Sheila Wright CWG is pleased to present another winning entry in the Anna C. Price Poetry Prize for young authors! Ellen Waters’ winning submission in the Written Poetry Category (Ages 14 to 15), Cups of Tea, is featured below.
Ellen Waters
Ellen is 16 years old and lives in the UK. She loves reading and writing and has for as long as she can remember. She also enjoys reviewing, especially the work of her peers as it really inspires her. Ellen is very interested in drama and music, both in and out of school, and finds that these greatly influence her writing. As well as playing the violin she enjoys singing and loves musical theatre, enjoying the creative expression and sense of community that these allow. In her spare time she ice skates and reads endless Agatha Christie novels.
Cups of Tea
A hundred cups of tea and yet
Your face sinks ever deeper. I stumble
Through the mazes of split teabags,
Sour milk. You haunt the lukewarm echoes of the
Ripples, singing softly in
The crystal thoughts that only
I could hear.
By my thousandth mug, alone
With you, the memory glitters on;
Through shadows creeping closer and your
Cup that gathers dust. They say my teatime’s over and it can’t
Stay as it was – but my
Life is in that moment and my heart can’t
Let you go.
A million mugs. The cup is crumbling:
Water’s cold as ice. Can’t hold you in, can’t
Push you out, it’s time to pay the price. I reach for you, beneath the
Teabags, grey and void of taste. Drop my cup, with
Faltering steps, I turn and
Walk away.
My tea is shattered, stains the floor, a longing
Left behind. My eyes left blind, my
Thoughts unwind but I
Drink alone no more.
Bravo, Ellen! We will look forward to watching your development as an artist!
