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Poetry Contest

Winners Year 4

 

 The winner for January
Category: "Rain"

"SOFT RAIN"

Delicate drops of water
Floating to the earth
Wet kisses caressing
Everything that thirsts.

Soft gray cloud
Snuggling to the ground
Embracing everything in sight
Spreading tenderness all around.

Tiny ray of sunshine
Sneaking through the mist
Leaving rainbows and diamonds
Thrown from its shining fists.

Earth is whispering gladness
For the fog, the rain, and sun
It means that Mother Nature
Can keep life's cycle run.

-- Submitted by Burmah M. Teague
from Chickamauga, GA
EMAIL: burmahteague@msn.com

 

 

The winner for February
Category: "Mother Nature"

The sky gets dark, the clouds roll in,
Lightning strikes, and the fun begins...
The winds start blowing, and the rain then falls,
Mother Nature's having a ball...

The rain subsides, the grass has had a drink,
Just a few minutes for Mother Nature to think...
The sky turns clear, and the sun then shines,
Mother Nature has changed her mind.....

-- Submitted by Derek W. Robinson
from Houston, TX
EMAIL: waregledr@webtv.net

 

 

The winner for March
Category: "Snoring"

Somehow I think life would've been boring
without my love's intrusive snoring
Loudly he barrels right into my dreams
from gentle sighs, to boisterous streams

But I don't mind his melodious songs
They serve to remind me when something's gone wrong
Did I forget to hug him and kiss him goodnight
Did I forget to cuddle him as he reached for the light

Did I listen intently to what he said that day
Communicating his importance in every way
Did I stroke his brow, as he counted sheep
Did I whisper I love you as he fell asleep

Did he feel he was needed as he let the day go
How much did I show him, how much did he know
My questions are silenced when the day is done
when he pulls me near and we snore as one ...

Good night!

-- Submitted by Altheria D. Wheeler
from Torrance, CA
EMAIL: oneinspired@hotmail.com

 

 

The winner for April
Category: "The Past"

NOSTALGIA

Remember being young?
Remember being free?
Remember childhood dreams
of all the things you'd someday be?

A mother? A teacher?
A rock n' roll star?
A poet? An actress?
It all seems so far...away.

Remember trips to Grandma's house,
And the silly songs you'd sing?
Remember pom-pom hats and snow angels?
(And mittens on a string!)

Every sunrise held such promise
And at the closing of each day,
A simple prayer to Heaven
Could wash all your cares away.

Summer lasted forever.
A year seemed so long.
Mom and Dad were superheroes
And could never do you wrong.

The world was once your playground,
And all you had was time.
Remember wishing you were older?
Remember the day you changed your mind?

-- Submitted by Jennifer Demers
from Derry, NH
EMAIL: vixen_x_78@yahoo.com

 

 

The winner for May
Category: "Airplanes and Flying"

MY HUSBAND'S YELLOW PLANE

My husband built an airplane.
It's such a pretty thing.
He painted it all yellow
With a brown stripe down the wing.

He puts on his pilot goggles
And sits in the pilot's seat
He revs up the engine
That doesn't miss a beat.

It roars and quivers and races
And then soars into the sky.
I sometimes sit and wonder
About this amazing guy,

Who takes bits and pieces
To build a flying machine
That's as beautiful as any
That I have ever seen.

He flies it in the morning.
He even flies at noon.
But never ever does he fly it
With the evening moon.

I would like to fly with him.
But I know that I must not
Because with extra weight
The engine gets too hot.

It's just a tiny plane
With a twenty foot wingspan.
And only meant to hold
One solitary man.

So I will sit and watch
As through the sky he soars
Over the hills and lakes
And also the marshy moors.

And hope that from the vantage point
Where I am always standing
I will see him return and
Make his safe taildragger landing.

-- Submitted by Elouise Hollenbaugh
from Plymouth, IN
EMAIL: teacher@dnsonline.net

 

 

The winner for June
Category: "Graduation"

Can you believe it, here I am
Moving on my way
It seems like elementary school
Just started the other day.

My first ride on the school bus
Both Mom and Dad waved goodbye
I still can't figure out
Why Mom stood there and cried.

But soon I settled in
And the learning all began
I never thought I could be so smart
Of course the teachers had a hand.

Six years have gone by
Friendships have been made
Some will last a lifetime
What I've learned will never fade.

Where has the time gone
Boy, have I grown
My teachers have taught me well
Their love plus knowledge stands alone

So now a new journey begins
It's all waiting just for me
I have so many dreams
Life holds the many keys.

I'll continue to learn as well as grow
I'll be the best I can be
But remember forever, Mom and Dad
Please always be here for me.

You can teach me and guide me
Even walk beside me, continuing to lead the way
But Values, Respect and Love
Are the things I will need everyday.

No one knows what I'll become
So give me space to grow
Let me be all I can
For these years will quickly go

Just cherish every memory
Remember the good with the bad
I'm a mirror of my environment
I'm you, Mom and Dad.

Don't ever give up hope
Please always believe in me
And one day like today
I'll have become all I wanted to be.

-- Submitted by Tammy Graham Motola
from Midlothian, Virginia
EMAIL: TGMotola@aol.com

 

 

The winner for July
Category: "W A R !"

