Cookies
Gingerbread Men
Crunchy, Tasty
Sweet to the taste
Cinnamon, Warm
Crunch, Crunch, Crunch!
by Allison Blattner
Grand Winner, 5-9 Years
(age – 9 years)
A Crane
A Crane is
standing
Alone, and the waters shine
As it waits for fish.
by Laurel
Bonebrake
Honorable Mention, 5-9 Years
(age – 8 years)
Ocean
Smell the fresh
air
See the clear water
Feel the cold sea
Taste the salty water
Hear the large waves
by Rachel Richter
Honorable Mention, 5-9 Years
(age – 9 years)
What Is a Pug?
Pigs, hogs, dogs,
pugs –
What exactly is a pug?
Curly tail,
wrinkled face
You’ll hear her snort from place to place.
There is no thing
her mouth resists:
An old dead mouse, a used Q-tip.
Chewed-up gun,
garbage clutter
Everything that makes me shudder.
Her rolls of fat,
so warm to touch –
She doesn’t like them squeezed that much.
Floating, swirling
in the air
It coats our food, my pug’s hair.
When I’m curled up
to go to sleep,
She wakes me up with a snort and a sneeze.
She’ll grab a toy,
wanting to play.
I know its night, she thinks its day.
Missing toys,
missing shoes,
It’s all because of You-Know-Who.
Soft and warm I
love to hug
My little friend, my playful pug!
by Maddy Lattimore
Grand Winner, 10-12 Years
(age – 11 years)
BOOKS
FROM A-Z THE
PAGES YOU SEE
WERE WRITTEN IN TIME, SOME OF THEM RHYME.
HOW DIFFERENT THEY ALL SEEM,
FROM HISTORY TO A GOOD MYSTERY,
AND BACK AROUND TO A FISH STORY.
SOME SAD, SOME GLAD, SOME NOT FOR YOU,
BUT WHAT EVER BOOK YOU CHOOSE
TURN IT BACK NICELY USED.
by Katie Emily
Honorable Mention, 10-12 Years
(age – 12 years)
I Am Falling
For Him
I am falling for
him
I am smart and confused
I wonder if he knows
I hear him saying my name
I see him right there in front of me
I want to tell him
I am falling for him
I pretend like I
don’t like him
I feel like he is always there
I touch his picture in a frame
I worry he won’t feel the same way
I cry when I am embarrassed
I am falling for him
I understand that
he may not be the one
I saw it is worth a try
I dream about him
I try to impress him
I hope this works
I am falling for him
by Emily McKeever
Honorable Mention, 10-12 Years
(age – 12 years)
Night’s Plot
Night waits in the still darkness
For Sun to scare It off again.
Light bursts through Night’s Cloud of Black,
Like a candle lit by flame.
Night hisses and shrivels back
As Light drives It away;
And when Light’s circle rises above
Night knows it isn’t time to stay.
It cowers back – way back
To the other end of Earth,
Where Sun is nowhere to be seen
And noises not be heard.
Night frowns at the common cycle,
Every morning it’s the same:
Night waits in the still darkness
For Sun to scare It off again.
But not this time . . . no –
Night had a plan;
Sun would not scare It off again.
Night thought of how Sun always came,
Bringing Light in through the windowpanes;
And shuddered, but laughed at Sun so frail
As it thought of Its plan;
It could not fail!
Quickly and quietly, Night called out,
To Its friends of old: Fog, Rain, and Cloud.
First came Fog, thicker than a brick wall;
Through Its cold mists; Sun’s warmth could not fall.
Cloud came second, nearly as dark and stealthy as Night,
And through Its darkness, Sun’s rays would fight;
But would not pass through, for all that tried
Would be destroyed by Rain’s water in the sky.
Yes, Rain was last, but definitely not least;
For Its drops of water would not cease.
Not until Sun was done and gone,
And Night ruled all day long.
Night looked down and smirked in satisfaction,
Now Sun would not come!
No light would dare pierce It,
No – not one.
Night’s smile, though, soon turned to frown;
For as It had been looking down
Sun came and now looked upon It,
And Night was baffled out of Its wits!
“How did you come? How could you come?”
Night asked, thinking Sun was gone and done.
“Oh, Night!” Sun laughed as he looked down to see.
“Fog and Rain cannot stop me!
Now go far, where you belong;
And bother me no more with Dark and Fog!”
Night yelled and screamed, but Sun stood firm;
And Night knew it was now Sun’s turn.
Night left with It’s minions,
Knowing It had lost;
And never again returned to that spot.
by Celestia Baine
Grand Winner, 10-12 Years
(age – 14 years)
My Dad, the
Artist
painting the
rainbow
careful strokes
not too dark
tries to be bright
never ruining the picture
when washing away
keeping an eye on the colors
by Aileen Wolk
Honorable Mention, 13-15 Years
(age – 13 years)
I Believe
I believe in the love of my family
The knowledge of my parents
The guidance of my brother
The innocence of my sister
The faith I will succeed
Love, life, and happiness.
But I don’t believe the world can break me or take away
what I have worked for.
I believe in the comfort of his arms
I believe in the softness of his voice
I believe in the truth behind every
I love you, I miss you, and I’m sorry.
And I believe in the life I am making for myself.
by Capri Gonzalez
Honorable Mention, 13-15 Years
(age – 15 years)
Paradise
Foaming, it comes
back to the sandy shore,
Grasping the sand for so much more.
Glistening in the setting sun’s blazing glare,
It comes back again to take it’s share.
Slowly sweeping
away the sand,
To some far off, distant land,
It will come back to the seashore,
From now and forever more.
by Anna Walton
Honorable Mention, 13-15 Years
(age – 14 years)
A Stolen Wish
He takes a simple
stroll through the park.
