New Orleans Public Library
African American Resource Center

Tom Dent Literary Festival
November 6-8, 2003

2003 Langston Hughes Poetry Contest Winners


HONORABLE MENTION

Peculiar Pyramids
by Lisa Jarreau of New Orleans, LA

Amidst a valley of urban desert
I stand
an incomplete African pyramid
Balanced by three corners
Weathered and broken by social elements

Yet I remain grand
Yet I remain breathtaking

The sand and dust from my conflicts
And battles
Rises high
Holds hands and dances with the clouds above
Celebrating my victories

Buried within my walls
are treasures
Treasures that have been misused, exploited, and
trampled

Still there remains undiscovered
Treasure so priceless
It will never be found
Because it was never lost

It is the fine sand and dust of life's struggles that
Have settled on every corner and angle
It is my existence
My survival
A priceless treasure


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