Freedom
Summer nights,
Turned off the lights,
As we wander through the streets.
These nights, our freedom,
We don’t need them.
We are young and we are free.
Don’t need a beacon,
We’re just heathens.
Don’t care as the seasons change.
Won’t be defeated,
We have our reasons,
As we run wildly through the rain.
Clodagh Scally
My Father
I have a Father like no other,
He is different to my Mother.
He’ll send his love,
From up above.
I’m not going to see him,
I just got to believe in him
Because he is very proud of me
Up high in the clouds.
Looking happily over me.
Amy Derrig
No Holly in Damascus
You all hear the sleigh bells ringing,
But you don’t hear me crying
While you’re all snug and warm by the fire side,
My country is being bombed and destroyed
For this year the only thing falling on the ground are the soldiers
Fighting against this unruly regime
No snow ball fights, rather a fight for our lives
Just having enough to barely survive
So while you open your presents under the tree
Spare a thought for others like me
As I’ll be fighting until I’m free
Carolyn Keane
Dad
While you’re sitting at home thinking about your worries
“My life is so hard” you say in a hurry
Think about the people that you love
Even the people that have been taken above
People pass away and leave a hole in your heart
And it feels like you have to start from the start
Never be afraid you are not alone
They are always with you when you’re in that zone
I love you Dad and miss you everyday
You are always in my thoughts as I pray.
Maria Cannon
Laugh and Cry
Brought up a Muslim,
Not to be looked at,
But shouted at, labelled
As a terrorist.
A controlling father,
A strong mother,
Who moved the kids away,
From a country dangerous at the time,
And a father who was nothing but sly.
To Ireland we came, staying up all night in tears with my brother,
Comforting me as my mother,
As he wept on Skype to hold this no good marriage together.
From monthly visits, to the odd phone call, to lies,
Cheating, forgetting about the past, becoming myself at last,
Able to show my skin, more freedom, used,
Told to cover up once again, lost, falling,
Not one boy always had my back,
Known as a knack,
But they don’t know him like I do,
His experiences caused him to do bad things,
I knew it wasn’t one of those flings,
He asked me to help him change for the good,
But there was only so much to do that I could,
Whatever it was we got through,
Talked about our troubles,
But realised on the road they were just puddles,
Love got us though anything they through at us two,
We would laugh and cry,
Laugh and not lie.
Anon
The Pain of not Knowing
The pain of not knowing,
When, how, why,
Tomorrow, next month,
The dreaded day you say goodbye.
What if it’s never actually a reality,
It never peaks its ugly head,
And you thank your lucky stars,
It has stayed silent instead.
But life often never works that way,
It’s tough and it’s blue,
And you’re forced to move forward,
Even if that’s something you can never really do.
Anon
School System
Go to school for seven hours a day,
Class after class, no escape
Pointless facts I’m supposed to remember
Fact after fact, day after day
It’s not about learning, it’s about passing
If you don’t you are labelled as a failure
No way around it just got to get through it.
Maybe one day they will figure out how to change it.
This system is flawed because they never thought
That not everyone is the same
Dearbhla Feehan
It’s not my Fault
It’s not my fault
It’s my fault I didn’t say no
It’s my fault I never told him to take things slow
It’s my fault I was labelled a hoe
It’s my fault I put too much on show
It’s my fault is need to let it go
I should have known
But I turned to stone
“Not about me”
Anon
A Typical Boy
You made me feel wanted
You made me feel warm
I wanted to be with you
But you had another plan in mind
You made me think it was something
But then you stopped
You ignored me for days
I thought it was me
I felt like I was doing something wrong
But really you were just being a typical boy
You were acting like every other lad I talked to before
But then you said sorry
Which gave me hope when there was none
You made me believe there was a bit of good in you
When you were just using me for your own entertainment
Your own fun
You then made me feel stupid
You made me feel unwanted and used
I feel like I just wasted my time
On someone who was just gonna break my heart
Cathy Gavin
Till We Meet Again
It’s just like when we were kids,
When I wanted to go with you,
But you told me I was too young.
