again.
 Quidditch Generation. Jewelry. Karlette Murray
A bird freed from her cage, I fly
Above hot summer sand,
Splash landing in the glittering lake.
Hot and cold, wet and dry,
Noisy … and quiet.
I am the summer sun,
The gentle breeze,
The waves unfurling as they kiss the shore.
And nothing hurts. 
    - Kimberly F. White
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Murray: Quidditch Generation
Published by DigitalCommons@COD, 2021


Quidditch Generation

Tausz, Anna

The Prairie Light Review 
Volume 44 
Number 1 Fall 2021 Article 33 
Fall 12-1-2021 
February 
Anna Tausz 
College of DuPage 
Follow this and additional works at: https://dc.cod.edu/plr 
Recommended Citation 
Tausz, Anna (2021) "February," The Prairie Light Review: Vol. 44 : No. 1 , Article 33. 
Available at: https://dc.cod.edu/plr/vol44/iss1/33 
This Artwork is brought to you for free and open access by the College Publications at DigitalCommons@COD. It 
has been accepted for inclusion in The Prairie Light Review by an authorized editor of DigitalCommons@COD. For 
more information, please contact orenick@cod.edu. 
*content warning: self-harm, suicidal thoughts
Perfection is my middle name.                           Joseph Krebaum
To determine whether or not you are the right fit for this position, we 
require that you fill out a brief questionnaire. This should take about ten 
to fifteen minutes. Please take your time and answer these questions to the 
best of your ability.
1. I am a hard-working individual. 
a. Strongly Disagree
b. Disagree
c. Neutral
d. Agree
e. Strongly Agree
2. I accomplish tasks in a timely manner.   
a. Never
b. Sometimes
c. Often
d. Always
e. Depends on how you look at it.    
February. Colored Pencil and Pen Collage. Anna Tausz
36
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Tausz: February
Published by DigitalCommons@COD, 2021


