Student Poetry Contest

How Meta! by Calista Light

I could put my pen to paper,
and no poetry would come out
I could walk around in circles
and no pleasing prose would come to mind
I could sit down at my computer,
but I’d stare at a black screen.

No metaphors, no rhymes,
No couplets, no stanzas.
And certainly no iambic pentameter!
Whatever that means…

It doesn’t come naturally to me
It must be forced,
…and if I had a good metaphor,
I’d say it here.
to make one understand.

I admire the poets
the ones who can paint pictures
with just their words so effortlessly
making me feel what they do.

But I could never be one of them
I can’t come up with ideas as easily as they seem to.
Do they come up with lines that inspire a whole poem?
or does the title come first?
How does someone write about their feelings so easily?
I’d much rather write about my characters.
They are so much more interesting than me.

As I lay awake trying to feel that spark.
That spark of inspiration.
That spark of creativity.
That one good idea.
It doesn’t come.

… ….
…..
Finally, like a bolt of lightning
It comes,
“Why not write about how poetry is hard?”
Genius.

Scars

I’ll always have the scars from when I fell for you
because believe me,
I fell for you.
Like a child running down the sidewalk
with only the wind against their face to slow them down,
putting so much faith in gravity
that they forget to watch each step.
There’s no grace from the concrete below as their body crashes,
just dirt and stones
and everything in between.

I’ll always have the scars from when I fell for you.
They run too deep,
deeper than any love you ever gave to me.
They’re darker than the storm ridden skies you left me with,
too dark to ever be able to conceal.
They still hurt sometimes,
when I lay alone in bed, staring at them for hours on end.
The memory of the pain alone seeps beneath my skin,
making it all feel so fresh and new.

I’ll always have the scars from when I fell for you.
Where are yours?
I should be happy that I never hurt you enough to leave you with any,
but at the same time,
I would find comfort in knowing
that I left even a shred of evidence of myself in your life.
Do they fade as your new love traces her fingers gently over them?
Or did you never have any to begin with?

I’ll always have the scars from when I fell for you.
They say that time heals,
but they never say anything about the scars it leaves you with.

Untitled by Emilee Wright

As you read through the poem, I hope to move you. As I would also hope for you to acknowledge as you read down the stanza all first letters are spelling out major activists.

Imagine
Dream
Auspicious

Never backing down from the fight.
Everyone screaming and crying for the right
Walking hand in hand, we win our rights.
Standing united seeking that rightful place
Open hearts standing brave and bold.
Make them hear you, make them see you.
Enduring struggles, empowering voices

Maroon, blue, green, and pink
Looking at these words they never make you think.
Knowledge of these keeps us well-versed.

Beneath the weight of prejudice’s grip
Enduring the shadows of discrimination’s might
Voices rising, for justice ignite.
Envisioning a world of equity and light
Learning and growing together.

Anyway, to live in peace together
Racial justice, building bridges across racial, social, and economic lines.
Meeting together, speaking together, standing together.
Stop talking, stop yelling, it takes a heck of a lot of oxygen to talk.
They’ll kill me. They’ll kill me.
Reaching last breaths, crying the last few times.
Ongoing eight minutes: begging pleading
Not getting to live, losing all that was had.
Gaining and losing, fading from equal

Bearing the weight of inequality
Rights are proclaimed but struggle separately.
Inciting change, through every fellowship.
Diverse, but so distant from being one.
Grasping dreams that equality brings
Earning so little working so hard
Segregation

JusticeforMartese
On college campuses, doesn’t make it indifferent.
Hoping for a change
Neon, dark, light
Spoke out and speaking up.
Ongoing troubles here and there
Noble dreams aglow, in freedom’s sight

Coming together brings justice.
Awareness, bringing people to new light.
My mission in life is to do my part.
People can become one.
Bettering life
Equality for everyone
Learning
Leading

Teenagers have been killed.
Aggressiveness not being handled.
Young people losing life.
Learning to “stand your ground.”
Often being afraid.
Raise awareness.

He Flies By His Own Wings by Anna Kozaczka

Delicate blossoms dusted with the chilled dew of the night
The roots caressed one another, supporting their surroundings, caught in a strange romance.
Blooming along the old wisteria lane, dappled by rising light
The scene was flawless, a view out of a trance.
Ancient trees, weathered arms reaching to the sky, fighting for height.
A fleeting gust of wind embraced the path, leading the flora in a breathtaking dance.
Hidden behind the branches of the wisteria, he sat, sheltered in fright.

Talons unmoving, balancing in the breeze, holding a stilled stance.
Beady eyes painted with golden light, surveying the surroundings without delight.
With wings, it is within his power to soar away into the heavens expanse
Yet he stays in the meadow alone on his branch through day and night.
He will never experience the freedom to roam, never explore the various plants.
Despite the ability to stretch his wings, see the empires of kings, he refuses the delight.
You question why a bird stays on the same branch.
Why would you choose to stay in the same place when there is much in your sight?
Why have wings if you are unwilling to leap, unwilling to take flight.