POEM FOREST is a free nature writing prize created by Red Room Poetry, in partnership with Wollongong City Council.

POEM FOREST has commissioned poets who have written their own nature poems in response to the prize. Read a poem below…

i want to stay/i want to go/the universe is asking for me to come home

By Fig Russon-Jorgensen

(is this                   what it feels like?)

                 i have to ask

                 because i have not seen

                 the sun set

                 in the entire time

                 that i have been

                 eighteen years old

because when i met you

the earth was cracked and dry

beneath my blistered feet

because it’s coming into summer

and the days drag onward

but i’m sleeping more than ever

        because the sun is yellow

        not white, like you said

        but all of it is nullified anyways

and i know you know

somewhere down sydney road

i’ll find what i was looking for;

        humid concrete bushland

        old dirt roads in the big city

        a flat horizon for the sun to land on

                    but is this it?

                    i have to ask

ABOUT THE POET

Fig is a 17-year-old emerging poet based in Brunswick. They have a deep passion for the arts that blossomed at a young age, growing up in a house full of books in rural Victoria. Their upbringing in the Australian bush greatly influences their work, as well as their experiences as an autistic person navigating a world designed for neurotypical people. Fig’s creative interests also extend to music and visual art, and they are always working on something new.

ABOUT POEM FOREST

For every nature poem received a tree is planted and entries have the chance to win $5,000 in prizes, including $500 cash for each category, book packs, garden tours, plants, journals and more.

Entries are now open, closing Friday 27 September 2024. ENTER HERE.