Tombstone Sundial

(I decided to post this comment only after the TC challenge was over.) Out of excessive curiosity, I read the vast majority of the submissions, and this stood out so clearly that I don’t hesitate to call it number one. The metaphor is fresh, striking; the theme gives depth but is handled through imagery, not abstraction; alliteration and internal rhyme add flourishes (indispensable). The last line is—as it should be—arresting: a violent, dramatic image, evoking emotion without sentimentality. Above all, there is openness: an invitation to interpretation, and room for it. Checking all these boxes of what a good poem must have, this was the best one.