Poetry Slam

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April 27, 2015, 6 PM ET

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On March 22nd, Lev Leytzan: The Heart of Therapeutic Clowning, Inc. launched it’s first annual Poetry Slam, sponsored by The Jewish Press and the Jewish Week’s Fresh Ink for Teens. The entries were gathered from high school and college students from around the tri-state. Seventeen finalists were invited to slam for judges Jodie Maoz, Jewish Press and Shira Vickar-Fox, Fresh Ink for Teens. The finalists passionately and poetically “slammed” their pieces, sharing a depth and breadth of poetry addressing the topic of Bikur Cholim (visiting the sick). The poetry slam required entrants to compose original poetry with powerful imagery and energetic rhythm bringing their poems to life – making it palpable to the audience. 1st Place Winner: Sara Raizel Jedwab (SKA -11th grade) 2nd Place Winner: Adiel Bandari (TAG - 9th grade) 3rd Place Winners (Tied): Chayala Nachum (BYA - 11th grade) and Calev Sanders (DRS - 11th grade)

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1^st Place Winner Sara Raizel Jedwab is a junior at Stella K. Abraham High School for Girls in Hewlett, L.I.

Dressed To Impress I dress to impress upon this little girl the magnitude of her bravera. I draw a too-wide smile on my face to mimic the one she puts on display when her family comes to visit. I paint my face white to copy her pale complexion as she camouflages herself in the jungle of bleached hospital sheets to protect herself from another coughing attack. I wear the big awkward shoes to imitate the bigger pair she fills herself as she steps up to the plate every time she is served a knuckle sandwich which is the reason I wear the big red nose to emulate the bloody one she gets every time she’s knocked out but wakes up from the anesthesia and chooses to take another breath. The Life of a Man * The first stanza is a quote from Ernest Hemingway “Every man's life ends the same way. It is only the details of how he lived and how he died that distinguishes one man from another.” It is only the details of how he lived and not the end result that distinguishes one man from another in this preoccupied with product society it is not the end result of how he died in this preoccupied with product society since every man's life ends the same way.

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2^nd Place Winner Adiel Bandari is a 9^th grade student at TAG in Far Rockaway

The Old Man The old man stood up His knees are shaking, his hands are trembling He collapses onto the floor His feet unable to bear his weight. The old man stood up Once a tall proud man He collapses onto the floor The weight of his life too much to bear. Once a tall proud man His knees are shaking, his hands are trembling A shadow of the man he used to be The old man never again stood up. They Called Her 'Special' I know a girl, she looks like you and me She had fair hair and piercing blue eyes Yet, from the first day I met her, I knew she was different. I was in kindergarten She came in with an unusual face for a kindergartener It was a platonic face, an emotionless face She sat in a chair all day, without any extreme movement And when she was asked to draw a picture She drew a square, a perfect square. In third grade While all the other girls were skipping rope She sat with a single doll And combed her hair, over and over Then dressed her with a dress, over and over On, off, brush. On, off, brush. Over and over. In sixth grade The year of slumber parties, giggling, and new revelations She studied She had amassed a huge amount of knowledge and was often found in a corner with a textbook or encyclopedia Yet sometimes I caught her staring at us with a confused look on her face As if she didn't understand why we were laughing or what there was to cry about. However, it wasn't until eighth grade when I heard it Her music She played piano And not just any sheet music Bach, Beethoven, and Mozart It was breathtaking And that's when I understood. This girl wasn't rude, she just didn't know to say hello She never drew a picture because she didn't have the imagination to draw something And the piano was where she channeled this confusion and loneliness Her song was the call of an autistic girl.