JOHNNY SHILOH

As he heard the cannons boom
And roaring in the night,
He knew that in the morning,
He'd be goin' to the fight

And as he laid there in the darkness,
With his comrades all around,
He wondered who would be left
As the evening sun went down.

And he said a silent prayer,
To his lord of which he knew,
To watch over him and keep him,
When the deadly bullets flew.

"And Dear Mother, if I should die,
Just know that this is true,
I followed my country's flag,
For the love of all of you."

The night did pass so fast,
And he heard the bugels call
For the men to assemble quickly,
For battle, one and all.

They formed a line of battle,
And moved out into the fight,
As the bullets flew around him,
In the early morning light.

But suddenly he fell,
And on the ground he lay,
With blood upon his chest,
And his face was turning grey.

And as the aid men found him,
They tried to do their best.
But Johnny Shiloh cried to all,
"It's now my time to rest."

With his last breath upon his lips,
As his life was closing fast,
He whispered, "Thank you, Lord,
"And Mother, I'm home at last."

-- Submitted by Lawrence L. Ginglen
from Havana, IL
EMAIL: lpging@fgi.net

 

 

The winner for August
Category: "Hot Weather"

AUGUST DRY

Too long the summer sun beat down
burning grasses into brown,
igniting dreams of shallow pools,
blues and greens of mossy cools.

Leafy shaded places, few.
Noontime's arrival drunk on dew,
lingering long overhead
till thirsty flowers wilt in bed.

Tired gardens rearrange,
harking the call of season's change.
Growing in longer hours
are pumpkin vines and burnt sunflowers.

Blindly then the June bug falls.
September in the distance calls.
August dry and almost faint
the trees bring out their autumn paint.

-- Submitted by Mary Ellen Smith
from Whittier, Calif.
EMAIL: kipsmith@agapeis.net

 

 

The winner for September
Category: "The Stock Market"

When I hear the words "Stock Market" my mind begins to race.
I am not thinking about stocks anymore. I am thinking about a place.
A place that no longer stands so firm and tall.
A place that America never expected to fall.

I think not only of a place, but of innocent lives.
A place that held mothers, fathers, husbands and wives.
I think of children who are alone and scared,
and all of those people who were not prepared.

Not prepared to be alone, and not prepared to go,
All the loved ones still hanging on to that little bit of hope.
The words "Stock Market" will never mean the same to me.
When I hear those words, I will instantly think about a tragedy.

I will remember a day that was so shocking and sad,
a day that made all of America mad.
My heart goes out to all affected on that unforgetable day.
Always hold on to your memories and we should all continue to pray.

God Bless America, Land of the free, Home of the Brave.

-- Submitted by Jenny L. Harshbarger from State College, PA
EMAIL: jharshbarger@atchealthcare.com

 

 

The winner for October
Category: "The Moon"

ON SHEETS OF SILK

Entrancing is her lucent face
A beauty many eyes will trace
So pale, yet glowing as a beam
Of fantasy in slumber's dream

Her pearly skin lies on a bed
In smoothness of the woven thread
She spreads across the downy sheet
To feel the plush of every pleat

So radiantly lying there
On lovers' pillow, pale and bare
She comes to me on nights like this
And lures me with her loveliness

In virgin white she glows in ways
That spin my head in lover's gaze
So much enchantment to consume
This radiance of silver moon

Each silken fold where she reclines
Is edged in sheen of satin lines
Please stay, sweet moon, to light the hair
Of one who will be lying there

-- Submitted by Elizabeth Santos
from Pottstown, PA
e-mail: escheffey@aol.com

 

 

The winner for November
Category: "Sneezes"

THE ONE THAT NEVER COMES

Where do Sneezes come from?
I really do not know
You can have a sneeze anytiime
In sunshine, rain or snow

Sneezes start as a tiny tickle
Somewhere high up in the nose
Then that itchy feeling
Well, it grows and grows and grows

Your eyes may start to water
And they most certainly will close
Then with great force and volume
That sneeze - it will explode

Though some may be little
Others so big they hurt
It may not cause a fuss at all
Or it may get stuff on your shirt

Once the sneeze is gone
Relief is what you get
But then here comes another one
On that you can surely bet

A sneeze is not really that bad
Once it's said and done
But the worst sneeze of all
Is the one that never comes!

Submitted by Leslie Prichard
from Albuquerque, NM
EMAIL: twplaw@sprynet.com

 

 

The winner for December
Category: "Snow"

THE FIRST SNOW

The first snowflakes falling on the ground,
Soft and pure without a sound,
Mystical, magical fairyland found
Like a crystal ball swirling round and round.

Each delicate flake so different from the rest
Blanketing the earth with nature's zest,
Unblemished white scenery really the best
Putting spring, summer, fall to visual test.

Spider-like lovelies caught in outstretched hands,
Evaporate quickly as we walk or stand;
Glorious seasonal garments ever so grand
Carpet the earth of our prosperous land.

Oh, how gracious the gentle flow,
The rapture of the first beautiful snow,
Breathtaking like a precious gem's glow,
God's gift for all of us to know.  

-- Submitted by Floriana Hall from Akron, Ohio
EMAIL: Floriana102@aol.com

 

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