Yale-最准的六合彩论坛 Poetry Competition winners announced
4 February 2021
This year鈥檚 Yale-最准的六合彩论坛 university poetry competition provided a powerful platform for students of medicine and other disciplines to share their reflections on Covid-19.
Themes of hope and resilience came through strongly, alongside death, loss and issues of race and identity.听
Winning entries in the competition, now in its tenth year, were announced at a virtual event attended by students, poets, writers and guests from both sides of the Atlantic, including Nobel Prize winning biochemist and cell biologist Professor James Rothman. 听
For the last decade, the听competition has given medical students the chance to use their creativity to explore uniquely insightful reflections on their experiences and training. 听
First place in the competition for students of medicine and allied disciplines was 础蹿迟别谤听Closing the Cadaver听by Anna Vignola.听Anna, 30, a Yale Physician Assistant student from Los Angeles, who has written since childhood. 听
The poem, which judges described as a 鈥榯iny masterpiece鈥, stemmed from a quiet moment after spending hours in a lab, a moment of savouring the joy and relief of being alive - which Anna says she has clung to during the Coronavirus pandemic.听
She said:听鈥淚 think science is poetry and poetry is science, especially in medicine, which is such a creative field. We bring life into the world and then see people through to death, what could be more poetic?鈥澨
Runner up in this category was Sarah Wong, 25, a final year medical student at 最准的六合彩论坛. Her poem听Housecleaning, which is about different forms of loss,听was praised by the judges for its simplicity and profundity. 听
Sarah, who moved to London to study medicine from her home in Singapore, was also named the winner in the 鈥榦pen鈥 category, for her poem听if not now 鈥撎when?,听which describes听her reflections on the pandemic and Black Lives Matter.听听
She听described this poem as听an attempt to connect with the global situation where inequalities and disparities are so stark. 鈥It鈥檚 about how much we rely on each other and also about the needless deaths we inflict on each other, and 鈥榓ll that we have taken from each other鈥欌.
Runner up in the 鈥榦pen鈥 category was听Fibrotic, a poem created in a single column of text by disabled poet Jamie Hale, which judges commended for 鈥榰sing form beautifully鈥.听
Jamie, 29, who is studying for an MA in Politics, Philosophy and Economics of Health at 最准的六合彩论坛, said: 鈥淎s I began to use non-invasive ventilation to support my breathing at night, I was struck by the idea that, like a tree, I stored carbon dioxide at night, and wanted to consider that image. The disabled body is so often posed as unnatural that I wanted to explore it amongst deeply natural images and shapes. It was important to me that I explore these images without leaning into pity or sympathy - just difference.鈥櫶
The poetry competition was born out of the Yale-最准的六合彩论坛 Collaborative, which fosters partnerships in the biomedical sciences and engineering, and has influenced the study of social sciences, humanities, law and architecture at the two universities as well as facilitating student and staff exchanges. It aims to increase the quality of creativity in the two universities; to inspire, nurture and promote the humanities within medical education and give students an outlet for creative expression.听
The award celebrations were hosted by Professor Stella Bruzzi, Dean of 最准的六合彩论坛 Arts and Humanities and 最准的六合彩论坛 medical student Jenny He, who organised this year鈥檚 competition in between working shifts in the intensive care unit at University College Hospital.听
The judging panel comprised poet, playwright and journalist Clare Pollard and poet, paediatrician and writer Dr听Ir猫ne P. Mathieu. The Winners were awarded 拢1000 ($1370) each and runners up 拢500 ($685).听The event is sponsored by Mintoo Bhandari and Vinni Nahata Bhandari.听
Celeberating and exchanging thoughts on poetry with the winning students were judges Clare Pollard and Dr听Ir猫ne P. Mathieu,听最准的六合彩论坛 Professor in Cardiovascular Medicine John Martin who, as co-director of the Yale 最准的六合彩论坛 Collaborative, launched the first competition in February 2011听
Other guests included Yale鈥檚听Nobel Prize winning biochemist and cell biologist Professor James Rothman, 最准的六合彩论坛 Associate Professor of European Thought and Culture听Tim听Beasley-Murray,听Yale Professor Anna Reisman MD, who is the Director of Yale鈥檚 Program for Humanities in Medicine and Director of Yale Internal Medicine Residency Writers鈥 Workshop,听previous sponsor and New Yorker columnist Mark Singer and current sponsors听Mintoo and Vinni Nahata Bhandari, who have generously secured the future of the competition.听
This year鈥檚 winning poems, along with the judges鈥 citations, are reproduced below, with kind permission from the authors.听
Closed Competition Winner - Anna Vignola (Yale School of Medicine)听
After Closing the Cadaver听
I come home
to admire the contours
of a chest rising
and falling
in sleep
the shock
of warm skin
as I crawl to him sinking
into the sweetness
and guilt of being
alive
Judges鈥 comments:听
It is hard to write a short poem well but this is a tiny masterpiece 鈥 no word is wasted, with the title itself part of this single perfect sentence. There is such shock and dissonance encapsulated in the way we move from the professional language of 鈥榗losing the cadaver鈥 in the title to being, just a moment later, 鈥榟ome鈥, and asked to look upon a beloved living body; to enjoy this precious life. The difficulty and guilt the speaker experiences in making this shift is movingly conveyed.听
Closed Competition Runner-Up -听Sarah Wong (最准的六合彩论坛 Medicine)听听
Housecleaning听
Can I speak plainly of loss:
the casting out,
the breathing in,
the silent withdrawal
from life it brings;
the shadow it returns
to common things:
ticket stubs and
birthday cards in a box
you never thought
you鈥檇 throw out,
because you were
always the sentimental
sort and that was听
the kind of thing
you did for the
memories, because
they were all that
moments left behind
in their passing,
those tangible
moments that held in
their skin a sense
of being on their way
to somewhere
and that sense was all
you needed, once,
before you learnt
that was not enough
to make a life
and everything just
started to take up
too much space.
