BEREAVEMENT | A new hand to hold - a poem about bereavement
Channel: Pooky Knightsmith Mental Health
Date: 13/03/2020

This is a poem I wrote about a little boy who lost his Dad and how this affected him, and the role of his teacher.  Here are the words of the poem.  

He stood and he stared
And then reached for the hand
Of the person he hoped
Would help him understand.
But the hand was not there,
And the bad feelings grew,
And before long he found
He knew not what to do.
The feelings grew bigger
And harder to tame,
They were ugly and scary,
He knew not their name.
He tried to contain them,
But when they burst out,
It changed him completely,
He’d scream and he’d shout.
But everyone thought
He was naughty and bad,
Nobody knew
That he’d just lost his Dad.
The hand that was missing
Unravelled his mind,
And made it too hard
To be calm and be kind.
Things got no better
For quite a long time,
Until one day a teacher said
Why not hold mine?
Your Dad’s hand is missing,
That must make you sad,
But if you hold my hand
We’ll make things less bad.
So he reached out his fingers
With caution at first,
As he realised that things could not
Get any worse.
And as he held onto
This new hand, he found
That slowly, he put his feet
Back on the ground.
Things were not easy,
He had to work hard,
But he felt things improve
As he let down his guard.
And alongside his teacher
He felt safe and secure,
It felt better than feeling
So sad and unsure.

This poem is on page 45 of my book 'Using Poetry to Promote Talking and Healing' with the following questions to help you explore it:

*Why does the boy get angry?
*The poem talks about missing holding his Dad's hand - what do you think *this represents? What else is missing now that the subject's Dad has gone?
*What do you think people think about the boy's bad behaviour?
*What do you think they would think if they knew he had lost his Dad?
*How could people help the boy to feel better?
*The boy feels sad and angry, is that okay?

I'd love to hear your thoughts on this poem and how you might be able to use it. 
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You might also be interested in my books:
The Mentally Healthy Schools Workbook: https://amzn.to/2YKfT0B
Cards Against Anxiety (Guidebook & Card Set): https://amzn.to/2wzrUgn
Can I tell you about self-harm: https://amzn.to/2EkpcNc
The Healthy Coping Colouring Book & Journal: https://amzn.to/2SfT4xG
Using Poetry to Promote Talking and Healing: https://amzn.to/2BV80ML
Self-Harm and Eating Disorders in Schools: https://amzn.to/2SSUJyN