In poetry competitions sonnets vie
with villanelles and other forms, for place.
Sestina soldiers raise their weapons high,
obliterate quatrains and soon erase
those rabid rondelets, but then the brawl
may shift itself and whirl the other way.
The horns of war will blow as tankas fall
to up-start limericks that join the fray.
Impatient judges must be calm and wait
for victors to emerge atop the pile.
Uncertainty will quickly dissipate.
The battle will be over in a while.
The end results make happy poets grin
when trampled words revive, arise and win.

Published September 1st, 2022