OHS Senior Wins Iowa Poetry Contest

Senior Ian Kilgus (submitted photo)

Senior Ian Kilgus won 1st place in the Iowa Poetry Association’s Annual Poetry Contest! Ian’s poem, “Borrowed Love” won 1st place out of 287 entries from high school students from across the state and will be published in Lyrical Iowa. Congratulations Ian!

Ian’s poem, “Borrowed Love”, and senior photo are below.

Borrowed Love

I borrowed your smile a week ago.

I still have it in my mask. I’m keeping it safe.

It feels nice to have the weight of facial muscles lifted.

I stole your laugh hoping I could take a part as my own.

A sound nice on my worn ears, a soft melody to lull to sleep

I asked for your heart, or at least a bit of it.

Only to fix mine that’s been shattered to a million pieces.

Some pieces too tattered, I had to scrap them.

But here’s your smile back,

still together barely because I used it one too many times.

And here’s your laugh, now sounding like a broken record.

Skipping the best parts and stuck on the pre-chorus.

And lastly, your heart.

Seemingly untouched, but crumpled like old newspaper.

Lightly torn from being smoothed back to how it once was.

I guess I used it too much.

Sorry, but not really…