Soon to steal a wish, from a young girl’s heart.
Passing by a wishing well, as poor as he can be
he scoops up the only quarter, in the water that he sees.
While sitting on a park bench, he sees a little girl.
She looks at him, her eyes as wet as pearls
Softly she whispers, “May I have a coin?
Mommy’s in the hospital, the angels want her to join.
Over there is a wishing well, I threw a coin in.
I need another one, so I can try again.”
The old man’s heart begins to race.
The flowing of his tears he cannot pace.
The man trembles with fear, as he has to tell,
the young girl, her took her coin from the wishing well.
With his shaking hands he hands it to her.
She looks at him crying, “I forgive you sir.”
The little girl ran to the well,
and made her wish as the quarter fell.
Her mother got better as the days did fly,
and to the hospital she said goodbye.
by Tiffany Davis
Grand Winner, 16-20 Years
(age – 18 years)
A Memorial to
Grandpa
The one thing I
regret the most is that I wasn’t there,
I closed my eyes in anger and pretended I didn’t care.
But I want to listen to you once more, hear the stories that you share,
Looking down upon me, are you proud of who I am?
You called me your “Special Angel” and “Jesus’ Little Lamb”.
If I knew what I know now, I would have called you on the phone,
And on that night, I would stay with you, so you wouldn’t die alone.
But I take comfort in the fact that you are no longer in pain,
You’re up there in Heaven with Jesus as he reigns.
I look forward to the day, that we meet face to face,
To live there for all eternity in that Blessed place.
by Brittany Ella Hilgert
Honorable Mention, 16-20 Years
(age – 17 years)
Inside
You know what you do to me,
You know it very well.
I can see it in your eyes,
It’s there, hidden inside.
You know what you do to me,
You know that I’m in love with you,
And you in love with I.
Things like that are seen quite clear,
But other things are not.
You don’t know what you DO to me,
My feelings deep inside.
You think that you see me, deep within.
I understand you try.
But do you really see?
See the things inside?
I feel so amazing,
When I look into your eyes.
The feeling that I get,
When you look inside.
You look inside my heart,
At my dreams,
My desires.
This helps you understand,
How I feel inside.
I can see inside you.
The pain you may suffer,
And the things you may want in life,
Are right in front of you.
You see me,
As imperfect as I may be.
And yet you love me,
Without a regret.
Because you have seen inside.
Inside my heart is where you are,
Forever there I bet,
You are my shining star,
The one I most desire.
I love you,
As imperfect as you are,
And now you’ve seen inside,
Seen inside my heart.
by Caity Kunderas
Honorable Mention, 16-20 Years
(age – 16 years)
Small Business
Once upon a time
There was a woman of the world.
Her wit was sharp, her clothes were pressed,
Her hair was neatly curled.
Each day she went to work
And climbed that corporate ladder.
She power lunched and number crunched
And made the deals that matter.
Her life was fast and full,
She couldn’t ask for more.
Little did she know
What the fates had in store.
With all the facts double checked
And the data all compiled,
The CEOs up in the sky
Sent the memo to give her a child.
This worldly woman now
You would hardly recognize.
From her jogging pants to her unbrushed hair
Right down to her sleepy eyes.
To simply state that “business was slow”
Just wouldn’t suffice,
Because the only business she deals in now
Doesn’t smell so nice.
So what has happened to our poor woman
With her worldly ways undone?
Wearing a smile, she sits in bliss
Rocking her clientele of one.
by Shannon Morgan
Grand Winner 21 Years & Older
Cliché Display
Jo is my mentor,
my poet protégé.
She said, “I’ll teach you to rhyme your favorite clichés.”
I said, “Rhyming words is not my cup of tea.
I’m to old just ask my M.D.”
She said, “Don’t
let your doctor leave you out in the cold.
For mastering poetry you’re never too old.”
And she was so insistent, my mind did sway.
So here in rhyme are a few of my favorite clichés.
A young man’s
fancy is a rite of spring.
The opera’s not over until the fat lady sings.
A penny saved is a penny earned.
Early bird gets the worm.
If you want to see
the sun rise you must face the east.
Squeaky wheel gets the grease.
Don’t drink the shine if you can’t hold your liquor.
Too much wine will make your headlight flicker.
Hell hath no fury
like a woman spurned.
If you play with fire you’re gonna get burned.
The bigger they come the harder they fall.
Everyone knows you can’t fight city hall.
If you live in
glass houses you should cast no stone.
Biggest dog always gets the bone.
You can lead a horse to water but you can’t make him drink.
To make wise choices you have to use your head to think.
This is good
poetry, there is no doubt.
Well . . . I guess on that point the jury’s still out.
Rhyming these clichés is such great fun.
But you can stick a fork in me because I’m done.
by Bobbie Ridge
Honorable Mention 21 Years & Older
Fifty-two Years
Our first date was on Halloween
I was just seventeen
You were a very handsome man
Your good looks were easily seen
You were very lean and tall
Your eyes were a beautiful blue
It didn’t take me very long
To fall in love with you
My Mother didn’t like you much
Our worlds were far apart
She said you were nothing but trouble
And would surely break my heart
My Dad went and singed for me
And we were married soon
Just four months after our first date
We had our honeymoon
Our life wasn’t always easy
We had good times and bad
I think it made us stronger
With all the trials we had
God gave us three great children
Two boys and one little girl
Growing up with our three kids
Was the greatest thing in all the world
We’ve been together fifty two years
Our troubles and worries are past
I wonder what all those people think
That said, “It will never last.”
by Jacqueline Caine
Honorable Mention 21 Years & Older
