Winning Poems September 2010
Featured Reader & Judge:
First Place:
Savannah
by Beth SK Morris
I sit in Madison Square in the
heart of the Old City, the statue of
Sergeant William Jasper, Irish
immigrant, hero of the Revolution,
rises before me; hand pressed against
his side, a mortal wound sustained in vain
to rid Savannah of the Red Coat’s grip.
Held hard within the other hand, his
regimental flag, unfiuled in marble
glory against the Georgia sky.
Across the park, an ante-bellum home
where Sherman lived after siege and
occupation: (the Civil War? the War
Between the States?). From this porch
he read out the Emancipation Proclamation
to a subjugated South and offered every
full—born slave, “forty acres and a mule.”
I follow the tourist trail to the waterfront.
Atop the hill, a row of solid brick; buildings
that once contained the Cotton Exchange,
symbol of Southern wealth and power for
two hundred years. At the water’s edge,
a memorial to the men, women, and
children brought across the seas in chains:
from Africa, South America, the Caribbean-
sold into slavery on the banks of the Savannah,
human fuel for the engine of expansion
that was and is our land. . .
Zenith and nadir in this one place:
the promise of America and its shame.
When will we ever resolve or explain the paradox that is us?
Second Place:
Love Story
by Cyndee Bowdoin
My heart is like a prom corsage
pressed between chapters in an old book
its spine cracked, title faded _
its pages yellowed, falling free
a harrowing tale of love pursued
in lands mysterious and uncharted
the plot twists, tums, doubles back
unforeseen circumstances abound
I sally forth, undaunted
until weariness and disappointment
slow my steps, bow my head
the story, for now, is put aside
penned by a greater hand
it gathers dust on a shelf
the ending not yet written
Honorable Mention:
Symbol of a Military Funeral
by John J. Buchholz
The
Reverence
Of Folded Flags
Mummifies Casualties
For every drop of blood that’s shed
by solders sent to war,
That stained the uniforms they wore
from wounds that would not scar.
Love ones will grieve and feel the pain
from bells relentless tolls. J
Reparations for what they lost
are flags with thirteen folds.
Honorable Mention:
Feast
byShirley Kent
Red salmon hibiscus
Bordeaux bougainvilla
Tangerine honeysuckle
Parfait hangipani
Champagne bubbling fountain
Efilorescent delights
All seen nom my window
Special Contest Winner: Limerick
Limerick
by Cyndee Bowdoin
The Open Road
There was a young lady from Boston
Who got lost while driving to Austin ‘
She said " I prefer planes
Or traveling on trains
They aren’t as easy to get lost on!"