A Celebration of Books,
Writers & LIterary Excellence

Save the Date


Gaithersburg
Book Festival

May 16, 2026

10am – 6pm

Bohrer Park


Threads of Light

By: Anna Feldman

Rockbridge County High School

Grade: 10

Rockbridge County, VA

Humanity: a flickering light at the end of the tunnel
a lighthouse in the middle of a stormy sea,
quiet hands that bandage a scraped knee,
and an umbrella shared on a rainy street
warm soup passed across a crowded table,
strength shown despite your weakness
it is not thinking of yourself last
but rather having the courage to put someone else first
humanity starts small and slowly envelopes us in its beauty
teaching us empathy, long suffering, and how to love
sacrificing your wings so that others may fly
every act, a thread of light that binds us together
imagine the tapestry we could make
with just a little bit of humanity