✨500 Reads Haiku Challenge: Winners Announced!✨

When I launched this little haiku challenge in June, I had no idea how deeply your poems would resonate. From grief and nostalgia to love, trees, and millipedes—your words reminded me why poetry matters. Thank you to everyone who participated, shared, read, or simply paused to appreciate 17 syllables of beauty.

After carefully reading and re-reading all 22 entries, here are the official results:

🥇 First Place

Cathy Ben-Ameh – Still.

The phone was always

quiet. But the line remains

soft, and still for you.

A perfect haiku in every sense—restrained, intimate, and devastating. Cathy captures loss in a way that lingers. This piece stood out for its emotional depth, simplicity, and resonance.

🥈 Second Place

Dana Crandell – Goodbyes scar our hearts

Goodbyes scar our hearts

But home calls and we answer

Healing will follow

Dana's haiku is a quiet anthem of hope in transition. It reads like a goodbye letter and a welcome home in the same breath.

🥉 Third Place

Didier Bahuaud – Family

A U.N. of laughs—

translating love and gossip

as real-life sitcoms.

With warmth and wit, Didier transforms a multicultural family gathering into a poetic punchline. It's joyful, vivid, and utterly relatable.

🌿 Honorable Mentions

Natasha Collazo – Knots

the sunlight on my

skin when my body is at

war, feels—grim, frantic.

A visceral portrayal of anxiety and embodiment. Quietly fierce and unforgettable.

Diane Foster – Echo in Glass

Mirror holds a smile,

Silent secrets in the light,

Stillness whispers loud.

A lyrical reflection on internal change and unseen emotion. Elegant and introspective.

Paul Stewart – Not Macbeth

the sound and fury

no idiots, poor players

just you and me—ever

A clever and tender rebuttal to Shakespeare’s nihilism. This one made me smile and think.

Angie the Archivist – Your green hands outstretched

Your green hands outstretched

to the sky, trunk arrow straight

Age old Sentinel.

Nature meets reverence in this homage to a Western Australian tree. A rooted and reverent piece.

💛 A Final Thank You

To everyone who wrote, read, or just showed up—thank you. I created this challenge to celebrate a milestone, but it became something more: a community of poets sharing quiet brilliance.

I’ll be reaching out to the winners directly with their prizes and shoutouts. And yes, there will definitely be more challenges to come. 🌿

Until then, keep writing, keep breathing, and never underestimate the power of a few good lines.