Weekly Contest Winners - December 25, 2017!

Hello, everyone! Happy Holidays to all who celebrate, and to those who don't celebrate, I still wish you and your families/friends peace and happiness. This is the last Monday of 2017!

I want to thank each and every judge for their continued dedication and time in choosing and reading poems. And of course, thanks to the poets who share their work and parts of who they are. Congrats to our front page winners! In "Within the Pages", Catherine shares the journey of living in pages of fairytales and fantasies, weeping and celebrating with the characters yet also asking for understanding from the storyteller. In "They ask me where I'm from", Fredy speaks from his soul on the heartbreaking reality of injustice in his homeland, and the emotions that arise when people ask him where he's from. In "Don't die brother", Kereen writes of the turmoil between fighting for one's country, and being caught in the devastation of war, especially when it concerns a loved one. Very heartfelt pieces. Congrats to our three winners and all the HM's! I hope you enjoy your week and have a wonderful time entering the New Year :)

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WINNERS:

“Within the Pages” by: C Cattaway 10 + 7 = 17 points

“They ask me where I’m from” by: Fredy 10 + 4 = 14 points

“Don’t die brother” by: Kereen 7 + 7 = 14 points

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COMMENTS:

“Within the Pages” by: C Cattaway

“I was really blown away by the poetic beauty of this piece. I thoroughly enjoyed the language, tone and rhythm. A lovely, reflective message too. A great write!” (10)

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“There's not much I can add to the comments that's been left on this piece apart from I like the honesty, the rawness, the relatability and the rhyme of this piece which makes it a perfect piece; the words Catherine uses are just the icing on a very well made cake.” (7)

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“They ask me where I’m from” by: Fredy

“This poem deserves attention also because of the strong truth behind each and every word the poet has penned in here. The pain, the suffering, the malevolence and the human-inflicted disaster that engulfs the birth land of the poet have been captured very well, no matter how sad, here. There is also a certain feel in this poem which kept me captivated throughout. All in all, the poem flows very well having projected its strong message with a sad confidence.” (10)

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“While I do agree that the format could be better and at some point there could be line breaks, I was more emotionally connected to your intensity of writing about your homeland. I feel your emotions raging, that anger for the disregard of life, the systematic violence and exploitation done by the rich..... yet I also feel that strong desire to be united, to be enveloped and embraced in something other than injustice. This is the one thing you hold on to. Very well worth the read and I like I said before, though the format made me lose my place and flow a few times, your convictions and power behind your voice stood out far more.” (4)

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“Don’t die brother” by: Kereen

“A wonderful poem with a lot of emotion that resonates with everyone out there who has family in the war zone fighting for a country. The poet has very well captured the emotion of trepidation, fear and hope felt by the family members. Very well done.” (7)

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“A profound yet brutally honest poem on the effects and futility of war. We think we are fighting good causes but instead we keep funding this never ending cycle of violence, and we lose more than sleep worrying about those called to serve. An earnest plea for a soldier to come back home. A cry for all engaged in wars to be brought back home alive.” (7)

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HM’S:

“Death, I Say To You: Know You Are Beaten (English sonnet)” by: Ben Pickard = 10 points

“Lines of Lies” by: IdTakeABulletForYou = 10 points

"The Elderly" by: Alice = 10 points

“Seasoned scents (English sonnet)” by: Michael 4 + 4 = 8 points

“By Storm” by: Matt Carroll = 7 Points

“Holidays are Here” by: deeplydesturbed = 7 points

“Jolly!” by: Kitty Cat Lady = 4 points

“The First Alien Visit” by: Crafty Ken = 4 points

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COMMENTS:

“Death, I Say To You: Know You Are Beaten (English sonnet)” by: Ben Pickard

"My ghost already walks these lonely halls, its body lost amidst the hurt and pain"

“The first line grabbed my imagination immediately and led me through an awe inspiring read. This sonnet is beautiful, each line flowing perfectly from the last. Strong imagery and magnificent metaphors. Such lines as... "Within your womb you bloom eternal bliss and they have roots that grow and reach and thrive. Absolutely stunning. A poem that I could happily read over and over again and still feel moved.” (10)