You said it was only for big people,
And that I was too small.
You told me to wait until I was old enough.
This time, Dav, it was you who was too young to go,
And I want to go with you more than ever,
I wish I could join you now,
For living without you seems so pointless.
You keep telling me to wait,
Just until it’s my time,
So I promise Dav I will.
I will hold you in my heart forever,
And love you endlessly,
I’m counting down the days till we meet again.
C.W.
Feelings
Feelings,
Simple right?
Happiness, sadness, fear, anger,
Something happens, you feel an emotion.
But when feelings mix,
And develop and grow,
That’s when things get complicated.
Like tiny silk threads woven together,
Causes difficulty,
To separate one from another,
Or understand the sources.
But the physical weight of these,
Complex emotions,
Can cause great pain,
And lifelong scars.
The heaviness is like wet clothes,
Slowing your every step,
As you crawl through dreaded daily routine,
A mass of happiness plasters your face.
Sometimes these emotions,
Aren’t even our own,
They stick to us, like metal to magnet,
Developed from others issues.
Intertwining, creating more weight,
And more difficult to tame,
But without all these emotions,
I don’t think I would be the same.
Grace Moran
Change the World
She will change the world
With a piece of paper
She will change the world
With a stroke of a pen
She will change the world
With the things she learns
She will change the world
With the books she reads
She will change the world
With her mind
She will change the world.
Anon
Acceptance
When he was young he was seen as weird,
Because he wanted to be himself.
When he grew up he was made fun of,
Because he wasn’t like everyone else.
At five years old he was pushed and poked,
Because he wanted to play with girls.
At eight years old he was discriminated,
Because of his black skin and afro curls.
At ten years old he was called ‘nothing’,
Because he wasn’t big and tough.
At twelve years old he was body shamed,
Because he wasn’t muscly enough.
At fourteen years old he was told that he should,
Simply be put in jail.
Because at fourteen years old they all found out,
He didn’t want to be a male.
At fifteen years old he began thinking about,
What everybody had said.
At sixteen years old he started wondering,
‘Would it be better if I were dead?’
At seventeen years old he hated himself,
And he shut himself away.
At eighteen years old he kept his head down,
While his heart continued to fray.
This is the boy who began life,
With a joyful and happy mind.
This is the boy who was not accepted,
Just ignored and left behind.
This is the boy who had a dream,
To simply be himself.
This is the boy who was tortured,
Because he wasn’t like everyone else.
The importance of acceptance,
Is more than words can say.
Because if this boy was accepted,
He’d still be here today.
Katie O’Connell
Bright Stars
When my Grandad died,
I didn’t sit and cry,
I smiled about the past.
The fun we had,
The days out with Grandad,
Will always be remembered.
I can’t remember the day we met,
From 02 to 2011.
From when I arrived to when you died,
We shine like two bright stars in the sky.
Orla Mulloy
Stick to Horses, They can’t Hurt You
Parents split at the age of five,
Not a good start to the rest of my life,
I fell in love
With not a boy
But a passion,
Nothing made me feel better, freer
Than a flat out gallop on the beach,
Away from
Everyone
And
Everything.
I grew out of my passion and into a love,
In love?
That’s what i thought.
But with a boy,
Not a horse.
A boy, not a horse?
A huge mistake
A user
Not only a user
A user and a bruiser
You hurt me
You hurt me like a thump in the heart
You left a hole in my heart
You left me
And you try coming back
And off I go
For a gallop
A long gallop
Away from everyone and everything.
Emily McNally
The C Word
You really are an evil beast,
Destroying everyone’s lives,
He’s soon to be deceased,
Whilst stabbing us with a thousand knives.
I sit here watching him in pain,
There must be something I can do,
But no you just laugh and laugh in vain,
Whilst we battle through.
The doctors say he’s not going to live,
The tears roll down my face,
Nothing else I can give,
You truly are a disgrace.
