Almost, and Still Enough

I got an email today that made me pause.

My poems Smaller, Even Then, and Choosing Me were selected as finalists for the 2026 River Styx Contest. It is one of those journals I’ve admired quietly for years.

The guest judge, Lisa Olstein, chose another piece as the winner, but still, my work was there. In that finalist pool. Read. Considered.

Sometimes, it’s not about the win. It’s about knowing your words made it to the room. That they were seen, that they resonated enough to be held in someone’s hands before the final choice was made.

A new start —
one where I can be me.
Not someone else’s version.
Not what I was told.
Only me.

I’m proud of these poems (above is an excerpt from Choosing Me.) They trace the arc from breaking to becoming, from silence to selfhood. I’m grateful for the reminder that recognition can come quietly too. Not as a shout, but as a whisper that says: keep going.