by the Junior English Class
Congratulations to the winners of the Alia College Poetry Competition! The winning poems are published below, and you can download a PDF of the whole Junior Poetry Anthology as well!
You can download a PDF of the complete Alia College Junior Poetry Anthology by clicking this link.
First Place — Em (Year 11)
God with a capital “g”
Sometimes I wonder why God is spelled with a capital g,
Why I should worship a god that doesn’t seem to be looking out for me
A holy trinity that has yet to include the mother,
And a church that treats me as an other
Where all I am worth,
Is reduced to who can touch me where under my skirt
With curves that were already all grown before I was,
I learned people will think it’s your fault
In a women’s world it is not so hard to understand,
I am not afraid of God with a capital g, but afraid of man
Second Place — Rachel (Year 11)
When I step into that glade; suddenly I am lost
My body no longer mine, my soul no longer tethered
Bare feet clothed in a carpet of moss
The ancient tree bows creak, their instruments long weathered
Fairies dance on the horizon, born from the flame
The inferno draws me in, I am caressed by its many tongues
The ashes whirl and pirouette, dancing with no shame
The embers whisper words to me, dreams and stories yet unsung
The sky opens and swallows me, her throat is filled with stars
They are sharp and piercing and as she bleeds they overflow
The cosmos has no face, and it unfastens its facade
In that glade, I understood, why hearts beat, why trees grow
Third Place — Dusty (Year 10)
a pp oem thha t I proba bly wrote fo r a reason
If art is made from the pain we feel,
how much of my skin do I need to peel?
For my body to finally rest and lie
in a sacred place of emotionless cries.
How much longer do I need to fake
my smiles, my tears just for your sake.
I offer my apologies for my oppressive existence
I just wish for ignorance of the pain I elicit.
Is this how humans make art?
a pencil bleeding words from a bandaged heart.
I guess I could write of the joy I indulge in
but histories not fixed by applying a grin.
The poetry competition was judged by the Junior English class of Year 7 and 8 students.
We began our work on poetry reading poems from Pablo Neruda’s Odes to Common Things. The Juniors then wrote a number of odes and other poems of their own, which we collected in a poetry anthology, along with the poems submitted to the competition. Each student also made a poster to promote the competition, and illustrations for the anthology itself.
If you like, you can download a PDF of the complete Alia College Junior Poetry Anthology by clicking this link.
