Lawrence Hall
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https://hellopoetry.com/lawrence-hall/
poeticdrivel.blogspot.com

                                  A Single Tear from a Child

                               “I respectfully return my ticket”

                              -Ivan in The Brothers Karamazov

Children

Are ill-prepared to fall into this world
Naked and cold and wet at birth, and then
Flung into a series of awkward situations
Many of them involving pain and fear

Children

Are ill-prepared to live within this world
Isolated from the stars and each other
Trying to fit mythologies in place
Maybe it’s that old Garden of Eden thing

Children

Are ill-prepared to leave this shadowy world
Unlike Ivan, though, they have kept their tickets

Respectfully