3rd Prize – 2025
What The Moon Wouldn’t Do – Emma Williams
Trample all over our surface
leave behind flags, buggies, golf balls
a bible for God’s sake
ninety-six bags of human waste
show up unannounced
disturb the peace of the night sky
sulk and strop and stop the tides
ruin the atmosphere
demand praise, worship, veneration
compete with Titan, Callisto, Ganymede
even ask for its own name
humble enough to be just moon
the moon would not authenticate astrology
confound poets
disrupt the lull of lullabies
thwart a jumping cow
never would it confuse a migratory eel
misdirect dung beetles
ridicule moths
leave shoreline limpets hanging
run off with Venus, or Mars
or any other celestial body that took its bloody fancy
change its rhythm or rhyme
disappoint
turn its back on us