Lois Olson, United Arab Emirates's National Honour, August 2026
Lois Olson wrote the highest-scoring poem from United Arab Emirates in the Writory International Poetry Contest, August 2026: To Wait, scored 70 out of 100 by the blind judging panel across five published criteria. The poem was read in English.
To Wait
Sand silken, whispering in the wind over the tops of the dunes Ants anxious, tracing tiny tracks on the ripples Sun simmering, hammering heat home in the cloudless noon Palms pray, branches breathing, swaying slightly behind earthen walls Silence sighs, lingering with longing for the treasured tune I am aching, and I am the antidote
Every country's leading poet each month is named on the August 2026 National Honours. The contest is open to poets in United Arab Emirates and everywhere else: enter the current round, and every poem receives a score out of 100 and a certificate.