Editor's Choice — Honorable Mention

Farmer — Maryam Muhammad

Farmer!
Sometime ago
When you learned alone
To plant your crop,
You dropped a seed from your pile
Through a hole in your sack
Unaware of her
You stepped upon her
Pushing her into shallow earth
She's your forgotten seed

For your winter has gone to long
Farmer!
Extraordinarily
She began to grow
Defied your deprivation
Though she does not thrive
Her limbs
Brittle
No leaves have grown
She bares no fruit

For your winter has gone too long
Farmer!
When I told you of her before
You demanded that I ripped her corpse
From its shallow grave
Burn her with the waste
With non-compliance
I placed her famished roots
Deep within black earth
My gaze became her sun
My tears
Drenched her soil
My words
Exhaled life upon her
Farmer!
She grows
Yet not thrives
For your winter has gone too long