Hell

Hell The place of safety was dirty and cold The building smelt musty, damp and old Place of safety in which I was to roam Was, in fact, a children's home They clothed and fed me as little as they could They didn't look after me as they should We weren't their kids. Why should they care? It wasn't their kids that were shoved in there! ” I always had a dirty face Left to fend for myself in that horrible place The bedrooms were damp, filthy, and bare They contained a few beds, a table, a chair There were cobwebs adorning the corners of the ceiling The wallpaper mouldy, curling, and peeling Decor dated from The Sixties describe it well This was the hovel in which we were to dwell The beds were hardly ever made The sheets were worn, tatty, and frayed The windows were cracked and not at all safe What a place to keep a young waif! What would happen if I had fell? Would they have been worried? Would they hell! At night, I often sobbed and cried I even contemplated suicide The staff never seemed to care Didn't even know that we were there Imprisoned in a hellish nightmare It wasn't our fault. It wasn't fair I shared a room with five other kids The windows were secured with old metal grids The staff said it was to keep thieves at bay But I think it was to stop us from running away I would stand silently in the dinner queue Holding my tray that was coloured blue Served like cattle at a trough Slop dumped on our tray, quickly sent off Plastic knife, spoon, and fork Eating in silence, I dare not talk Staff eyes watching us eat every bit Making sure we ate all of it We ate gruel, they ate steak We ate shortbread, they ate cake I would often play alone in my room My only doll I used to groom I gave her a name, I called her Nancy She was a cheap doll, nothing fancy She was made from a cheap, flimsy plastic Her clothes were worn and had no elastic Her clothes were made from an off-white lace Moth-hole ridden all over the place I used to sit there brushing her hair She was the only one that seemed to care Cared that I was hurting inside Cared if I lived or died Cared if I had a dirty face Cared that I was stuck in that place She was my one and only friend She stayed with me until the end This is how I was treated for the next few years Both by the staff and also their peers SammieJ