Grace’s Poetry Competition Winners Announced

Wildflower, I Am – Amber Pennell (7E), Winner

I welcome the ships and battlefields of my existence,

Allowing them to pass through me.

I dwell on memories contained,

By deeply rooted, unconscious thoughts,

My spirit urges for the sea,

I belong to the waves; free and ever moving

Sometimes gloomy under wintry clouds, though

Always tranquil and serene at heart,

I am an untamed, undomesticated voyage

Sailing across melancholy curtains of rain and

Golden-sun reflections.

I disappear in adventure beneath darkly and desolate nights,

Always returning as an ever-growing, ravishing flower.

Who Are You? – Mubasher Hussain, (9B)

Who are you? A confident person who stands up for themself even though you’re weak.

Who are you? The hardworking person who goes to school or work to improve yourself and your future.

Who are you? The one that spends time with family and friends and calls to check up on them.

Who are you? The one person that plays football with their friend.

And finally, who are you? The one that never gives up.

Women’s Rights – Taya Ellis (7C), Winner

I am a woman and I wish I could say this doesn’t cause me fear.

That I’m not weary of this body.

Of what it’s been though.

Of what they might do.

I am a woman and I love being one.

But why should this mean I have to receive less?

Why can you freely voice your opinions while mine I have to suppress?

I am a woman and I have my own unique, style and preferences.

I want to go out wearing what I love, without fearing the consequences.

I am a woman, why do you shame me for that?

Being a woman doesn’t make me less of a person, nor does it make me “prey”.

I have the right to feel safe when I walk around by myself.

I am a woman. Yes, I am.

But before that I’m human, just like you.

And all women deserve to be treated with

the same amount of respect that men do too.

Because, regardless of any gender or race,

Each and every one of us has the right to feel safe.

The Folly of Modern Education – Kye Sears (8G)

Thank you for coming,

Today’s topic is the folly of modern education.

A lot has changed in the past century

But one thing that hasn’t changed is school education.

A century ago school was used to churn our factory workers

And to teach kids to stay on the ground

Instead of reaching for the stars.

Modern jobs have changed drastically

But modern schools are still using that grounding mindset

That lobotomized the previous generation.

People made fantasies about robots taking over,

But if the education system continues like this,

Then that fantasy will become a reality.

Don’t Touch My Hair – Lani Bagwisanyi (8D), Winner

Her dark melanin glistened in the Botswana sun,

It was as if gold snow had blessed her skin,

She had luscious brown lips and

They faded into rosy pink.

You could be hypnotised by her dark eyes.

Lifeless yet so alive.

This girl had such a beautiful mane,

Her coils were illuminated in the rain

Her 4c cascaded down past her lip

Now a fro is seen as cool and hip.

Unprofessional, nappy, gross and tangled

The truth of our beauty mangled,

Ghetto until on someone with pale skin,

When will black women get the win?

Flooded with hot combs, perms and relaxers

When will society accept we are different?

See she always wore a crisp white gown

So as to look like a black angel,

The sleeves hugged her wrists

And danced around her knees

Her name?

She did not have a name.

For she was only a doll,

A slab of wood, a toy maker

Carved into perfection…

The Villain – Kai Guthrie (9C)

I always wondered why

I like the villain more

And I think it might be

Because when they get

On the floor

Down on their knees

For her and only her

Something in me stirs.

A hero would sacrifice her to save the world

Showing that they are indeed pure hearted and honest

But a villain would tear the world apart if she was hurt,

That is a promise.

They seem selfish, manipulative and rude

To everyone around

But he treats her like a queen,

His and only his

Sitting beside him on a throne with her crown.

I think villains are misjudged

And that most of the time

We don’t get to see their story,

For if we knew it

The hero might not seem so full of glory.

Monsters are made not born

And any soul, tortured and captured

Incidentally would not have any time

To mourn

So next time I defend

The villain of the tale

Remember that they too were once broken and frail.