She was from having to learn to read and write

The editors of America are pleased to present the winner of the 2012 Foley Poetry Award, given in honor of William T. Foley, M.D.

When you are on the ladder with a paint brush

You know me, and You love me: dark and light.

Or here’s a story. A man just back from elsewhere tells it to me.

When you think of the place,

What was so stark