WCLV'S 2012 VALENTINE'S DAY LOVE POEM CONTEST WINNERS
Our thanks to all of the WCLV listeners who sent in poems (all 135 of them). We had great
fun reading them, and there was a great debate over the winners and those who were
finalists. Our audience is very talented.
The First-Place Winner will receive:
- An overnight stay at Marigold Bed and Breakfast in Chesterland, Ohio, winner of Arrington's Inn Traveler's Most Unique Bed and Breakfast Award.
- An elegant heart-shaped ruby pendant and chain in 14-karat yellow gold, compliments of Rickey C. Tanno Jewelers, serving Cleveland families and businesses since 1929— still located at the corner of East Ninth and Euclid Avenue in downtown Cleveland.
First, Second, and Third Places will win, respectively:
- $100, $75, and $50 gift certificates to Fountain Restaurant on Chagrin and SOM Center in Moreland Hills.
Fourth, Fifth, and Sixth Places will win:
- Sony Classical’s recording of Donizetti’s The Elixir of Love—the first compact disc release of a classic 1966 Metropolitan Opera performance conducted by Thomas Schippers and featuring Roberta Peters and Carlo Bergonzi.
Each of the 10 winners will receive:
- A pair of tickets to the Cleveland Orchestra's February 23rd concert at Severance Hall, featuring Marek Janowski conducting works by Mendelssohn, Schubert, and Weber.
- A gift certificate from Sweet Designs Chocolatier. Chocolates available at Sweet Designs' main location on Detroit Avenue in Lakewood or through their website.
- A copy of Anne Akiko Meyers' new CD, Air—The Bach Album, being released by eOne Records on Valentine's Day.
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1st Place
Christine Wisniewski
Lakewood
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Unrequited
I pull into the parking lot.
Your car is there.
Your jacket on the coat rack.
Still moving.
I slip my hand inside.
Still warm.
My heart breaks.
I go into work.
You don't know.
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2nd Place
Sonja Sepic
Cleveland
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Ecstasy of Divine and Profane Love
Bernini's marble gentlemen watch
as her head, with open mouth and lidded eyes,
falls back, hips undulate and garments move exposing
a discalced foot and white hand.
And the curly-locked Cherub, with a conspiratorial smile,
gently parts her robes
and lifts a fire-tipped arrow
to pierce her heart again and again.
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3rd Place
Joseph Psarto
Westlake
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Erotic Goddess
Olympus is such a cold place
for the gods cannot die
they cannot love
they can only pretend
that's why they watch us
and are jealous
please—my dear—
kiss me burn me
Aphrodite is watching
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4th Place
Rose Richard
Homewood, IL
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Space
It was a kind of carnival,
smaller; we wove through
crowded streets, smelling corndogs,
popcorn. Coins of light glittered
from strings strung through trees.
We sat behind the biggest booth,
your voice on my neck, quieter
than stars, "You know, this night
never has to end," you said,
and the sounds of a thousand cheers,
prizes won, kids screaming from spinning
rides, the band on its last
notes—all disappeared in the narrow
space between our faces.
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5th Place
Bonnie Kamps
Brookpark
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Beloved, at Dawn
Lying there asleep,
your stillness frightens me.
Sleep has stripped you of your mien,
leaving you more naked than you realize,
I watch you endlessly....
the beauty of haphazardly placed limbs.
Jealous of your peace, I long to wake you.
But you are tired and,
I can wait.
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6th Place
Joanne Cornelius
Parma
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Winter dance
You are Ansel's barren aspens in New Mexico
A smooth icicle pouring over swollen gorge
The greatest mystery is this simplicity
Let me touch you before Spring bursts open,
melts you away and I awaken from this dream.
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7th/8th Place (tie)
Pat Sinclair
Willowick
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Short Commute
Pale winter sun slips
Behind pewter clouds—I hurry
Home to you, my light
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7th/8th Place (tie)
Elizabeth Knaak
Cleveland
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Cleveland Lament
By Rocky River's banks I lie
Longing for her, I dream, I sigh.
On the shores of Shaker Lakes
Thinking of me, my girl awakes.
One soul, one heart,
Alas, apart!
Love is for all time, they say.
Will it survive the state's delay?
Darling will you wait for me
'Til they build that bridge in '23?
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9th Place
Sarah Cosentino
(11 years old)
Olmsted Falls
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My Secret Valentine
Roses, chocolates,
and a card at my front door
Who could it be from?
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10th Place
Harold L. Corbett
Maple Heights
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Allergic to Love
I gave to my love a Red Rose.
Its pollen did drift up her nose.
This caused her to sneeze,
And also to wheeze,
Which brought our romance to a close.
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