THE FIRST POETRY PRIZE WINNER –
Winter 2022-2023
is Kaecey McCormick
of Cupertino, California – USA
“WHILE I SLEEP”
my dead gather in the sunroom, their laughter spilling like smoke,
smudging the furniture so tomorrow I won’t forget they were there—
they pull me from my sleep like they did when they were living and I was young
and crept to the top of the stairs to stare through the spindles
at their shadows dancing on the walls
while I sleep my dead embrace like old friends, kissing each other’s
cheeks before they chatter through the night, telling each other stories about me—
some beautiful, some so terrible they should have died with my dead,
who dissect my life with the same cold detachment of their skin,
surgeons seeking a tumor, scrutinizing each piece of me
as if I might hold the secret to their return
while I sleep my dead ransack my dreams as they throw back cocktails
or cyanide cider, searching for signs they’re not forgotten,
cheering when they spot one, wailing when they don’t—
the slithering sound spreading like vines turning stones,
holding me in place as they stitch together my dreams
# # #
About the poet:
Kaecey McCormick is a writer living in the San Francisco Bay Area. Her poetry and prose have found homes in different places, including Pine Hills Review, Jabberwock Review, One Sentence Poems, On the Seawall, Third Wednesday and Clockhouse as well as her chapbooks Sleeping with Demons (2023) and Pixelated Tears (2018). She served as poet laureate for the city of Cupertino, teaches poetry at The Writers Studio, and is a current Steinbeck Fellow at SJSU. When not writing, you can find Kaecey hiking up a mountain, painting, or reading a book. Connect at kaeceymccormick.com