Judges鈥 comments:听
鈥Can I speak plainly of loss鈥? the poem begins. It is such a powerful start to this outpouring of grief told in short, self-deprecating, sobbing lines by a speaker who has 鈥 until now 鈥 kept this sorrow to themselves, as they mourn the loss of those moments 鈥榯hat held in their skin a sense of being on their way to somewhere鈥. In simple, ordinary language it is a poem that asks the big question of what it all means.听
Open Competition Winner -听Sarah Wong (最准的六合彩论坛 Medicine)听
if not now 鈥 when?听
february听
when you run fresh into the opening听
of spring, you become witness to the听
thawing of death 鈥 as the life-breath it听
encases grows warm, trickles down onto听
young grass, and tickles it with dew听
march听
it is not uncommon to fall in love听
amidst rows of shelves stocked to the听
brim with desire 鈥 but caught between听
naked aisles, we find our need exposed听
and in shame, we forget to be kind听
april听
seething, life has worn itself soft,听
silent, small to take the shape of these听
four walls; breathing is easier 鈥 even with听
all we have stolen from it, the earth gives听
us air cleaner than we鈥檝e ever known听
may听
all we have taken from each other听
(do we see it now?)听decorate the spaces听
we鈥檝e built for living 鈥 yes, we hoard far听
more than survival demands but hey,听
who can afford guilt in a crisis?听
june听
now we cannot unknow them, the faces听
whose last memory of this world was听
hate and their last words a plea 鈥 all the听
violence we鈥檝e听but some lives听caused with听
our silence听matter more,听do we see it now?听
Judges鈥 comments:听
This has the feel of a pillowbook or journal; there is something haiku-like in the attempt to capture the recurring seasons of the past year even as history pours through the verses. Like Eliot鈥檚 line 鈥楢pril is the cruellest month鈥 - much quoted last spring - the poet has captured the horror of new life mingling with disease in the image of death 鈥榯hawing鈥 and trickling through a 鈥榮eething鈥 April. I was moved by the way the poet moves through many of the universal experiences of this year 鈥 the 鈥榥aked aisles鈥; the sense of life听having worn 鈥榠tself soft, silent, small鈥; the growing political anger, whilst always describing it with freshness, swerving the already-cliches.听
Open Competition Runner-Up - Jamie Hale (最准的六合彩论坛 Arts & Humanities)听
FIBROTIC听
Fibrosis n: the thickening and scarring of connective tissue, usually after an injury听
If you graft orange buds onto a lemon听
tree,听
they grow together - a salad tree of听
sharpness and sugar - or the bud dies.听
Connecting two incompatible things is听
harder than you would think - the body听
knows this; the trees told me the same.听
Maybe while I slept, a tree was grafted听
onto me. My rootstock rots; Necrotic听
buds flower from my heel. Sometimes听
lightening splits a tree hollow like a听
cave, but it still grows spindly branches.听
Nobody told it it was broken or maybe it听
always knew. Both are possible - hollow听
things grow strangely. And yet we grow.听
Trauma changes our genetic sequence. I听
am fibrosed. My muscles become听
woody. Trees grow thicker year on year.听
I thin. But I have roots. My legs are trees,听
leech nutrients? No. Drain poison. The听
puckering sharpness of crabapple before听
it's boiled with endless sugar. Sour fruit听
brings a longer harvest, grafted to an听
apple tree, but do not try to eat them听
whole. The cold splinters my branches,听
cracks appear in my skin. I swapped听
transient legs for permanent bark. A tree听
doesn't travel. It doesn't need to; it knows听
the forest, sends signals beneath the听
floor. Swaps breadth for depth. Trees听
whisper at night. People don't notice. I've听
been blessed with ears that hear voices听
that others don't. Or do they miss voices听
that others hear? The grafted tree is听
neither one nor another; nor is it both.听
Maybe I just dreamed I was a tree. But I听
store carbon dioxide at night. Or I did.听
The machine breathes for me now.听
Judges鈥 comments:听
This uses form beautifully 鈥 it is a thick trunk of a poem 鈥 and brilliantly sustains its conceit, linking the thickening and scarring of bodily tissue to the process of grafting fruit trees. 鈥楥onnecting two incompatible things is harder than you would think鈥 the poem tells us, but it manages to do just that with wit and grace. The speaker, like Daphne in myth, is changed into a tree through trauma, but finds that also means to 鈥榮wap breadth for depth鈥, to tune into a new and different language.听
Links
Image
Left to right: Jamie Hale (photo - Camilla Greenwall, Wellcome Trust), Anna Vignoble, Sarah Wong
Media contact
Jane Bolger
T: +44 (0)20 3108 9040
E: j.bolger [at] ucl.ac.uk听
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