I have another poetry submission for you all today. Debbie Whittam reached out to me a little while ago with a poem about bullying and I instantly jumped on it because I knew how prevalent an issue bullying is and that calling out bullies needed to be encouraged.

When I read the first draft, I knew the poem was there, but there needed to be some work done with it. There was a lot of telling instead of showing; there wasn’t enough Debbie in the work itself.

After a really great conversation about our thoughts on how to make this poem work, Debbie reached out to me again with this fantastic revision. I really hope you all enjoy this as much as I do. Like I said, this is a necessary poem that personalizes what it’s like to be bullied while also teaching readers what they can do to overcome these situations.

Declaration

by Debbie Whittam

Loser
inside I cringe
one word, so many hurts
their opinions beset me, I
falter

Special
you’re not normal
I’m labelled by their words
they isolate me, I cower
alone

Scared
I seek strength not scorn
I wish you hadn’t been born
nowhere to hide now, nowhere is
safe now

Falter
understanding
it is all I have sought
you’re worthless, you’re nothing to me
just leave

Scissors
they are my choice
I wince, as they cut deep
salvation, your words won’t hurt me
sorry

Loser
you’re not normal
I wish you hadn’t been born
you’re worthless, you’re nothing to me
sorry

Deb Whittam graduated from Macquarie University Bachelor of Arts.  She seeks to inform and empower her reader by examining the relationship between perspective and reality.

Submissions

If you’re interested in submitting your own work, see my submission guidelines on my blog. You’ll find that I’m very open to all genres and all subjects. My one condition is that there should be a sense of purpose, but with all writing, that should be the goal anyway.