Airyn Lentija’s poem entitled Six Skeletons Sitting on the Sidewalk laments the plight of street children in the Philippines and across the globe.
On the sidewalk
sits six skeletons.
Bellies protesting, murmuring,
begging for a bag
of fresh fried chicken.
I knew them so well,
by day I saw them straying, running with jeepneys.
By night, I watch them kill
their time lying on a flattened old boxes,
under the bridge with begging bellies.
At home, I sit on my comfortable bed,
Billion times better than flattened old boxes,
Inside my air-conditioned room
Safer, dust-free, quiet, unlike under the bridge
Where the six skeleton live for years.
Under the clean sheets I close my eyes
letting my tired self relax for a while
But the thought of the six skeletons sitting on the sidewalk,
begging for big bag of fresh fried chicken,
fills my mind on this long lonely night.
Oh, blessed be that day!
The six skeletons sitting on the sidewalk
Wouldn’t search the trash cans for left-overs again.
Ms. Airyn Lentija works as a domestic helper in Hong Kong. She has enjoyed reading and writing poetry since her days in elementary school. This is Airyn’s third submission and we look forward to receiving more of her work in the future.
Further details of Airyn’s work may be found at:
http://poetsforhumanrights.ning.com/profile/airyn?xgs=1