February

Krebaum, Joseph

The Prairie Light Review 
Volume 44 
Number 1 Fall 2021 Article 34 
Fall 12-1-2021 
Perfection is my middle name 
Joseph Krebaum 
College of DuPage 
Follow this and additional works at: https://dc.cod.edu/plr 
Recommended Citation 
Krebaum, Joseph (2021) "Perfection is my middle name," The Prairie Light Review: Vol. 44 : No. 1 , Article 
34. 
Available at: https://dc.cod.edu/plr/vol44/iss1/34 
This Selection is brought to you for free and open access by the College Publications at DigitalCommons@COD. It 
has been accepted for inclusion in The Prairie Light Review by an authorized editor of DigitalCommons@COD. For 
more information, please contact orenick@cod.edu. 
*content warning: self-harm, suicidal thoughts
Perfection is my middle name.                           Joseph Krebaum
To determine whether or not you are the right fit for this position, we 
require that you fill out a brief questionnaire. This should take about ten 
to fifteen minutes. Please take your time and answer these questions to the 
best of your ability.
1. I am a hard-working individual. 
a. Strongly Disagree
b. Disagree
c. Neutral
d. Agree
e. Strongly Agree
2. I accomplish tasks in a timely manner.   
a. Never
b. Sometimes
c. Often
d. Always
e. Depends on how you look at it.    
February. Colored Pencil and Pen Collage. Anna Tausz
36
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Krebaum: Perfection is my middle name
Published by DigitalCommons@COD, 2021
3. Sometimes, I can be too much of a perfectionist. 
a. No way
b. Well, kind of 
c. I used to avoid hard “d” and “t” sounds.  
d. I used to be mute.   
e. I still sometimes struggle with “d” and “t,” so I hide 
my lack of self-confidence by saying words without 
producing the sharp sword sounds of “d” and “t.” 
4. I can speak fluently and clearly. 
a. I couldn’t speak very much, or at least, not as much 
as I used to before all of this began.  
b. There were these noises that I used to make. I called 
them “elephants” because trying not to think of an 
elephant when you’re told to not think about an 
elephant is impossible. Anyway, I turned them into 
this sacred ritual that I did so I could move on with 
my day. And because I tried to avoid making the 
elephants by not saying the consonants, I kept my 
mouth shut.
c. You wouldn’t know, would you? You wouldn’t 
know how I felt like suffocating. How I could just 
feel the strain inside my throat. The imaginary knife 
grinding against it so hard, I was so sure I’d see 
blood on my hand if I placed it below my chin, even 
though it was all in my head.       
d. My life was a living nightmare. I’d wake up from 
dreams and lose sleep over sounds and phrases that 
just didn’t feel right on my tongue. Too wet, too 
soft, just not crisp enough! I had to do it. I had to 
make those elephants, or I would never find comfort 
again.     
e. Eventually, I stopped doing the rituals, but I was 
still laser-focused on avoiding “d” and “t.” The 
elephants, the elephants! They kept marching back 
to haunt me, trampling my throat. It got so bad, 
you wouldn’t even know! There I was at my high 
school in the middle of March, bashing the back of 
my head against a wall repeatedly, overwhelmed by 
the elephants, feeling completely hopeless, and in 
desperate need of water for my drying throat, even 
though I couldn’t drink liquids until I had corrected 
the sounds …       
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The Prairie Light Review, Vol. 44, No. 1 [2021], Art. 34
https://dc.cod.edu/plr/vol44/iss1/34
5. If something bothers me, I just grin and bear it. 
a. At least, that’s what I try to do at first. 
b. I don’t even think that I can count the number of 
times I’ve let my obsessions control me. 
c. I read too much into what people say to me. 
Conversely, I read too much into what people don’t 
say to me. If I see someone’s neck get slashed or shot 
or injured in any way, shape, or form, that image 
lingers, and I think, “What if, what if, what if …”    
d. One time, I was upset that a guy on Tinder 
“unmatched” me. That my family was at the store. 
That I recently posted all twelve songs from my 
concept album on Facebook for my friends to see, 
only to find that only one person liked just one song 
from it. That when I went over to the computer to 
send my psychologist a cry for help, I ended up 
playing an impossible game where the only goal 
was to  avoid getting an I-beam symbol after clicking 
on the Google search bar at least twenty times. 
Understandably, I failed. Not so understandably, 
I grabbed a kitchen knife, went into my room, and 
cut my left arm several times as intrusive thoughts 
flooded my brain. Like “I’ll always be alone” and 
“No one likes my work!” I looked down. The cuts 
were white like the interior of a doctor’s office, 
and I decided to stop because harming myself just 
felt ridiculous at that point. Then, the marks bled, 
and I was like, “Oh, shit! That can happen?” And 
it wasn’t until then that I finally reached out to my 
psychologist, ashamed of what I’ve done. 
e. Really, I try my best to put on a smile and fake it 
until I make it, but I never do. The smile may be fake, 
but the additional pain of my muscles straining and 
stretching out to form it is real.              
6. I find that I am happiest when I have work to do.      
a. Bullshit!! 
b. You must not know what it’s like to breathe or sigh 
in an unusual manner for god knows how long.  
c. Or blink like the battery light on my dad’s laptop 
computer, only much more rapidly, and with much 
more vigor than some silly electronic slit. 
d. Or press my lips against a spoon or a fork  (especially 
the metal ones) repeatedly after mistakenly letting 
my teeth touch it. 
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Krebaum: Perfection is my middle name
Published by DigitalCommons@COD, 2021
e. Or even hurt myself again on purpose after hurting 
myself once by accident because everything, and I 
mean everything, has to happen twice.        
7. I find myself so caught up in what I’m doing, I don’t want 
to stop.   
a. Oh, shit. I just let my fingernail puncture the soft 
flesh of my thumb. 
b. I am pressing my thumb and index finger 
together, hoping to get the right sound and the 
smooth sensation of skin rubbing against itself like 
car wheels on pavement.  
c. I still cannot answer this question because I have 
been doing this for five straight minutes, and I am 
telling myself that I will never move on with my life 
unless I can get two of my fingers to collide the way 
I want them to without letting my fingernails dig 
into my skin ever again. 
d. I’m going to kill myself! 
e. Please let this be over. 
We will get back to you within five to seven business days. Thank 
you for taking the time to fill out this simple job questionnaire!    
            
