And this year's winners are:
- Dena Polston (Adult)
-
Freedom from My Grief
I am drowning in grief
Times like this
Our life on Earth is brief
I need freedom from my grief
The journey is unending
Upon my knees unbending
My broken heart needs mending
I need freedom from my grief
That voice that held
That smile
Together we’ve walked the miles
I thought we had a while
I want freedom from my grief
There have been many ups and downs
My mind’s gone round and round
Peace in this journey I’ve finally found
I now have freedom from my grief
- Amy Liu (9th-12th Grade)
-
Where My Freedom Lies
The undried tears of my brethren
Roll down my cheek.
The unheard voices of my sisters
Ring in my ear.
How can we be free
When our brothers and sisters
Are blind to equity
And deaf to opportunity?
How can we be free
When those around us
Leave us to the face of injustice
And look away from our suffering?
They define us by our disability
Rather than our capability.
They are masked by this belief
That we are less and they are more.
Nevertheless,
I row against the current,
And conquer the waters
By myself.
The sun rises,
And I push on.
Because I know that
There is both
Solace and strength
In my darkness.
And that,
That is where my freedom lies.
- Airel Reyes Mondragon (6th-8th Grade)
-
The Way Out
The world is looking at me and I am trying to figure out a way to be free
Everyone is fighting, crying, dying and hiding
And I am hiding because I see people dying
I cannot lose hope now
I have to find a way out of this mess somehow
I don’t want to join the fight
Yet know it is on a cold bloody night
It is such a horrible sight
Though I want to stand up for what is right
My heart is beating really fast
Trying to forget the past
But know this is happening in reality
And all this fighting is going to the extremity
People are dying and I don’t want to lose my life
In order to find the light, know I thought this is such a horrible sight
So then I ran for it
I did not want to get hit by death and get struck in the pit
I ran as fast as I can, like I thought I would
I may have seen the sign that said Freedom is the Dream to Your Mind
So now I was just free
As free as a flying bird you see
The end
- Oliver Reyes Mondragon (3rd-5th Grade)
-
Freedom to me is…
Being home
Playing with my chickens, who have a lot of freedom
They get to peck, walk, and run around in my backyard
Safe without animals, they find their own fun
As around they run, hens they are in coops
Feel so so stressed, wishing to be free
When I am at school, I feel the same way
Wishing to be home with the freedom that I know
Chasing my beautiful hens
- Hayley Thibodeaux (K5-2nd Grade)
-
Freedom of my Heart
For me, freedom represents my heart
Because each day I get to everything that God made me to be
Dancing singing and playing
Makes me content
Overjoyed for the freedom to explain the world with my cane
My hands and my heart
Thank you so much to everyone who applied. It was tough competition this year!
About the annual poetry contest:
This is the 3rd year that we've hosted a braille poetry competition. All submissions have to be about a specified them, this year the theme is freedom.
All poems also have to be submitted in either hard copy or digital braille. Our poetry contest committee selects their favorite poem in each of the five Entry Groups and we announce the winners on World Poetry Day. (March 21st)
Each winner receives $100 in prizes, consisting of a $50 National Braille Press Gift Card and a $50 Visa Gift Card.
We also publish winning poems on the contest page and on the Inside NBP Blog throughout the month of April!
Entry Groups:
- K-2nd grade
- 3rd grade-5th grade
- 6th grade-8th grade
- 9th grade-12th grade
- Adults
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