In praise of poetry

For National Poetry Day 2020 we are proud to share some of the winners of the GDST Poetry Prize

For National Poetry Day 2020 we are proud to share some of the winners of the GDST Laurie Magnus Poetry Prize.

Prizes were judged for the second year running by award-winning poet Claudia Daventry, a GDST alumna of Sydenham High School. Prizes were awarded to six age groups for original poetry with the winners receiving £100 in Amazon vouchers for the winner in each category.

“The environmental and political messages in many of the poems were even stronger this year”

Claudia Daventry said: “I was delighted to have been asked to judge the GDST poetry competition for a second year running.

“I found myself wishing there were 10 or 20 categories so that each could be a winner in its own class and age group – there was so much inventive, playful, musical work here, so much imagination, such a cultural richness, and each one was so different.

“I’d also add the environmental and political messages in many of the poems were even stronger this year. I had a wonderful time reading every one of these entries, and a difficult one selecting a winner, and a commended, from each group out of so many poems which showed promise in so many ways.

“Thank you for making time for poetry alongside your busy school schedule, for being so committed to saving the planet, and for inviting me to read your work.”

Years 1 and 2

Winner: Georgia G., Year 1, Norwich High School for Oh No Puppy

Claudia said: “So hard to choose an overall winner, but this year Georgia Greenall’s Oh No Puppy came out on top, with the repetitions and the funny rhymes very evocative of a brand-new puppy wriggling and getting into everything. Well done!”

Oh No Puppy by Georgia G.

Oh no puppy don’t chew that, That’s my hat.

Oh no puppy don’t have a wee, While we’re drinking tea.

Oh no puppy don’t bite me, “Ouch!”

Oh no puppy don’t jump there, Or chew my Bear Bear.

Oh no puppy don’t eat our plants, I’m giving you one more chance.

Oh, sweet puppy you’re the best, When you cuddle into my chest.

Oh, good puppy you are fun, When you chase me and we run.

Oh, kind puppy you are lovely,
When you fetch your ball and cuddly.

Oh, nice puppy you’re so funny,
When you wriggle and I tickle your tummy.

Oh, cute puppy I love you, Oh yes, oh yes, oh yes I do.

Oh, puppy you’re my best friend.

Years 12 and 13

Winner: Shermya Modupe,  Year 12, Croydon High School for ODE TO MY DAUGHTER’S NAME

Claudia said: “There was a palpable sense of commitment and political themes in this group… Shermya Modupe’s poem Ode to my Daughter’s Name, addressed to mothers and (future) daughters, is a tour de force.”

Ode to my Daughter’s Name by Shermya Modupe

When I have a daughter I want her to have a name that’s phenomenal
A name that exudes the silent strength that she’s inevitably gonna have
I want her to have a name that prickles that tastebuds of the person who says it, that leaves goosebumps on the inside of someone’s throat, a name that makes a tongue flow into a song
Something extraordinary
Ellora, Anastasia, Marni, Alandra
Names not only extraordinary for their phonetic salience but also for their meanings
Names my daughter will flourish with

Ellora
Clouds
When you inevitably start using words as the only for your feelings to be free
You’ll pour your blood onto every page
Leave a piece of your heart behind with every pen stroke
Then close your book leaving it one teardrop heavier
Because there are times when things will get so bad
The clouds will trick you into thinking they’re your best friends
When insomnia will keep you up late, dancing with the moonlight instead of resting your overworked body
You will hit rock bottom so many times but it is the only way to remind your knees that they don’t like being cut.
I wish for you to never think that the sky is where you belong
The world may have this romantic way of making the clouds seem like your perfect partner But I promise you
It’s not your time yet

Anastasia
Resurrection
There will come a day when I am no longer there for you
When the only words left to say will be written in a love letter disguised as a eulogy
But instead of wishing away a lifetime that is still yet to come
Here’s the love letter I’d write for my mum
Mum, I adore you
I adore you so much
And I know you adore me too
I know your adoration for me swirls around your body like the twists in my hair
But there will be a day when you won’t be there to do it
When my curls will be waiting patiently for your hands to weave them back into place but MY hands will be the only ones there
I would have already put yours to rest, placed one on top of the other and kissed them goodbye
Wiped my eyes, turned my back and walked on proud
Leaving behind a trail of thank yous, a trail of love, a trail of adoration for the woman who raised me through everything
And I’ll walk on in the world hoping that my curtain off curls will shield me from the pain

Dear Anastasia, if we have even half the bond I have with my mother then I know I’ve done well

Marni
Rejoice
No-one will prepare for the loss of a friend, my love
For the slow spreading cancer that’s left behind when a section of your heart doesn’t break but simply fades away
And you’ll sit back and try to place together the broken pieces of your friendship puzzle
But they won’t fit
They won’t make the rectangular shape where your friendship used to sit
They’ll just be absent-minded pieces, memories for your mind to reminisce
And I know it hurts, sweetheart
The pain will never fully go away
All you can do is, rejoice
Rejoice in every beautiful moment
You shared their laughter, shared their highs and shared their lows
Rejoice in every second spent chasing them into the sunlight
When every sunset didn’t used to feel like your time running out but just another hour of your perfect day
When you used to laugh and joke and share and cry and…
Just hold onto those times
Treasure them
Then gently lay them down and let a smile spread across your face, as those memories drift away with the wind
Knowing that the sky is the only place to keep them safe
That, somewhere, off in a parallel dimension or two you two are still friends, that what happened didn’t happen and you two have conquered the world
Together

Alandra
Defender of mankind
You will defend mankind from your very first clumsy steps
Navigating around the world, creating a map of adventure, of joy and bravery from your very first stumbles
And when they finally dish you up discrimination, put a slice of racism and sexism on the side, a swirl of heartache on the right and provide a glass of helplessness to wash it all down I wish for you to engulf every single thing on that plate, chewing up and spitting out every piece of ignorance that can be found
Because you, Alandra, Defender of mankind, will not be defeated by a four-course meal
You’ll look down at that meal and correct all the wrongs of the world with a few clenches of your jaw
Because you’ll be my daughter
And my daughter can, and will, conquer the world

I want my daughter to fall in love with someone who pronounces every syllable of her name Who consumes every syllable like the very oxygen they can’t live without
As if pronouncing one letter wrong could be the end of their entire existence
Because my daughter’s name IS my daughter

They go hand in hand
Both deserve to be treated with love and respect and admiration for every single part of them So, Marni, Ellora, Anastasia, Alandra
I hope you like your name
I can’t wait to meet you

Xoxo Mum.