Somebody's Daughter

joseph Crann 1963 (NJ)

Free verse

She is somebody's daughter
but now she belongs to the streets,
where she dances with the traffic
begging for kindness.

The headlights shine on her
illuminating her hollow face,
ragged body and torn dirty
clothes.

I look at her and wonder,
was she ever pretty,
did she ever wear a frilly dress
did she ever look her best.

I wonder if she ever had an
easy life, where she was loved and
cared for
perhaps somebody's wife?

Maybe her life was brutal from the start,
an un-wanted child from a broken home
neglected by her parents.

Maybe that's why she's an addict

Maybe she never had a chance

The only thing for certain is that
she is somebody's daughter

About this poem

I often see drug addicts in the street when I'm driving to work at night. One night I saw this woman and she made me think about my daughter who thankfully isn't an addict

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Written on September 09, 2023

Submitted by joec63 on October 16, 2023

: 42 sec read
: 277 Views

Quick analysis:

Scheme	Axxx axbx abxx xxxx xxx x x xA
Closest metre	Iambic tetrameter
Characters	656
Words	137
Stanzas	8
Stanza Lengths	4, 4, 4, 4, 3, 1, 1, 2

Full analysis for Somebody's Daughter »

joseph Crann

I'm just an ordinary guy writing down the observations I see in life. I have written over 700 poems but have never been published. I am trying to read every poem from my favorite poet Charles Bukowski. I am also influenced by Jack Kerouac, Bob Dylan and Jim Morrison. Hopefully someday I might win a contest or get published. Poetry is an escape into your soul and that's why I love doing it. more…

All joseph Crann poems | joseph Crann Books

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6 Comments

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Soulwriter
Congratulations- a touching piece of writing.
LikeReply5 months ago
Vixility
There is a large homeless population where I live and I often see very young addicts among them—needless to say, it breaks my heart, and I often wonder about their lives, how could it have been different for them. Your poem beautifully reflects the sadness of these ruminations.

Well done … more »
LikeReply 15 months ago
MaggieRan26
Somebody’s Daughter was on my short list. Thank you for seeing and sharing your vision of the addict as a fellow human worthy of compassion and consideration. Compelling.

Additionally, I find your poem well constructed, and your words poignant. Thank you for sharing.

Congratulations! more »
LikeReply5 months ago
emergentauthor
So, let me talk about the things I love about this poem. First off, congratulations Joseph!! And secondly, I can see why this was picked for second place. This was so heartfelt; great message we all need right now written so methodically to convey the idea to show kindness to others because we've never walked a mile in anyone else's shoes. The line breaks you picked really pull that off effectively, like when it cuts to "neglected by her parents." Also love how the poem starts and ends with the same line to reinforce your message, and that last line break in the final couplet hits me like a punch to the gut! Well done, Joseph. And kudos to the lack of a period at the end more »
LikeReply 15 months ago
lovingempath
Congratulations Joseph!! Pretty profound poem; and certainly gives people something to think about.
LikeReply5 months ago
Caliconine
It brought me deep compelling thought presented totally different than society presents. Thank you . I enjoyed.
LikeReply5 months ago

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"Somebody's Daughter" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 28 Apr. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem/173110/somebody's-daughter>.

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