First Place Winner, October 2004 InterBoard Poetry Competition

Poetry

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Poetry

InterBoard Poetry Competition

First Place Winner, October 2004

TWENTY-YEAR MARRIAGE
Ash Bowen
(Melic Review RoundTable)

for Ai

Beside me in bed her arm
crosses the arch of her nose,
and I think, Radishes,
she is the color of radishes.

Once we hovered above our bed
a kiss like a paper cut
brought us back.

Now, I slip from sleep
and tie her to helium balloons.

Her weight is unimaginable.

I lean out the window and watch
the red dots falter, ache,
and disappear.

Judge Anthony Robinson’s comments: “In a poetic climate in which sincerity is so often suspect, this poem, with lean but rich imagery and emotional heft, is a welcome breath of air. Simplicity, impeccably presented, usually trumps ambition.”