Written 7th June 2022

Blue-eyed angel

Replica of a girl

Blonde, shiny hair

Gorgeous, soft curls

A deadpan look

So hard to reconcile

Why someone so young

Is unable to smile

Like a doll, a mannequin

You intensely stare

I wonder my sweetheart

What’s going on in there

As you float around the class

Speaking to no one

Watching the other children

As they play and have fun

You stand on the edges

Quietly looking in

How much-unspoken hurt

Bubbles under your skin

Four years is too young

To already have this wall

But  I’ve seen your kind

Hundreds of times before

I’m usually good at connecting

With anxious, avoidant types

A little warmth and kindness

Can often kindle a small light

But you, darling Liberty

I was unable to reach

It’s because of kids like you

That I continue to teach…

Because the more I see you

The more determined I become….

Not to give up hope

Not to succumb…

To that feeling of hopelessness

That there is nothing I can do

To make this world

A kinder place for you  

As I lie in bed

You permeate my mind

A ghost of a child

Your sadness entwines…

My heart and my soul …

I so wish you could know

You deserve a life of abundance

That overflows…

With genuine attunement,

Love, joy and care

You’re more worthy than you know

 Liberty

I see you there