Tongue Tied. Sculpture. Madelene Przybysz 39
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The Prairie Light Review, Vol. 44, No. 1 [2021], Art. 34
https://dc.cod.edu/plr/vol44/iss1/34


Perfection is my middle name

Trestrail, Susan

The Prairie Light Review 
Volume 44 
Number 1 Fall 2021 Article 56 
Fall 12-1-2021 
Artists 
Susan Trestrail 
College of DuPage 
Follow this and additional works at: https://dc.cod.edu/plr 
Recommended Citation 
Trestrail, Susan (2021) "Artists," The Prairie Light Review: Vol. 44 : No. 1 , Article 56. 
Available at: https://dc.cod.edu/plr/vol44/iss1/56 
This Selection is brought to you for free and open access by the College Publications at DigitalCommons@COD. It 
has been accepted for inclusion in The Prairie Light Review by an authorized editor of DigitalCommons@COD. For 
more information, please contact orenick@cod.edu. 
Artists
Painted in various hues 
His subject with blurred edges
the center a forlorn face. 
He smeared a dreadful red
Black lines splayed in angry bursts
of isolation and song. 
Aged and regretful, he brushed 
in strong, thick strokes, an airplane
and Ferris wheel colliding 
in midair, his life’s metaphor. 
not real people or problems. 
Art is escape and sentence. 
A monochrome toned homage 
to a dejected painter, 
while raising timeless figures.
The first gasp of air after 
a near drowning, you recall 
what pulled you from the water.
You thought the life would drain from 
your limbs, but your lungs found the 
surface just in time and that 
sound or smell forever carved
in memory like floorboard 
creaks, lavender wisps through white
eyelet, or wistful chimes of 
church bells drifting. Therefore we
create, not for others or 
the sake of self. We paint so
our long and dutiful lives 
are worth living.
   - Susan Trestrail
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Trestrail: Artists
Published by DigitalCommons@COD, 2021


Artists

Riley, Kaitlyn

The Prairie Light Review 
Volume 44 
Number 1 Fall 2021 Article 65 
Fall 12-1-2021 
Dementia 
Kaitlyn Riley 
College of DuPage 
Follow this and additional works at: https://dc.cod.edu/plr 
Recommended Citation 
Riley, Kaitlyn (2021) "Dementia," The Prairie Light Review: Vol. 44 : No. 1 , Article 65. 
Available at: https://dc.cod.edu/plr/vol44/iss1/65 
This Selection is brought to you for free and open access by the College Publications at DigitalCommons@COD. It 
has been accepted for inclusion in The Prairie Light Review by an authorized editor of DigitalCommons@COD. For 
more information, please contact orenick@cod.edu. 
Dementia 
Bittersweet memories. 
A fire in my soul, yearning for who I once was.
Days, months, years have gone by. 
All now I can see is a blurred image of what used to be.
What used to be a free mind is now trapped. 
Memories are supposed to last a lifetime.
This is not true.
Words fade, and photos burn.
What was and what is will never cross paths again.
I can’t remember my first love’s name.
My mother’s face is not clear.
My father made me an angry person but now my silence controls 
me instead.
They are all gone from this life and from my mind.
I sit here alone.
Strangers give me pills.
I don’t know what they’re for.
They call my name, but I don’t respond.
           - Kaitlyn Riley
Memories. Mixed Media on Paper. Manuela Scolaro
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Riley: Dementia
Published by DigitalCommons@COD, 2021


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