2009 Young Adult Poetry Contest

Congratulations to the winners of Milwaukee Public Library's 2009 Young Adult Poetry Contest

Grand Prize Winner - ages 10-18
"Empty" by Meredith
Second place - ages 15-18 "Stolen By Night" by Skye
Second place - ages 10-14 - "I Ride the Wolf" by Foley
Third place - ages 15-18 "Where I'm From" by Charmane
Third place - ages 10-14 - "The Beloved" by Alexis

Empty by Meredith
It scared me how
empty
his face was
like her absence had
dragged him down
into the earth with her
tucked his heart alongside hers
held his cold
hand in her own
as they slid the
top of the coffin down.
His eyes looked like
he remembered hers
and carried them
in pockets woven
of lint and space and
wasted time.

Stolen By Night by Skye
I'm entirely capable of taking your criticism
And I'll turn it around to make sense in my mind
Your words and your actions cut deep to my soul,
But I'm bound to forget it; just give me time.

Every song I ever sung along to
And every poem that I might have read
Twist and turn playing reels unending
Trying to erase what I know you said.

Maybe I should just try to forget it
Let go, move on, and take a step back
Release all your actions and all of my anger,
Bow down, retreat, and try to relax.

Ignore your existence once and for all
Go back to my shell and resume being cold
Forgive you a little as each day passes
For not being the one that I wanted to hold.

I knew somewhere hidden that it was never you
Knew it by your smile, your touch, your embrace
But still I held on as the credits started to play
Trying to find some sort of feeling to trace.

The words that you uttered when you finally left me
Embedded within me and hurt more than you know
But I'm not a performer and I'm not breaking down
So you're wasting your time if you're expecting a show.

For a fashion we belonged to each other
Just for a time what we had was just right
Until the morning we woke up to realize
The love we thought existed stole away in the night.

I'm entirely capable of taking your criticism
And I'll turn it around to make sense in my mind
Your words and your actions cut deep to my soul
But I'm bound to forget it; just give me time.

I Ride the Wolf by Foley

I ride the wolf
Who has no pack.
Who survived on its own
Called an outcast.
Till it found a wild child
Who was waiting.
I ride the wolf
Who has no pack.
Who gave it up
To join another.
Who wanted nothing
But had everything taken.
Who knew that somewhere,
I was waiting.
I ride a wolf
Who is just like me.
Wild as wild is,
Who follows its own path,
Who is not tame,
But has a soulmate.

Who came for me.

Where I’m From by Charmane

Sometime I want to forget where
I’m from but not where I
originated.
Where I’m from, its cold and loud.
Every night as I lie in bed, I
hear sirens and people screaming
and shouting.
When I go to sleep I have terrible
dreams.
It would feel nice to hear laughter
sometimes, but where I’m from that’s
never possible.
It’s always crying and sorrow,
heart ache and heart break.
There is never birds singing in the
morning
Never the sweet sweet smell of fresh
apple pie.
It’s always the sound of gunshots
in the morning and the fresh smell
of blood and death.

Sometimes I want to forget where
I’m from, but not where I originated.
Sometimes it’s good to see happy
faces and the sound of laughter as
we talk, but where I’m from
its never possible.
There’s always hate and revenge in
the faces I see.
It’s always hurt hurt kill kill
when I hear people speak.
There’s no safer place to be, but in
the mind.
Sometimes I want to forget where
I’m from, because remembering
only brings harsh dreams and
cold thoughts.
Where I’m from, the sun never
shines
The flowers never blossom.
The sky is never blue.
The birds never sing.
It’s always cold where I’m
from.

The Beloved by Alexis

Dancing under street lamps, a darkened shadow, a fleeting
ghost-
She’s not afraid to fly away, wishing you nothing but the
most.
You try to keep her rooted, bound by words of love-
She knows that she’s a crow, yet you tell her she’s a dove.
Her castle in the clouds, eyes reflecting off the moon-
Feel the time slip, grain by grain, must it be so soon?
So hold her hand and keep her close, protect her brittle
bones-
Leap with her across the ocean, on simple stepping stones.
Watch her twirl across the floor, love her tender smile-
Love her for every imperfection, gazing from the tile.
Stitch by stitch, they’ve sewn her up, buttons, bones and
lace-
You know one day she won’t come back, a rag doll....gone
without a trace.
Love her for all that she is, disregard that which she lacks-
Broken glass, though she may be, love the shards, the
breaks, and the cracks.
Her strings are coming loose, her stitches now they slit-
The silk is slowly peeling away, you beg her not to quit.
She tells you that she loves you, down her cheek a single,
crimson tear-
Swept away, piece by piece....you watch her disappear.