I wrote this poem years ago and never published it. It’s just a short fun read for the upcoming holiday this week that puts a spin on monsters. As someone who is actively working on children’s fiction and has a MFT graduate, I wrote this to help understand bullies, and even our children when they’re acting a little monstrous.
TRUE MONSTERS
Many want to hear screams.
Others love a shiver.
Some strive for a shriek and
A jump.
A hair-raising experience,
Chicken bumps.
A look of surprise,
A fright,
A toe-clenching delight.
But in every place from a dark bedroom and lunchroom to a playground and gymnasium, every one of them monsters on the outside and in, crave one thing.
There is a secret that threatens to diffuse their monstrous ways.
All they really want is this.
They cannot exist without attention.
They will disappear with love.
And sometimes you’ll find, that the screams and shivers, shrieks and jumps are caused by nothing monstrous at all.
In fact, sometimes underneath the cloak of a monster is just a kid hungry to be seen.
