Prize: $1000 The growing body. The excitement. Noticing the old me fading away, the beginning of a new life. The fear of losing him again, the mental scars after the miscarriage. The first strong kicks, slowly regaining trust in my body. The growing love. The healing homebirth. Meeting the soul that had been with us already all those years, finally earth side. The double sword: fatigue, heartbreaking fears, overwhelming responsibilities alternated with a soft inner peace, overpowering happiness. Feedback from Nichole Sobecki: “The shrouded body reminds us of the profound transition into motherhood, but also of that thin veil between life and death, the woman you are before and the woman you become. As an emotional landscape, it reveals the complexity of an often-caricatured experience: the anticipation, the hope, and the terror. The pregnant female form has been depicted countless times, yet this reimagining feels personal, honest, and brave.”