Congratulations to Middle 5 pupil Amelia Braidwood, who has been awarded second place in the prestigious Thomas Hardy Society Competition for her amazing poetry below:

 

The Convergence of the Twain

 

I.

In his killer's jaws,

A heap of ruffled fur,

Still, limp and soft, his carcass warm and delicate.

 

II.

Glazed eyes leak tears,

Paws brush the damp earth,

Dirt clings to his grey-brown pelt and stones scratch his dry nose.

 

III.

A punctured neck dangles,

His cracked spine crunches,

A scratch along his flank weeps out clotting blood.

 

IV.

Flesh rips and tears,

Teeth maul and maim,

The little chest does not rise and fall as it did in life.

 

V.

White bones bleached by sun,

A few stray wisps of bunny fur,

All mark his grave in the grassy meadow.

 

VI.

Pulled by a string,

Russet fur slinks,

Dusk comes as the sleepy sunk sinks.

 

VII.

A scent drifts on the breeze,

Mellow and sweet it wanders,

A tail brushes the meadow daisies, almost betraying its owner.

 

VIII.

Sharp eyes glint,

The hunt continues,

Shadows warn him off the sweet grass.

 

IX.

A crow shrieks,

He takes no notice,

Claws dig into the soil anticipating.

 

X.

Ears pricked,

Fate unwinds,

Paws fall in place, ready for the inevitable.

 

XI.

He runs too slow,

Teeth grasp his tender throat,

His neck snaps, his heart stops, the fox always wins.

 

Amelia Braidwood

March 2021