Poetry

A Home In Every House


Behind closed doors somewhere out there lies a man's dirty secret;
His daughter wailing on her bed,
His wife cleaning her bruises from the previous night's beating,
His son close to tears as he looks at a photograph of the good father he once had.

Behind locked doors somewhere out there lies a drunken woman's dirty secret;
Her malnourished toddler, alone and terrified in a dingy apartment,
Her desolate daughter selling her body to raise money for food and a few bills,
Her eldest son knocked out by a cheap brew, following in his mother's footsteps.

Behind closed doors somewhere out there;
A teenage girl's heart sinks as she watches the sunset,
Memories of the terrible nights she has endured drive her to violent sobs,
The man who raised her has abused her over and over again,
She has nowhere to run to and no one to tell, all she has is a dream to hold on to.

Behind locked doors, under fancy roofs and colourful paints
Lie the world's dirty secrets;
Pleas for help that have either gone unheard or have been ignored,
And horrible creatures who plague innocent children yet still walk free.

Behind closed doors somewhere out there lie children like me,
Who have heard the cries of the neglected toddler,
The lamentations of the regretful wife,
And the screams of the abused teenager.

Behind locked doors somewhere out there,
Lie the children of all sorts of backgrounds with whom I share a dream,
That one day, somewhere in the future,
Every child will be born into a loving family
And every child will enjoy their childhood.

I have a dream that someday every man and woman
Will be loyal to their spouse
And every man and woman will diligently strive to build a home in every house.

By Laura Benson