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The Runaway
The Runaway
Head in her hands as she sobbed
The tears ran down her face
Big drops fell to the pavement
Each with a steady pace.
So lost and alone, she seemed
She poured her heart out to no one
The curb was her home for the moment
The weight on her shoulders, a ton.
She spoke few words between her cries
About not fitting in and fits of rage
I wanted to hug her pain away
Protect her in a pretty golden cage.
She just wanted to be understood
Loved if only for a day
Little girl lost in big scary world
The sad face of the runaway.
©LMY 2.18.2012
The story behind The Runaway.
Early this morning, 3:30 a.m. I saw a young girl sitting on the curb at a gas station. The man working there had been talking to her and from first impressions, it looked like they knew each other. When the attendant went inside to ring up our gas order, I stayed in the car and heard the most painful sobbing. At first, I didn't even recognize it as such, but when my boyfriend got back in the car, he told me that she was indeed sobbing. While he was inside, the attendant told my boyfriend her story and said he had to call the police to report her as a runaway. She told him she didn't have anywhere else to go, so that was his only choice. I sure hope she got the help she needed and I pray that she's safe tonight.
Comments
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savanahl, thank you so much! I really appreciate your time and the votes!
What an awesome poem. Your writing really shows your heart. Voted up and awesome.
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Gypsy, I'm very thankful that I live in a small, very caring community and we have places she could go to get help. Thank you for the comment!
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Avon, thank you!
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Greg, it broke my heart to see her so alone. Thank you for the comment.
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ImKarn23, thank you so much for the vote up and for sharing it. I really appreciate it!
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DFiduccia, thank you!
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Bill, thanks! The first few lines of this poem struck me about 15 minutes after we left the gas station. I always carry around a notebook, so I made sure to write it down. The rest came to me in bits and pieces over the next few hours.
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Mark, thank you for the comment. I was never a runaway, but I did manage to make it to the end of the driveway a couple of times!
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Michael, I agree, some don't know how hard life is, but some live hard lives from an early age and it's a relief when they get out on their own.
Thanks for reading!
Super poem. Deeply moving. However I'll say this. Seen a lot of runaways in New York and heard a lot of sad stories. The worst thing is that a lot of the time if the girl's got parents they have them come take possession of her and sometimes those parents are the worst thing in her life. Alcoholics, abusers, beaters and the worst users. The best thing I know that could happen to her is for her to be brought to professional authorities who could talk to her and who could discover what would be best for her.
One word Beautiful...
Hi EF, Beautifully written and so heartfelt. Very moving. It's not often that someone even notices a lonely teenager these days, let alone be moved enough to inspire such a poem. Greg
This was very moving! I felt the scene and saw it before me! You have a caring heart and wrote a beautiful poem that conveys the hopelessness of homelessness and teenage runaways-i hope those who would pass her by without noticing her existence - now notice! votingupandtweeting
You are so perceptive and prolific.
It would take me a month to write a poem like this and then it would only be half as good. Lisa, you amaze me. Very nice work young lady!
I was a runaway for several months when I was a kid, and always felt so lucky to not be one of the girls I knew at the time that were also runaways. You manage to "see" the feeling, and you care. Great piece.
Lisa, great poem about how hard life is . young people don't realize this till they are out on their own.
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