Sophomore Abigail Riley received Honorable Mention at the 38th Annual Walt Whitman Poetry Contest for her submission "Remember that you are Earth, and to Earth you shall return." She was honored on May 29 in a special ceremony at the Walt Whitman house in Camden.
The competition included submissions from high school students from the 4 counties surrounding Camden. Members of the Walt Whitman Society greeted and congratulated the student honorees. Edward Whitley, a professor and author from Lehigh, spoke about Whitman and his comparison with Poe. Each of the 6 winners were introduced, acknowledged for why their poem was selected and then each student read their poem. This year's contest prompt was Walt Whitman’s poem, “Song of the Open Road,” is an enthusiastic ode to wanderlust. Whitman celebrates the carefree pleasures of traveling, inviting others to break free to join him.
Abigail's poem was a beautiful interpretation of this prompt.
"Remember that you are Earth, and to Earth you shall return"
If Willow's tears were wiped by human palms,
Would she hold them in her leafy curtains?
Or would we tap her for sap, without qualms
And adorn our fingers with her tree rings.
Iceberg tips pierce through the ozone layer,
puncture shoulder pads too busy to shrug,
bleed oily tears into murky cider,
for us to drink in Willow's grainy mug.
My protests freeze over in winter stark
so to chlorophyll, Willow turns my tears.
Left for sappy scabs, They pick off my bark,
till my rhytidome armor disappears.
Wielding Willow's staff and Moses's rock,
Go! Down, Their rose-tinted glasses I knock.