Hyperbole at School

Requiem for the wild animal
And the owned dog,
For the torn-up family
And the  school’  books
Marked with Callum’s teeth and
And his trodden fear:
“children services” and 
a place to sleep.

Requiem for Ian’s colourful bracelets
And the punches on the wall, his
School shirt untacked and a pack
Of cards on the floor.

Requiem for the combined equations
And Chloe‘s broken skin
Red lines on her palms,
Her chest and forehead.
She would like to play UNO 
And measure her hunger
With your reproval
And cut her palms with
A school sharpener and
Stare into her own eyes
Without her father.

Requiem for Chantelle and her
red fingernails,
 body spray, lip balm
and a desire to fend for herself,
 three mobile phones,
to rewrite her face, reconstruct
her loneliness and a list
of her wanted items,
regularly checked,
regularly thrown away.

Requiem for Ben who 
 watches his black shaded
Seascape and fishing boats
and cannot describe 
with his own words what is
to feel irremediably alone.