Deprived Childhood
Little big men pre-teen rebels
Playing virtual reality star-warrior games Wooden salutes bent on destruction Roughneck peg leg slivers removed
Boy toys hawk-eyed falconry prey
Pointed wings exacting swift revenge
Claw hammers adapted for seizure
Striking terror in faint-hearted innocence
Twisted tiercels coiled atop pedestal
Pampering mothers favorite son candidates Awakened before sunrise dawning revelations Veiled niqab avoiding almond-lashed contact
Peregrine hope chest chaste virgins
Anticipating marital not martial arts
Eyas feathering nest egg reserve
Parturition bearing overripe womb fruit
Clenched right hand noshing mouthfuls
Treachery stuffed down parched throats
Unflinching faith gagging free speech
Force fed smoldering firebrand passion
Soldiers of misfortune thorny crowns
Spineless hatemongers prickly heat rash
Strung out worry beads dripping
Salty petrified teardrops bloody sweat
We grow small justifying Greatness
Bored lives bargaining sold-out anima
Iffy future far from certain
Children deserve kismet butterfly kiss
FantAsia
Victims of circumstance wounded pride
Knocked senseless by crippling war
Overcoming obstacles plucky heartstrings satisfied With less hoping for more
Haunted houses built on crutches
Raised on stilted ghostly folklore
Under starless full moon thatch
Splintered misfit slivered plank floor
Altar missing confiscated Emerald Buddha Sacred caves petrified images galore Ceremoniously sanctified by Buddhist monks Blest consecration inscribed atop door
Familial abandon unjust spellbound curse Simple subsistence routine daily chore Parched uncultivated sticky rice fields Steep climbs left to explore
Overripe vulnerable “tweens” pubescent rebels Rural life stretched yawning bore Hooked on Ecstasy disillusioned stupor Disinclined losers desperate to score
Muted joy instilling muffled silence
Crusty scabs coverup unhealed sore
Avoiding confrontations at any cost
Predestined fortune worth fighting for