February’s Poem of the Month challenge was “February Reds / February Blues.” Staff, students, and alumni were invited to write about Valentine’s Day, love, loss, or anything else that fit the theme in some way.

The CHS Writers’ Circle selected Sunny Jausel’s poem “I Pushed You Away” as the first-place winner. Sunny wrote, “I am a writer and a journalist. I wrote the piece “I Pushed You Away” to let others know how it feels to have let someone else down, to let someone know that once they are gone — they are gone. I wrote this about a real life experience. This poem means so much to me and I’m so glad I spent the time to write it.”

I pushed you away.
I felt like no one would ever love me but yet you did.
I pushed you away because I felt like our stars wouldn’t align; parallel to the sun.
I pushed you away because I didn’t think you would ever love me as much as the last one did. You have always loved me more.

 
I changed my name to Sunny because I thought of a new me, new beginnings;
But how could It be a new beginning if I pushed my moon to the bottom of the world?
I changed the way I dressed because I thought that if I was prettier; then at least someone would love me.

 
But I didn’t see you trying to reach for my affection: because you loved me for me.
And I should have loved you for you, but I didn’t.

 
This whole time I should have told you I loved you back;
That our stars do align to the sun; that your love was worth my time; that I love you for you.

 
This whole time you have been waiting for me; but I let my clock run past yours
This whole time I’ve been looking for the one: Yet the one for me I casted away.