{"id":46884,"date":"2026-08-21T11:20:39","date_gmt":"2026-08-21T01:20:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.thebuzz.net.au\/mlc\/?post_type=article&p=46884"},"modified":"2026-08-21T11:20:40","modified_gmt":"2026-08-21T01:20:40","slug":"amelie-rettig-shortlisted-for-mosman-youth-awards-in-literature","status":"publish","type":"article","link":"https:\/\/www.thebuzz.net.au\/mlc\/article\/amelie-rettig-shortlisted-for-mosman-youth-awards-in-literature\/","title":{"rendered":"Amelie Rettig Shortlisted for Mosman Youth Awards in Literature"},"content":{"rendered":"

Congratulations to Amelie Rettig<\/strong> of Year 11, whose poem Unburied<\/em> was shortlisted for the Mosman Youth Awards in Literature 2026. Inspired by her work with Joseph Pfeffer,<\/strong> English teacher, in Reading to Write, Amelie crafts a powerful meditation on memory, loss and human connection.<\/p>\n

Unburied<\/em> demonstrates such maturity in its exploration of life and remembrance, weaving together vivid sensory detail with a compelling narrative voice. The poem\u2019s final revelation is so moving, highlighting Amelie\u2019s ability to create atmosphere and meaning with subtlety and precision.<\/p>\n

Being shortlisted for this prestigious award is a wonderful achievement and recognition of Amelie\u2019s talent as a young writer. We are delighted to celebrate her success!\u00a0<\/p>\n

Unburied<\/em><\/p>\n

You stepped between the rows of tombstones, <\/em>
\nThe soil soft and black under your boots.<\/em>
\nThe air was bitter<\/em>
\nas it pressed against your supple skin<\/em>
\nbut the warmth from inside your chest kept you at ease.<\/em><\/p>\n

Your pulse echoed through the hollowed place,<\/em>
\na stubborn drum in a cathedral of silence.<\/em>
\nThe black soil beneath your boots seemed to hum in reply,<\/em>
\nsoft, as if it had been waiting for life to return.<\/em><\/p>\n

The wind picked up, brushing past bare branches<\/em>
\nas their weaker leaves detached,<\/em>
\nfalling to become absorbed by the ground.<\/em><\/p>\n

It was winter after all.<\/em><\/p>\n

Your hands brushed over the cold marble of the nearest tomb,<\/em>
\ntracking each carved letter.<\/em>
\nThe names pressed into your fingertips like soft ridges of memory. <\/em>
\nSensations of life trickled up your spine, <\/em>
\ngazing upon the thick dirt<\/em>
\ncovering the whispers of a soul once breathed.<\/em><\/p>\n

At night, something would wrap itself around your neck,<\/em>
\nsomething that nearly choked you as you fell asleep.<\/em><\/p>\n

Morning returned you to the graveyard,<\/em>
\nto rows of grey tombs needing taken care of,<\/em>
\ntheir surfaces pale and weathered beneath a thinning sky.<\/em><\/p>\n

For miles you traced the same paths.<\/em>
\nFor miles, nothing stirred.<\/em><\/p>\n

Your warmth drifted through the cold like a seep of light during a night sky.<\/em>
\nYour pulse marked time where no clocks mattered,<\/em>
\neach beat ticking away like a signal sent with no receiver.<\/em><\/p>\n

Until there was.<\/em><\/p>\n

It was right then, as you passed the thinning line of trees,<\/em>
\nthat the man behind them told you: don\u2019t forget the far row.<\/em><\/p>\n

\u2013 Amelie Rettig<\/strong><\/em> (Year 11)<\/p>\n

Photo Credit: Unsplash<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Congratulations to Amelie Rettig of Year 11, whose poem Unburied was shortlisted for the Mosman Youth Awards in Literature 2026. Inspired by her work with Joseph Pfeffer, English teacher, in Reading to Write, Amelie crafts a powerful meditation on memory, loss and human connection. Unburied demonstrates such maturity in its exploration of life and remembrance, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":46885,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","article_category":[9],"article_tag":[],"class_list":["post-46884","article","type-article","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","article_category-news-announcements"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thebuzz.net.au\/mlc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/article\/46884","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thebuzz.net.au\/mlc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/article"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thebuzz.net.au\/mlc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/article"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thebuzz.net.au\/mlc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=46884"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thebuzz.net.au\/mlc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/46885"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thebuzz.net.au\/mlc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=46884"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"article_category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thebuzz.net.au\/mlc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/article_category?post=46884"},{"taxonomy":"article_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thebuzz.net.au\/mlc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/article_tag?post=46884"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}