Across my life  

I sit centre stage,
Glamorous and beautiful,
Worshipped like a god,
I am important.

Now I am removed,
Cast aside for what I am,
Broken in two and hidden,
Out of sight.

No longer am I beautiful,
No longer am I worshipped,
I sit alone in the dark,
Watching, waiting.

Weeks turn to months,
Months to years,
And then,
I am taken away and used to guard the way.

I sit with an extra part,
Open, shut, open, shut,
And then I break,
And I am once again forgotten.

My execution date is decided,
I am to be killed, broken,
I am rolled down a hill,
Ready for what is to come.

Then I am rescued,
Saved from a dance with death,
Seen for what I am,
I am saved.

Now I live happily,
With a man and his wife,
I am happy in my new home,
And this is how I got across my life.

George King
Aged 13
Manchester Grammar School
July 2009

The Plastic Container

In the simple plastic container;
Lie clues of the ancient world,
Hallmarks of culture and style,
A simple man's piece of flint,
An intricate china vase.

They lie here shattered and broken,
Neglected and all alone,
Their proud history behind them,
All together and humiliated.

The miniature of a great warrior's axe,
The lip of a modest pot,
A rare bracelet, reminiscent of the Roman Age,
They are here, waiting to be explored.

Bookmarks of millennia,
Gateways to discovery and exploration,
All here and together,
Here in this simple box.

Michael Li
Aged 13
Manchester Grammar School
July 2009

Labyrinth of Mystery

Labyrinth of mystery
Associated with astronomy
Black and white, dull and sparkly.
Young people on a voyage of mystery
Rings and circles, round and round
In and out, twisting and turning,
Never ending swirling lines
Thousands of stones planted in between
Half of day and half of night.

Megan Burns
Aged 11
Goostrey Community Primary School
July 2007