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Put a candle in your window..

twitchnsway
Twitch Sway
Thought Provoker
Australia 4awards
Joined 4th Dec 2013
Forum Posts: 31

Hey there lads and lasses.

    If you take the time to write on this topic then you're head's in the right place and that's the purpose of this thread. So please take some time for this. Only new works please. Big thanks to all who post. This is important.

Twitch Sway
     
            -- not enough candles --

keep a candle burning for the kids that can't go home
because of danger from their family they'll spend tonight alone
in the cold and dark at the edge of the parks under the bridges and out of sight
there are children having to decide right now where they are going to sleep tonight

he's eight years old and it's his family that are the cause of all his harm
his mother holds him still while her boyfriend injects heroin in his arm
he only sees his father twice a year and he's always drunk
he still has a black eye and fear in his heart from when he visited last month

with tearless eyes he wonders every day if his life will ever change
but the voice in his heart says it's best to accept that it is always going to rain
he would have run already but he has nowhere else to go
the devil is playing on his lounge room floor and it's the only place he knows

among the lessons he learned were the cigarette burns that he has on the side of his face
some sore and stark reminders that there's a place in the line and to stay in that place
he was barely five when this lesson was taught and for two years would not use his voice
by the time he was seven he was in full swing regression from aggressive removal of choice

but he knew that he couldn't leave yet because his little brother was going to be next
when he saw his uncle with him his little hands found some scissors and stabbed him three times in his chest
another crushing blow in his suffocating life and without doubt he expected more of the same
from his mothers own stash a child finds he's already been shown a way to self medicate his pain

believe it or not the children in this story live not all that far from you
and you're only going to see about as much as they want you to
they're not going to ask for any help because they don't know of any other way
and if you asked they'd tell you everything's fine and have nothing else to say

this story was written by maddy's young life and it has now been fifteen years since
and an eight year old child has woken this morning to the exact same situation as this
if you ask me where i think maddy is now to be honest i expect that he's dead
i hope with all of my heart that i'm wrong but it's just how his short story read
we all know quite well that words alone are never going to save the world
but words can guide focus and that may be the difference for one little boy or girl

and these aren't just words so please light yourself a candle and take the time to look into the flame
think of the kids in your town tonight who's home lives are one and the same
this isn't one of those things where we all weigh up who hasn't got enough and who has
a child is supposed to join our world with a full set of rights and it's those rights that these kids just don't have






..for the kids that are hiding in cupboards, behind garages and on our streets tonight for their own safety, with no other choice but to live this life right now without a face or a name.   it makes no difference which country you live in, not all the kids you see out late are truant.   without reservation i guarantee you that among the others you have seen small children with nowhere else to go.   they can be almost impossible to spot as the most in need and it's not your fault.   just please be aware that they are out there.   and if your candle burns out, please take the time and light another one.   it may take a few candles for it to sink in.   nights are long for a child, cold, dark and alone sleeping on cardboard underneath their own house or at the back of a fish and chip shop for fear of what may happen if they go inside their own homes.   because make no mistake, these kids are out there...right now

Grace
IDryad
Tyrant of Words
122awards
Joined 25th Aug 2011
Forum Posts: 16074

Hii Twitch...is this a competition? Or a discussion? When you said New Work only, it sounds more like a competition.

twitchnsway
Twitch Sway
Thought Provoker
Australia 4awards
Joined 4th Dec 2013
Forum Posts: 31

Hey there Grace.
 No this is not a competition. It's just that if new work is written then the time of thought is now and not just revisited. We all know they're out there. But fresh thoughts are valuable.