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“Lines of Lies” by: IdTakeABulletForYou

“This piece is fantastically rhymed and so very relatable because many of us perceive ourselves badly even if we're not 'bad' at all. It reminds me of a quote: "it's me who is my enemy. Me who beats me up. Me who makes the monsters. Me who strips my confidence" and it's so very true because we let the words and actions of other people let us believe that we are the bad ones when in fact they are. A raw, honest and emotional piece.” (10)

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"The Elderly" by: Alice

“The imagery here evokes a feeling of pride and respect for those who have led generations. I found the metaphor of the trees to be an inspiring outlook on how deeply rooted our ancestors are, though withered and bare they may be, are still standing and still have life and wit to give. An encouraging piece and tribute to our elders.” (10)

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“Seasoned scents (English sonnet)” by: Michael

“I love Christmas and am a great romantic so this poem has great appeal. Michael’s poem coaxes the reader in with the smells of Christmas and memories of this festive time. Reminiscing lovingly about
that special someone at Christmas with a sudden subtle warning in the line "your love of life was that
of mother-pearl" the clue that all is not what it seems. A tapestry of romance and idyllic Christmas memories with a heart melting twist. Most enjoyable.” (4)

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“An excellent written sonnet in my opinion and one which will resonate with a lot of us as we approach Christmas time as we'll never forgot lost loves, lost friends and love ones. There are moments when we'll remember them whether it be because of a certain smell, a certain time of year or a certain song... This piece expresses that well and in such a way that I could never do but in my opinion sonnets don't get enough appreciation because not many of us 'understand' them so to speak.” (4)

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“By Storm” by: Matt Carroll

“A profound, insightful, thought provoking piece with smooth flow and effortless rhyming. I was captivated from the first line and it didn't disappoint. It held a strong positive message
on how best to approach life. Steeped in wisdom and good advice and what better timing than for the upcoming new Year. Most enjoyable read.” (7)

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“Holidays are Here” by: deeplydesturbed

“A smooth-flowing acrostic with a feel-good vibe. I really loved the rhythm and the raw yet sweet language in which this was written. I want to commend this one because this surely is a seamless, beautifully written acrostic.” (7)

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“Jolly!” by: Kitty Cat Lady

“Quite a jolly poem indeed. This poem lift my spirits when I read it. With smooth, gliding strokes of her pen, the poet has created a fun and purely delightful poem to enjoy. Well done.” (4)

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“The First Alien Visit” by: Crafty Ken

“This piece perfectly retold in rhyme the essence of why we are celebrating Christmas. Ken did a very wonderful job. His storytelling is amazing, as he can put into an interesting, attention-grabbing form a story that not many people would want to read if it were written in paragraph form. The smooth and almost playful rhythm makes this a really enjoyable read. Nice write.” (4)

Merry Christmas, Mary Anne. Thank you for hosting!

Congratulations to our front page winners. Beautiful pieces indeed and worthy of commendation. Congrats to our HMs as well.

Merry Christmas, y'all!

Congratulations all! Amazing writes from everyone. MaryAnne thanking for hosting and judges, always thank you for your tireless time and making the hard choices. Merry Christmas all!

Standout choices, folks! Congratulations to the winners & HMs
Thanks judges & thanks for hosting MA

Congratulations to the worthy winners this week as well as the HMs and nominations. My thanks to Mark for nominating 'Jolly' and to the judge for my vote. Thanks to all the judges and to Mary Ann for hosting, especially on Christmas Day :-) x
=^.^=

Another fabulous week of poetry.

Thanks maryanne for posting, judges for making it possible. Well done winners and HMz

Hi All and Merry Christmas to all PnQ :)

Thank you Mary-Ann for hosting this weeks contest.

To the judges as always for their precious time, reading all entries. Congratulations to all the front pagers and all HMs given.

Thank you to Mark for nominating my poem, which received two of the judges comments, who I also thank for their feedback/comments :)

Much love
Michael x :)

Merry Christmas to everyone and a sincere thank you from me to the judges who have given their time at such a busy time of year.
Congratulations to the excellent winning pieces, to all the hms, and thank you to the judge who saw merit in my sonnet.

All the best, everyone.