Diving into “Shallow Waters”

By CHARLOTTE LEIGH

Jericho High School English teacher Ms. Hederian published her first poetry book “Treading Shallow Waters: A Journey through Life and Loss  which consists of 46 sentimental poems each telling a different story related to her life.

Ms. Hederian has been teaching English for 20 years and lives happily with her husband and three cats. She got the idea of self-publishing from a family member. When asked why she writes poetry she said, “That’s what comes to me. It’s easier to express myself that way. One day I just looked over my computer and I realized that I had a lot of poems collected that I accumulated, and then it occurred to me that maybe I should do something with them.” She has been writing poetry since she was a teenager.

Freshman Aaron M. enjoys Ms. Hederian’s poetry book during some quiet reading time in his media class. “I felt all the poems were very well-written and sentimental,” he said.

Ms. Hederian uses life experience to tell stories in her poems. The poems are short but the messages within them are clear.  There are many emotional pieces such as “Alzheimer’s” which recounts the story of her father’s battle with the horrible disease. Throughout the poem we see how her father’s illness affected the lives of both Hederian and her father. 

There are some happier poems as well including “An Ode to Mothers” which describes Hederian’s gratitude towards her mother. Jericho students can identify with such topics. Freshman Alexia K.B. said, “The poems are very deep and descriptive. I really like that some of the poems I can relate to my own life.”  “Treading Shallow Waters” also contains very thoughtful works such as “Antisocial Media” which deals with how social media and technology have changed our society. Freshman Aaron M. said, “I enjoyed that every poem has a different meaning.” 

If you enjoy reading poetry, grab a copy of Ms. Hederian’s poetry book. “Treading Shallow Waters” is a highly emotional work that will help you see life from a new perspective.

 

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Ms. Hederian’s book is available on Amazon.