LITTLE GIRL IN AFRICA
By Juanita Torrence-Thompson

She's ten and lives in a shack
Roofless to the sky
When it rains, it floods
Her dirt floor

She doesn't go to school
Because there's no one
To pay her school tax

She's ten and lives alone
And eats roots and bark
Sometimes she's abused by lechers
And steals food to stay alive

She has no shoes or books
She has few clothes and no toys
Last month her mother died of AIDS
Last year her father died

She has no one to hold her
During a storm and say Don't be afraid
No one to say,
That's beautiful, you go girl, go girl
No one to say, You have expressive eyes
A lovely smile, angelic face
No one to say I love you

She's ten and lives alone
In a shack roofless to the sky
And there are millions like her
Daily increasing
The pain never decreases
The little faces keep coming
Blossoms lift up into the sun
Strengthless, thin and failing

From Juanita's book, NEW YORK AND AFRICAN TAPESTRIES, which is a SMALL PRESS REVIEW "pick"