Anon
“The Endless”
Down a spooky corridor the church doors lay, it’s even cold down there in May
When you’re walking down the hall you might even meet Mr Hall
When you’re walking please beware as on the right there is a bear
If you have a question, just ask Ms Hession
In the morning it can be dark so please be careful of the shark
Up the “wall” the bugs do crawl
I hate to boast but there is a ghost who loves to eat toast
Ella Conway
“Coffee”
My cold coffee is so yummy when I make it with my mummy
My ice cubes like to make a fuss when I get onto the bus
I do a messy bun for fun, it bounces in the air when I run
My dad was late so had to skate and Daniels foot got in the way
Niamh Mulroy
Untitled
Everything happens for a reason,
It’s something I’ve always believed in.
I must admit I was in love
But I wasn’t his turtle dove.
He doesn’t lay awake at night,
Thinking about how to make things right
I tried, I cried and nearly died inside.
Anon
Thinking about Life
When I think about life I see changes that are happening
But when I think deeply about life I see the changes that don’t happen
And how the world can get people into such disasters
People change for the best in hope that their lives will improve some what
People change because their weak and no longer can carry on
People change in order to stand out
But not everyone can afford to change their lives around that quickly it takes time
Some have strong addictions that are leading them in terrible directions
These addictions are tearing families apart
The same addictions break your heart
Caoimhe
Scream and Shout
They scream and shout,
They raise the house,
They aint never gonna stop,
Until they reach the top.
You underestimate them,
You criticise them,
But they’re stronger than you.
So you can put them down,
You can kick them out,
But they’re better than you,
And that’s a fact.
Ella Hynes
Love
I think about you everyday,
Morning through to night,
Although I wanted you to stay,
You couldn’t win the fight.
Little did I know,
That Christmas 2014,
Would be the last year,
We’d tell you Santa had been.
I never got to say goodbye,
But there’s another thing too,
I forgot to tell you everyday,
How much I love you.
But I guess things are different now,
Now that you’re gone,
Even though it’s hard,
I have to carry on.
Sheeena McTaggart
Bad Lads
They always think they know,
But they never ever show,
What’s going on inside their heads,
Cos if they shared they would be dead.
Walking through the halls,
Thinking they got balls,
Thinking they’re so well,
Like a bat outta hell.
Anon
The Ref
I stand alone on the pitch,
I bet you didn’t know I was far from rich,
You call me stupid, you call me blind,
When actually I’m quite kind,
Bet you wouldn’t know what I’ve been through,
All you care about is you and your crew,
I try my best to play things fair,
All I want is for someone to care,
The abuse I get,
Has kept me out of debt,
But is that 40 euro worth those threats,
But to those few people who stand on the line,
Don’t understand I’m far from fine.
Rachel Kirby and Molly Moore.
I Matter
Think you’re better but you’re not,
One of these days you’ll get caught,
Now we see your true colours,
And you’re afraid your social life will get duller.
You bitch all day and all night,
You’ll no longer give me a fright,
You think you have all the power,
You stand over me like a tower.
You tell me to chew with my mouth closed,
But one of these days I’ll punch you in the nose,
One of these days you will shatter,
Cause guess what- I matter!
Jessica O’Grady, Kelli Murray, Jessica O’Donnell
Summer Sets Sail
As the summer sets sail,
And bids us goodbye,
I watch as the sun goes low in the sky.
The rustling leaves crunch on the ground,
The Autumn is here,
We’re winter bound.
My heart sinks as I think of my summer,
The light, the heat, the sun,
It’s a bummer.
What’s to enjoy the dark, the cold,
But I punch myself and say,
“I won’t fold”
Every season has it’s only loving glee,
And I must make the best of what’s going to be.
Winter is good,
Hot chocolate, snow and warm fires,
Presents and gleefulness.
So it’s important to enjoy each season I feel,
As every season has its own appeal.
Spring brings life,
Summer brings sun,
Autumn brings colour,
And in winter have fun.
Time passes so quick, they say,
Time goes so fast,
My teenage years won’t always last,
So bring on the autumn,
I’m ready to do,
All the things to enjoy,
And you should do too!
Laoise G