No birth announcements purchased
No choice of pink or blue
No photos on the mantle
Of a child they never knew
Never had a birthday party
Never took that initial walk
Never colored outside the lines
Never learned to read or talk
Might have been a friend to Jesus
Might have been Satan’s spawn
Might have been a poet or teacher
Or the one who cuts your lawn
Might have been somebody’s lover
Might have been somebody’s pain
Might have saved the world from hardship
Might have been its sad refrain
Never got a chance to flourish
Never got a chance to lose
Never got a chance at life
Never got a chance to choose
Might have been somebody famous
Might have been no one of note
No memories or mementos
Just this painful anecdote
But they quit before she started
They quit before he had a voice
They quit before he drew his first breath
They quit because they had a choice
Saturday, May 24, 2008
Sunday Scribblings - Quit - 5/25/08
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16 comments:
Powerful and sad!
That is such a sad story. I was so hoping for a twist at the end.
Yes, sad... no matter what the reason for the quitting.
This is quite a bold statement on where you stand on the topic of abortion.
You are brave to post it, i will give you that and the poetry was very powerful.
Lucy,
Actually, I am not taking a stand on abortion. I believe it is a decision between the woman and her conscience. I just think it should not be taken lightly and all aspects should be considered. I was trying to convey the sadness of a life not begun. But thanks for the misinterpretation.
is it about decision not to have a baby?
or about can not having one for any reason?
whatever it is, I feel sadness, deep, in it.
Very hard to read. I don't know how hard it was to write.
thought provoking and haunting --- i enjoyed this post a lot - thank you
Patois:
Yes, it was very hard to write.
Latree:
I guess I did not convey what I hoped to. It is about terminating a pregnancy. Their is nothing sad to me about a decision not to conceive. Not being able to conceive is also not that sad to me as adoption is always an option.
To me the sadness is a life created but not allowed to see daylight. Regardless on your views regarding right to life or pro-choice, abortion is a terribly sad thing.
Rick, I'm pro-choice, but I did really like your poem. I love the realism and un-sappiness of the third stanza especiallly. The non-romanticized view of kids--love it.
I also like the specifics you used--birth announcements, photos, birthday parties, coloring, etc. These ground it in reality and keep it from getting too preachy. Nice!
And sad. I agree it's not a decision to make lightly, and it would be a painful decision/act, even for a pro-choice person.
Reading your post saddened me, just thinking about what might have been.
Sometimes things just can't be finished for whatever the reason.
you've veered away from your norm. i was expecting to see the usual comedic story and was instead faced with this raw and powerful piece. this was very well said. a very good piece indeed. an excellent take on the prompt.
I really like the depth of feelings you put in this.
I totally understood it and I agree with you 100%.
My view on abortion is that once conceived the only choice is a live birth or the death of a fetus. Powerful and sad.
Wow. This was so powerful and true-really well done. I liked how it was written so 'matter-of-factly' that it enabled the reader to interpret it with emotions of their own.
I was hoping for a happy ending but it was more realistic, perhaps, this way. You should be very proud of this piece Rick. You've captured it perfectly.
I'm a fan of poetry, came here to see a Wordless Wednesday but couldn't resist. I didnt realize it was about abortion, but the loss certainly came through. A life that wasn't.
Excellently written.
Hope and risk go hand in hand.
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