A Teachers Lullaby

 

Let me tell you a lullaby

Minus fireflies and fairy-dust

A tale of mistrust that reeks

 

Because sometimes I visualize

As i gaze into the pitch black on the back of my eye-lids

I see their faces

Tears weeping in streams over the boulders of their cheeks

And only I can see the invisible stitches, threaded through their lips like interwoven leather

Held together by fear

Afraid to paint the canvas with the words of their stories

Because their price for expression consists of verbal assaults

With fists that bruise amidst fits of anger

 

Since sometimes I close my eyes

And I see a still picture

With the expression of horror captured on their faces

I can read the pain written plainly in their body language

It communicates the trauma suppressed inside

I wish I could rewind and playback the scenes

Of what they’ve seen

But I can’t…my hands are tied

But my mind, my mouth and my ears are not restricted

So I listen intently to their whispering in the classroom

I engage their conversations on the playground

I comfort them with the openness of my arms

And I console them

With the strength of my shoulder

I try to inspire them to break away from the black and white

To visualize a life filled with the color of enjoyment and to delight in carefree moments

And I strive to stimulate an eruption of creativity

Through the use of their boundless imagination

 

I am guiding them to the entitlements of children

 

Because sometimes I visualize

As I gaze into the pitch black on the back of my eyelids

This teacher…can see their faces

I…can see their faces

I see their faces longing for a peaceful night of lullabies

Filled with fireflies and fairy dust

With tales of trust, hope and dreams

Reviews

[Bennett Logan]

A philosophy instructor I had years ago said one day that the hardest thing we'll ever do is survive our parents. At first, I thought the old fart should lighten up. But his words eventually soaked in and I agree with him now. I don't know if that has anything to do with what you wrote here, but that's what you brought to my mind -- children trying to get what goodness they can out of life and just surviving the rest... Good work, man... Definitely keep it up!

[Dead Angel]

I think being a teacher is one of the most challenging jobs a person can do. to mold the minds of boys and girls only to have to fight a few of them. good job portraying all that through this poem lalli, very inventful

[Beka]

I want to be a teacher so I've spoken to a few of mine to gather some insight.
I just graduated from highschool and I was friends with a lot of the wounded souls.
Just about all my teachers told me the same thing.
Having lived, expierenced life, and having childeren of their own makes them compasionate. It wounds them very deeply to see someone crying for help, but their hands are chained to the walls of society.
It is this information and that of my other eduactional influence that I know I would never be capable of being an elementry teacher. Teenagers is one thing. Childeren is to painful.
Enough gar about me.
Your poem is wicked lovely.
Wicked in the sence of the wounded child seeking santuary, but only to be separated from it by bars. Along side the desprate inept hero who longs to make the pain go away and save the child from the horrors of the world as we know it.
Lovely because it shows care and compassion for those in most desprate need of it.
A tale of darkness weaved with threads of brilliance.
Wonderful piece.

[Sonia]

Wow! my mom is a teacher in high school so i can totally relate! In high school SO many people have such horrible problems and teachers all notice this. My mom tells me some stories of thing she heard or saw in the classroom, and she is sad she can't change it. I felt in your poem that you were focusing on younger kids, and it is so true that elementary teachers can make such an influence on you and be so close to you. It happens in high school too i guess but high schools don't always open up to teachers. I really enjoyed this poem! Thanks for the great read!
Please read my writing "Zahra" if you can

[Babbette Francis]

Very inspiring. I'll have your words in my head until I write something, somewhere about it.

Like you, I see the hurt in the eyes and actions of the abused. So few know the way out of traps that were set for them. The law here in Louisiana is a joke on cases of abuse. Sometimes you gotta get brave and work it out yourself.

No one needs to feel small. It's unnecessary. This was my first lesson learned- the rest was played by ear, until my abuser understood that he was in for a fight when trying to take my soul. No one should bow to any being, other than the being that created them and gave them life and he wasn't my God. But It's Hell to get someone who is beaten down to believe that they can do it. It takes a lot of time and patience.

[Brjden (Bridge-Den) Cre..]

Very creative Lalli! Probably my favorite from you so far! I love how it inter-weaved only to come back to wanting the children to have those fairytale lullabies. You gave great emotion and great descriptions when presenting the terrors that children are exposed to and I commend that!

"Since sometimes I close my eyes
And I see a still picture
With the expression of horror captured on their faces
I can read the pain written plainly in their body language
It communicates the trauma suppressed inside
I wish I could rewind and playback the scenes
Of what they've seen
But I can't�my hands are tied"

This is my favorite piece by you thus far! Again, I love how you structured this one! I think this is where you really show the strength that you have as a writer. Conveying pain and the strength to make change from it! Good write!

[Legion]

That was brilliant. I have lived this as well once upon a time. I worked at several schools in the past and saw many of these children with the work I was involved with. I hope that I made some of their lives better, but unfortunately I have no idea now. Great write. May it be an anthem for all those that choose to help those that need it. Kudos and a standing ovation and a respectful bow at the end. Bravo!

[Collette]

I think you've done an excellent job dealing with a touchy subject, and I connect to this piece on so many levels. As a future teacher, I know I will undoubtedly encounter those forgotten children, and I simply wonder what I could ever do. You're right in offering support, and in standing up for the importance of their happiness.
Through the use of their boundless imagination
I am guiding them to the entitlements of children

DAMN right you are. Children, the most innocent creatures on the planet, deserve to live a life IN innocence.

I dig the flow of this piece, and I'm sure it floors when read aloud. Poignant, to the point, sadness mixed with the slightest hint of hope. Maybe those kids are paying attention...maybe they DO feel the love.

[Amanda]

i can identify with this write all too well as you know, my dear Lalli. i suffered the abuse that the children in this have suffered, though it was never as severe as some that i have seen. for me, the marks were hidden, as to not arouse suspicion and i carried them on the inside...but there are more than one form of abuse that is inflicted on our children...children are a gift and should be treated with love and kindness...

you have brought this portrayal to light and i love the way you have shown what it looks like from the viewers' side. well done, my dear, well done.

much love,

Amanda