Grace
IDryad
Tyrant of Words
122awards
Joined 25th Aug 2011
Forum Posts: 16074

Children in the Light

walking behind the shops
in busy bustling Bangkok
I saw the faces of angels
lighted by a flickering flame
of a candle on a beer bottle

they patiently waited
as an older child divided
the roti in equal parts
they got a fist-full each
and they ate with delight

on a sidewalk of Manila
a little girl held a baby
holding out one hand
'please spare a coin
my brother is hungry'

'my mom was taken
by the Police
we don't know why
but they left us behind'
my coins were not enough

behind the bazaar of Jakarta
a boy was crying
his hands over his face
some bully just stamped
on rice, that was for his mother

'my mother is sick
she can't work anymore
my father left us
for another'
he just cried on

On the streets of Kuala Lumpur
looking up at big white tourists
they held out their hands
for change, just a sen of two
refugees from another country
but children all the same.


* children of the world are all the same, no matter what colour they are, or what language they speak...*

twitchnsway
Twitch Sway
Thought Provoker
Australia 4awards
Joined 4th Dec 2013
Forum Posts: 31

A truly heartfelt piece Grace. I thank you so much. A perfect portrayal of what this is about and a fitting platform for this thread. Your time and thoughts are both valuable and appreciated. Another candle burning. Lets put some more light on this topic..

Grace
IDryad
Tyrant of Words
122awards
Joined 25th Aug 2011
Forum Posts: 16074

twitchnsway said:A truly heartfelt piece Grace. I thank you so much. A perfect portrayal of what this is about and a fitting platform for this thread. Your time and thoughts are both valuable and appreciated. Another candle burning. Lets put some more light on this topic..

The pleasure is mine..Glad it is what you wanted, Twitch. This topic is close to my heart as I live in a country where you see this almost every where, everyday.

twitchnsway
Twitch Sway
Thought Provoker
Australia 4awards
Joined 4th Dec 2013
Forum Posts: 31

That's hard Grace. It's bad enough here. But to see it happen to the extent you're speaking of is truly heartbreaking. There are many forms of crime. What happens to kids is just plain evil. I can't find a better word for the harm that is caused...

johnrot
Tyrant of Words
21awards
Joined 10th Oct 2012
Forum Posts: 3645

a lil light in a window or some poems about,
don't do shit.....
no offense twitch
hit the switch

let's not chatter chit
do a lil bit

all the talk makes people think they have done something without action...


do something!!!!!

nobody has time or patience
or willing to get in the gutter
like hard times are contagious
give the wrong man a meal
next thing you know
you are bearded and building
a box made building
behind my building


we all crash


burn your driver's license
social security card
learn how to use a bow drill
teach fatherless sons
of regressive tactics
primitive skills
get you where you need to be
when you aren't concentrating on ego
status
tax bracket
social standard

we waste more than we could ever eat

a good dumpster dive is the same as shopping at alde's

just don't dumpster dive
behind
alde's

in stead of gettin drunk
or puffin with your partnas
go down and see how the other unnamed unnoticed % live

i guarantee
you'll hear
some of the most honest,real poets ever

slip through the south side and say

i got a dolla for a song

you might jus move in







exe
Lost Thinker
Joined 17th May 2014
Forum Posts: 38

t'b onest it doesn affect me

when next i flick a lighter i kid myself i have innumerable souls, placentasoft to pray for all the unborn and the barely born and the poor born again bastards that don't know they're dead-
and this really only happens with a lighter and a cigarette. when i think about it it's time to stop quitting.
      it's lost the appeal of boredom
when it's not a struggle but a loss.
i grieve how many children i could have saved from cancer this last month.
the sadness is that either of us breathe no easier without.

twitchnsway
Twitch Sway
Thought Provoker
Australia 4awards
Joined 4th Dec 2013
Forum Posts: 31

johnrot said:a lil light in a window or some poems about,
don't do shit.....
no offense twitch
hit the switch

let's not chatter chit
do a lil bit

all the talk makes people think they have done something without action...


do something!!!!!

