Winter 2026 Poetry Contest RESULTS
Congratulations to our Winter 2026 Poetry Contest winners! There were so many wonderful submissions, and we want to say a huge thank you to everyone who wrote a winter-themed poems.
Sonnet Winner: Taylor Baker, To Cold Thus Yield
Free Verse Winner: Marc Kramer, Lady Winter
Haiku Winner: Katie Cruice Smith, Snow in the South
Haiku Runner Up: Becky Melby, Snow Dance
Haiku Runner Up: Kristen Clark, Fresh Eyes
Haiku Runner Up: Jill Dewhurst, Snow
Free Verse Runner Up: Lucy Pavia, Winter Snapshot
Free Verse Runner Up: Katie Cruice Smith, Still a Boy
To Cold Thus Yield
The old excited blooms to cold thus yield.
A frosty chill surpasses any leaf.
A crunching, browning grass with tracks concealed
Has often lingered over dreams and grief.
The stillness must preserve the deadened branch.
It shines like crystals melted over rust.
The blue bewildered sky just seems to blanch
As rolling clouds foretell a rushing gust.
A glimpse of newness cuts the stagnant charm.
A chirping travels down my soul and sings.
The points of ice no longer causing harm
Engulfed by peace exclusive snowing brings.
But tangled deep in complex time and sleep,
A winter’s tale in fate and timing keep.
Taylor Baker is a creative writer who tries to reinvent the ordinary with interesting imagery and descriptions.
Lady Winter
Icy fingers, white and gray,
caress the frozen bark.
Crystal winds coat lifeless limbs—
the sting of winter’s dark.
I shiver in rhythm to a bleak refrain,
notes that herald her eternal reign.
With arms of blight, she embraces me cold
and cocoons my soul in gloom untold.
Marc Kramer is an amateur writer who loves the works of C.S. Lewis and boring theology books. He is in the process of self publishing his first youth fiction adventure novel concerning greed as the central theme.
Snow in the South
What is this white stuff?
Will school be canceled? Or work?
The sun shines – it melts.
Katie Cruice Smith is the author of the children’s books, Why Did You Choose Me? and Before Christmas Began. She is also the ghostwriter of Unchained Redemption and a contributing writer to Mothers in Waiting.
Snow Dance
By Becky Melby, Haiku Runner Up
snowflakes slow-dancing
gentle as a lullaby
caressing my face
Fresh Eyes
By Kristen Clark, Haiku Runner Up
Small noses pressed firm
Against frosty window panes
Mom – it’s beautiful.
Snow
By Jill Dewhurst, Haiku Runner Up
Snowflakes softly fall,
Blanketing the world in white –
Forgiveness portrayed.
Winter Snapshot
By Lucy Pavia, Free Verse Runner Up
Gliding in skis, like a blue heron
Savouring the apricity, as flakes glisten
And cover a barren landscape.
Walking briskly, on snow covered trails
Boots crunching, on frozen ground
To break weariness
Of grey, dark days.
Clicking blades on ice,
Chortling children
And people who laugh loud,
On a community rink.
Cheeks frosted,
Spins and front turns.
The smoke of cedar burning,
Curls from chimneys.
It’s strong scent wafts
Into the frigid air, instilling a calm hope,
On a winter’s day.
Still a Boy
By Katie Cruice Smith, Free Verse Runner Up
Around the bend and down the hill,
My son comes flying—what a thrill!
But sledding isn’t on his mind.
Oh no, his fun’s another kind.
The golf cart makes a better ride.
He hits the ice and starts to slide.
He whips and turns and flips around.
And yet the wheels stay on the ground.
He laughs and grins—he’s having fun.
He’d like to make another run.
He somehow gets back to the top.
He never, ever wants to stop.
His hands are cold against the wheel.
For him, the chill is no big deal.
The bliss he’s found will last a day.
By morning, it will melt away.
And so for now, he finds some joy—
This growing man, yet still a boy.
A memory made that lingers still,
Made from atop a snowy hill.
