Blank verse

As a child, I found a bright green rock.
It made me smile. You took it away.
A little older I found a bird’s feather.
It made me laugh.
You took it away.
I found a broken toy.
All I wanted to do was play.
But again, you took it away.
I Blindly searched for encouragement.
I was told I was selfish. Never satisfied.
Such a bad little girl.
To this day, I search for a home.
A place to belong.
Where someone cares.
Not just to hurt me.
You can’t take that away.

Pantoum

As a child, I found a bright green rock,

It shimmered in the sun and made me smile.

But you took it away as if to mock,

Leaving me feeling sad and lost for a while.

It shimmered in the sun and made me smile,

A treasure to keep and call my own.

But you took it away, without any guile,

As if my happiness was yours to disown.

A treasure to keep and call my own,

I later found a feather from a bird.

But you took it away, leaving me alone,

Wondering why you always had to be absurd.

I later found a feather from a bird,

It made me laugh and filled me with glee.

But you took it away, without a single word,

As if nothing in this world could set me free.

It made me laugh and filled me with glee,

A broken toy was all I could find to play.

But you took it away, leaving me to be,

Lost and confused, not knowing what to say.

A broken toy was all I could find to play,

But you took it away and left me in the dust.

Lost and confused, not knowing what to say,

I searched for encouragement but found only mistrust.

But you took it away and left me in the dust,

Telling me I was selfish and never satisfied.

I searched for encouragement but found only mistrust,

As if my dreams and hopes could never coincide.

Telling me I was selfish and never satisfied,

You called me a bad little girl, with such disdain.

As if my dreams and hopes could never coincide,

Leaving me feeling unworthy, and filled with pain.

You called me a bad little girl, with such disdain,

Blindly searching for a home to call my own.

Leaving me feeling unworthy, and filled with pain,

I long for a place where love and care are shown.

Blindly searching for a home to call my own,

Where someone cares and won’t take it away.

I long for a place where love and care are shown,

A place where I can finally rest and stay.

Alternating Quatrain- a four-line stanza rhyming “abab.”

As a child, I found a bright green rock,

A treasure shining in the sun.

But you took it away, with a shock,

Leaving me feeling so undone.

A little older I found a bird’s feather,

So light and delicate and fine.

But you took it away, with no bother,

Leaving me feeling far from fine.

I found a broken toy one day,

All I wanted was to play and have fun.

But you took it away, and I couldn’t say,

Leaving me feeling like the only one.

Blindly searching for encouragement,

I was told that I was selfish and wrong.

Never satisfied, so unpleasant,

Such a bad little girl all along.

To this day I search for a home,

A place to belong, a place to stay.

Where someone cares and I’m not alone,

And my happiness won’t be taken away.

As Haiku

Bright green rock, a find,

Smiling wide, joy undefined,

Taken, left behind.

Bird’s feather so light,

A laughter that felt just right,

Taken, out of sight.

Broken toy, forlorn,

All I wanted was to play,

Taken, joy withdrawn.

Blindly I searched on,

Selfish, they said, never done,

Satisfaction gone.

Bad girl, searching still,

Longing for a place to fill,

Home, elusive still.

A place to belong,

Caring hearts that heal my wrongs,

Can’t be taken, strong.

Write your own rules, Repeating phrases to increase emotional impact.

As a child, I found a bright green rock,

A treasure in my hand, it made me beam.

But you took it away, with little talk.

As a child, I found a bright green rock,

A treasure that brought a smile to my face.

But you took it away, it was such a shock.

As a child, I found a bright green rock,

It shone like gold and made me smile.

But you took it away, how you mock!

Then later I found a bird’s feather,

So delicate and light and gay,

And you took that too, without a tether.

A feather found, as a young teen,

Tickled my fancy, and made me laugh and play.

But you took it away, a cruel routine.

A bird’s feather, light and delicate,

Brought laughter and joy to my heart.

But you took it away, in spite of it.

I found a toy, just for play,

But you took that too, with no delay.

I searched for encouragement every day.

A toy, broken, was all I had that day,

All I wanted was to have some fun.

But again, you took it away.

A broken toy, all I wanted was to play,

But again you took it away, and I felt alone.

I blindly searched for encouragement every day.

Blindly searching, not knowing what to shun,

Encouragement was all I sought to gain,

But instead, I was told I was the one

that was selfish, never satisfied,

A bad little girl, they said, with disdain.

But still, I searched for a place to reside.

I was called selfish, and told I was never okay,

That I was a bad little girl, always unsatisfied.

But I still search for a place to stay.

Who was selfish and never content in vain?

A bad little girl, they called me with despair.

To this day, I search for a home I might gain.

A place where someone cares, my happiness to remain,

Where I could belong and not just be hurt.

You can’t take it away, that’s what I maintain.

A place where someone cares, not to scare,

Or hurt me with their malice, oh, I pray!

You can’t take it away, my happiness to impair.

A place where someone cares, where love can reside,

Where I can belong, and not just be hurt.

I won’t let you take it away, I won’t hide.

For I am strong, and I won’t be deterred,

I’ll find my home, my heart will be my guide.

You can’t take it away, that’s my word.

For I have learned to stand up and assert,

To hold onto what is mine and not be swayed.

You can’t take it away, I will not revert.

As I search for a home, a place where love is displayed,

I will not be afraid, for my heart will be my guide.

You can’t take it away, my spirit won’t be betrayed.

You can’t take it away.