Alia Wentz — Highly commended, Year 13 In between

In between

summer air softens as days shrink away from the cold poplars are giant feathers teetering on the edge of canary yellow bare patches battle against damp freckles on pavement sun traces our outline at relative speed catching and releasing time coming leaving zillions of poked holes in the night sky reveal something brighter beyond no room for anything in between

i know you wanted a poem that means something to remind you that we mean something the world means something this universe too

but sometimes it’s just

paper hands scraping away hurt each breath pulsing with a rhythm of its own spaces in conversation floating through the abyss of our shrinking existence teetering yellow freckled existence strung together existence catching and releasing coming leaving

we exist in between

— Alia Wentz, Woodford House