Unfettered love

This piece of writing is to do with street children and their struggle for their basic right to be just children who are cared for and their great longing for affection

Unfettered love

 

Born to a harsh world of scarcity and fear

Infant minds accept the truth with uncanny cheer

Demands have no space innovation fills its place

Imagination shapes their toys in every case

 

Accosted at traffic lights, eyes searching for affection

In this world of injustice they seek love’s perfection

Bodies held humbled till straightened by a smile

Is it malnourishment or a street tutored style?

 

Probing weird avenues for public recognition

Contorting their bodies to a point of distraction

Peer bonding forms a layer of soft protection

For pavement life packed with apprehension

 

Never yielding to dejection nor fearing rejection

They step into my life with firm conviction

Amidst the demands of unfettered love to tap

They seek the right to fill up an empty lap

 

 

Author's Note

The genre should include more subjects such as social justice, child rights, society, etc. I could not find any that fit this piece from the list given. It is the children on the street who decided to first own me, which motivated me to social action and justice issues. This writing is about that magnetism, which was the impetus to what designed my future.

Reviews

[...]

... what an immensely moving verse this is ... it is the anatomy of innocence ... and the brutal exhibition of it ... the life of street children is nothing but an unending nightmare ... but the way you take the reader through the journey of their emotions is incredibly overwhelming and moving ... in the first stanza ... these lines ... "amids the demands of unfettered love to tap" ... and ... "by children who think it their right to fill up an empty lap" ... are soul-scorching ... in the second stanza ... this last line ... "in this world of injustice they look for perfection" ... feels like a square punch in the face ... the fourth line in the last stanza ... "like puppies they detect the weakness of love" ... melts one's heart into tiny droplets of vulnerability ... and the sixth line ... "they test, tease and challenge my solitude" ... is a million profound truths in seven words of brilliantly soulful verse ... and then the last line of this verse ... "they step into my life with firm conviction" ... reinforces with resounding strength one's faith in the humane ... what a journey this is ... the detailing is impeccable ... you paint such a moving visual and it breathes life ... i cannot begin to applaud you for the fact that this experience is something that you translated into action ... because i just don't have words to applaud such inspirational commitment to social action and justice issues ... i was fortunate enough once to make a small but significant contribution in the area of child abuse legislation in india ... but that contribution took the life out of every cell in me ... and i'm still trying to muster the courage to build on it ... but have not succeeded so far ... your verse is beautiful ... immensely poetic ... but your message transcends your verse by miles ... and moves one beyond measure ... it's magic potion for the soul ... thank you for being who you are ... writing this verse ... and sharing it ... indebted i am ...

[E. A. Fielder]

Your poem had me held from start to end. I Think one thing that was well mastered was the ending, it was so strong. "Never yielding to dejection nor fearing rejection they step into my life with firm conviction." Very powerful word well kept in a powerful poem!