Adopted Child
by Emily Reed
Curly ringlets frame her skeletal face,
as ashen rags cover her fragile bones.
the caregivers say she's a waste of space,
and a wretched disgrace that no one owns.
she reaches for the bread as the words chime
in her head, she's heavy luggage they carry,
not for much longer, she's on borrowed time,
since foster care starts, in February.
last day before she enters the system,
a couple picks her up out of her cage
she felt so relieved, she could have kiss'd em',
they promise love, her wings flap- fears assuaged.
they clothed her in a cloak of affection,
what others saw as unwanted, they see as perfection.
as ashen rags cover her fragile bones.
the caregivers say she's a waste of space,
and a wretched disgrace that no one owns.
she reaches for the bread as the words chime
in her head, she's heavy luggage they carry,
not for much longer, she's on borrowed time,
since foster care starts, in February.
last day before she enters the system,
a couple picks her up out of her cage
she felt so relieved, she could have kiss'd em',
they promise love, her wings flap- fears assuaged.
they clothed her in a cloak of affection,
what others saw as unwanted, they see as perfection.