Third Place Winner of the 2026 English Student Poetry Contest
My father was delivered into the rough hands of his mother and the gentle spirit of his father
His backyard was adorned with dandelions by day and firefly swarms at night
Sundays are full of old hymns, church ladies with funny hats, and peppermints from a purse
While he spent afternoons immersed in the TV, his mother spent drowned in regret
Where he felt the burden of being her child, he swore his child wouldn’t feel the same
My mother was delivered into the shadow of a father and the vanity of an unwilling mother
She had a yard bursting with towering fig trees and alluring daylilies to accompany
Sundays spent in her grandma’s tiny living room as she gently braided her hair
Days she spent under the fig trees’ shade, her mother spent in a grievance of her “stolen” youth
When she felt the burden of being her child, she promised to break the cycle
I was delivered into the tenderness of my mother’s touch and the loving embrace of my father
My backyard was full of towering pine trees and adorned by beautiful stars at night
Mornings spent with my mother as she brushed my hair and hummed the lullaby I adored
Evenings spent wiggling in anticipation of hearing my father come home from work
Where my parents felt the absence of love, I felt an abundance of adoration
Sydnee Elise Newsome is an aspiring writer hailing from Snellville, Georgia. She is pursuing her master’s degree in professional writing. She works as a managing editor for Kennesaw State’s English department’s publication, The Headlight Review. A lover of poetry and fiction, writing is her purpose in life, and she strives to share her creativity with those around her.