Oak Park and River Forest High School held its annual Sophomore Poetry Slam on Thursday, Feb. 8 in the auditorium.

The competition showcased the finalists from each sophomore English class. Fourteen poets took turns performing their pieces, at which point the poems were ranked by a panel of judges, who were OPRF English teachers.

Kali Williams, a student in Rex Ovalle’s Honors English Literature class, got the highest score, making her the winner of this year’s Slam.

Williams’ love for writing poetry began with her sixth-grade poetry slam. She has been writing consistently ever since. Now she’s a member of OPRF’s Spoken Word club, where she participates in showcases.

“I feel proud that I finally won grade-wide slam because I’ve never done that before, and I’ve also never gotten this much recognition about my poetic ability before,” said Williams. “With this slam, I’ve finally shown others a piece of me that I don’t get a chance to show day to day, and that’s all I wanted from it.”

Williams’ poem, titled “A Pen Name/A Purpose,” is about her pen name, Prism. She wanted to take a different ap- proach to the emotion of the poem, leaning more towards self-confidence than vulnerability.

“Because I had made Prism into such a strong, unshakable character, getting in her mindset to perform had gotten rid of any last-minute anxiety. My delivery made me feel like I was telling the audience who I was and what to feel, and that control wasn’t something I’d ever had during a performance before.”

Williams hopes to continue her poetry career following the slam.

A Pen name/A Purpose

By Kali Williams [Prism]

I have an alter ego
When I write I go by Prism
She nurtures me like girl go get her
Maestro of my dreams, my thoughts, my talents, and vendettas
My whole life is a reflection of light
How I see it/How I bend it/How I compose and project it
Sometimes I take things said in a way they weren’t intended
Then I get a little iffy/I get stupid/I get shaken
I hole up with a book and hope that no one sees me
Fade out

And I’m a quiet girl none of you expected this
Break out
I care about how you see me
So I gift you a whole new spectrum of sight
I invite you to pursue me wanna revel in what’s in your mind
Wanna dissect your brain and slurp up the insides
Wanna see what your love’s like
If you clamor for my indictments
It is before adoring crowds that I self aggrandize
I found writing to speak on who I love and why I miss ‘em
Call this pen name risen
Nice to meet you
I am Prism