Recently, Anderson’s very own Saaya Accapadi was honored as Austin’s Youth Poet Laureate of 2025. When asked about her primary focus as the winner, Accapadi responded humbly that she mainly “wanted to come off as authentic.”
Accapadi is currently a senior at Anderson juggling a jam-packed schedule of speech and debate, Model UN and creative writing, on top of her regular schoolwork. However, as the poet explains, her vast array of extracurricular activities is what gives her such a unique voice. By exploring so many different forms of writing, Accapadi has been able to “refine her voice and diversify her perspective.”
The competition opened in the fall, and each contestant submitted their portfolio of five poems to be judged, Accapadi explains. She was a finalist in the competition last year.
When asked what changed about her approach this year, the poet explained she tried to “diversify her portfolio,” which was aided by her involvement in different extracurriculars. More specifically, Accapadi explains that public speaking helped shift her main focus in writing towards her audience, rather than being solely introspective.
As she reaches the end of her high school career, Accapadi has applied to several colleges in a variety of majors: human resources, English, creative writing, and international affairs. She hopes to continue her writing journey in a broad sense after school and later in life.
insecurity
you tug at my bones and
raise claws to my lips and
scrape off my skin and
rip my scalp wide open and
sock me in the stomach and
suddenly i can’t breathe and
i hunch over and
i squat and
suddenly
i can’t and i can’t and i can’t and i can’t and
then, at last
i cry and i cry and i cry and i cry and
my tears like sweet ganga, rinse my sins and
i am bare at last and
i am pure and
i am scared, yet
i am beautiful.
