The Willow Tree

• Kiona Lee, Grade 7
• Poetry
• 2018

The fog is crawling behind me. It’s quieter than ever before
I shudder and hug myself. Teeth chattering like ice.

I walk to the bench. The old, rusty one beneath the willow tree
There’s a girl. A sad, lonely girl. Hair as cold as ice.

Her face is shining with crystal tears. I walk to her.
She looks up at me. Wipes her tears. ”I'm okay". She whispers

She says, “If I say how I feel, I will ruin the day
I can’t do anything to change it.” She sobs.

Shaking, she says her fears. I listen. Every night she cries,
Her bleeding scars, her broken soul.

I realise life is full of pain, anger and sadness.
I hug her and tell her, “You can do it. Fight it and be strong”.

Every day, I walk to the new, shiny bench.
Beneath the willow tree.