EIF Poetry Challenge #3: The Results!

We had a great response to this fortnight’s challenge: The Ode. There were some truly heartfelt and moving responses. I think being prompted to write a poem about something which moves you deeply is the perfect way to get the creative juices flowing. All of my poems (apart from the silly ones) are about something that moves me deeply. Perhaps yours are the same? Anyway, without further ado, I present the decisions of our previous winner and judge Hannah E. Stewart of A Little Bit of Happiness:

First Place: ‘To be a Rose‘ by Mrityunjay Dixit

Alive and burning
Inside scarlet rose petals
A secret furnace

I bloomed triumphantly, beneath dim-amber skies, in the dawn of this world’s first day. The Sun rose, the sunlight falling upon the field, a weight of gold. I’ve travelled around the world, opened my heart, shouted in the Sun to everything that’s alive. They smelled my fragrance and rejoiced. I’ve felt love; red, hot and vivid, the smell of lovers as they laid upon the field. Melancholy; white, the rain washed me away, as I laid upon the grave.

a sky of billion stars, flickers-flickers;
in the night of this world’s last day,
a field of billion roses, flickers-flickers.

–© dixitmrityunjay, 2020. September heart-to-hearts.

Judge’s comments:

It’s a non-traditional structure and I especially like parts one and two, along with the overall structure of the poem. I thought pt two was really interesting and well written, very emotive -it’s a little unique. We often think of roses just as they relate to love, but I really liked the juxtaposition of the grave.

Congratulations, Mrityunjay! I would like to offer you the change to judge the next EIF Poetry Challenge (more details to be announced next Tuesday).

Second Place: ‘Ode to the Moon‘ by Shanyu

The raven spread its wings,
Across Stygian of the night,
The cerulean frothed elixirs black,
The wind was but a wight.

Hands intermingled,
Eyes met in swoon,
And that cloudy new moon night,
I swear I saw the moon.

~

Tonight I lie beneath the vaults,
Silver runs into the ink,
The wind ever so caresses me,
But I cannot sleep a wink.

Hands don’t hold no secrets tonight,
And eyes don’t meet in swoon,
They say it shines right overhead,
But I just can’t see the moon.

© Shanyu, Sui Generis, 2020.

Judge’s Comments:

I think this poem, without a doubt, is the most traditionally poetic with its structure and rhyme, which I really liked. I think this entry stands out as being the most traditional poem; short, sweet and nicely written.

Special Mentions:

‘Ode to the Faraway Tree Series‘ by Somedatta Sengupta. This one really touched my heart. Somedatta is 13 years old, and writing about how her favourite book series, ‘The Faraway Tree’ by Enid Blighton, made her fall in love with reading. It’s a beautiful poem, and I recommend you visit her blog and check it out.

‘J’aime la lune‘ by The Ethereal Unicorn. Another exceptional poem by a younger poet; Rishika is 12 years old! Hannah and I enjoyed the emotional complexity of the poem. As Hannah said : ‘there’s a lot of emotions being worked through with this poem, and it’s interesting to see the moon not only as a ever-present sentinel, but almost like a confidant.’ Head over to Rishika’s blog to read the full poem.

Congratulations

To everyone who took part in this fortnight’s challenge, and to Hannah for being such a wonderful judge. I really enjoy hosting these challenges, and reading the responses. I will announce next fortnight’s EIF Poetry Challenge next Tuesday. In the meantime, you can search the tag ‘EIF Poetry Challenge,’ or search through the poetry archives of this site to read previous challenges and discover some great new poetry.