nobody has time or patience
or willing to get in the gutter
like hard times are contagious
give the wrong man a meal
next thing you know
you are bearded and building
a box made building
behind my building


we all crash


burn your driver's license
social security card
learn how to use a bow drill
teach fatherless sons
of regressive tactics
primitive skills
get you where you need to be
when you aren't concentrating on ego
status
tax bracket
social standard

we waste more than we could ever eat

a good dumpster dive is the same as shopping at alde's

just don't dumpster dive
behind
alde's

in stead of gettin drunk
or puffin with your partnas
go down and see how the other unnamed unnoticed % live

i guarantee
you'll hear
some of the most honest,real poets ever

slip through the south side and say

i got a dolla for a song

you might jus move in



Hehe! Really nice Mr J. You just nailed it. Like I said. It may take a few candles. It's what we do the next day that matters. Right on line. Thank you for that brother.



twitchnsway
Twitch Sway
Thought Provoker
Australia 4awards
Joined 4th Dec 2013
Forum Posts: 31

You got it in one Mr J. For every 100 that read. 10 might go another step. For every 10 that go that step. 1 may join the line. Nice one brother. Thanks for that.

twitchnsway
Twitch Sway
Thought Provoker
Australia 4awards
Joined 4th Dec 2013
Forum Posts: 31

exe said:t'b onest it doesn affect me

when next i flick a lighter i kid myself i have innumerable souls, placentasoft to pray for all the unborn and the barely born and the poor born again bastards that don't know they're dead-
and this really only happens with a lighter and a cigarette. when i think about it it's time to stop quitting.
      it's lost the appeal of boredom
when it's not a struggle but a loss.
i grieve how many children i could have saved from cancer this last month.
the sadness is that either of us breathe no easier without.




Unfortunately I think a lot of times you're right. Like johnrot said. It's what we do from here that can count. Thank you for your ink. It is appreciated.

Twitch

jaspersilence
Fire of Insight
United States 7awards
Joined 12th Dec 2012
Forum Posts: 708

in the mirror on the other side

I see a child's eyes

starving for some insight

or just a small bite.

destined for a short life

and a damaged mind

the

bitter

youth

today

poet Anonymous

This one is maybe as close as I've come to touching on those subjects/memories
I'll leave a link anyway, maybe another perspective on it all

http://deepundergroundpoetry.com/poems/126876-thank-you-the-worst-of-you-really/

seascape
Fire of Insight
United States 2awards
Joined 11th June 2014
Forum Posts: 40

A light is being prepared, because this is a subject deep embedded into me, unlike the tattoos on my skin, this is branded into my soul, burnt into my heart, and my reason for existing...
My Children:
I was a truck driver, and I was taking a load up to Iowa, and I what heard on the news station
Gripped my heart, and made it clear, that I was put here for a reason
I cried, I screamed, I begged God to tell me what to do, my heart was breaking, and I wanted to die
If I could, I would have taken the place of this child, I vowed that day every child that needs me, that I
Will be there, I cannot save the world, but I can be a mother, I can work towards a goal, and I can do
Something more, than nothing at all,
I could not comprehend?? How could they just keep talking, and watch, as a two year old child was
Being torn apart by wild dogs,
I called to God, and I know he heard me, I claimed that child to be mine, and when I go to this country
My hands will not be empty, I will be what they need in a mother, I will protect them with my life, and
Love them for all their life, and help them to grow and be the people they are to become, because they
Will be my children to love,
I was led to some people with the same goal, and I know with their help, and my education I will do
What I need to
I have seen starving children eating from the garbage cans behind grocery stores, I have seen them
Homeless treading threw the snow wondering what they are living for, I have seen them raped and give
Up on life and just wait for death to take them away, I have grown up now and I can save others from
My horrific pains, I know I was put here for a reason; I am going to claim my children and save them
From whatever political forces I may face
I cried, I screamed, I begged God to tell me what to do, my heart was breaking, and I wanted to die
If I could, I would have taken the place of this child, I vowed that day every child that needs me, that I
Will be there, I cannot save the world, but I can be a mother, I can work towards a goal, and I can do
Something more, than nothing at all,
I could not comprehend?? How could they just keep talking, and watch, as a two year old child was
Being torn apart by wild dogs,
Seascape


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