Lockdown Poetry Anthology
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1<br />
King Edward VI School<br />
Life during<br />
<strong>Lockdown</strong><br />
<strong>Poetry</strong> <strong>Anthology</strong><br />
2020
2<br />
‘We were quarantined; we were anxious; we learned new<br />
routines; we were resilient, we were strong…<br />
We are King Edward VI School.’<br />
This anthology was created to complement our Virtual Sports Day, which took<br />
place on 15 July 2020. The task of writing a poem provided our wonderful<br />
students with an opportunity to express themselves, to regain a sense of<br />
community, and to feel connected during a period of separation.<br />
Acknowledgements:<br />
Special thanks to…<br />
- The PE Department for organising our school’s Virtual Sports Day and<br />
enabling students to come together in this way. With special thanks to<br />
Miss Ward for masterminding the whole operation.<br />
- Mrs MacLachlan<br />
- Miss Warner<br />
- Mr Herbert<br />
- Mrs Frost<br />
- Mrs Fouracre-Smith<br />
- Mrs Dunning<br />
- Mr Last<br />
- Miss Reynolds<br />
- Miss Cochran<br />
- Mrs Diamond<br />
And finally to our fantastic students and their parents/carers who have worked<br />
hard to ensure that the home can be a place to learn!<br />
Contents:<br />
Thank you Key Workers | pp. 3-8<br />
Hope <strong>Poetry</strong> | pp. 9-21<br />
Togetherness and Community | pp. 22-30
3<br />
For Those Who Care<br />
Thank you for devotion to duty,<br />
For all your loving care,<br />
Healing lives at huge risk to their own,<br />
How can we thank them for the warmth they’ve shown?<br />
A big THANK YOU to Doctors, Nurses and more,<br />
For making our lives safe like before,<br />
My Mum is one of these a nurse no less,<br />
So on behalf of me and everyone,<br />
A big thank you to the NHS.<br />
So we all come together,<br />
And clap our hands,<br />
To say thank you to the key workers,<br />
Working hand in hand.<br />
By Jacob Griffin (Year 6)
4<br />
Coronavirus Can’t<br />
Thank you to our keyworkers,<br />
Thank you to all those who have helped us through this challenging, time, to<br />
those that stand proudly to those who quietly do their job, where would we be<br />
without you?<br />
Thank you to the inspirational teachers still supplying us with, an educational<br />
experience, to the lifesaving NHS staff, keeping us safe, to the friendly<br />
supermarket workers stocking our, shelves with food and drink for our health.<br />
Thank you to the courageous police force for keeping us, Protected, to the<br />
hard working transportation workers, Delivering essential goods to our shops<br />
and homes, to the, carers caring for our loved ones.<br />
Thank you to our community for making us laugh, for holding socially distanced<br />
street parties, making us feel safe, looking out for us and coming together.<br />
Coronavirus can’t break community.<br />
Grace Beasley (Year 6)
5<br />
The Hands of the Helpers<br />
My Aunt is in the NHS,<br />
She always helps and cares,<br />
She holds the hands of sick people in need,<br />
She helps the people who fall to their knees.<br />
She always risks her life for others.<br />
Even though she’s got type 1 diabetes herself,<br />
And during these terrible, bad times,<br />
She still goes into work for other people’s health.<br />
Working with a job like this is risky,<br />
Especially during these times,<br />
And when a soul is crying for help,<br />
She is there all the time.<br />
How could thanking the NHS be enough?<br />
They save lives every day.<br />
They help people with illness and injuries of every kind,<br />
And guide the poorly their way.<br />
My Aunt is in the NHS.<br />
She is as brace as a fearless lion,<br />
Each day has a traumatic experience.<br />
But the rain disappears, and the rainbow appears,<br />
And begins to cheer the NHS workers on.
6<br />
My Aunt and other nurses,<br />
Need to wear PPE,<br />
It is very hot and uncomfortable,<br />
But it is for everyone’s safety<br />
Each day has a scary experience,<br />
But their courage carries on growing,<br />
For them it’s like being in a rowing boat,<br />
But they still have to carry on rowing.<br />
That’s why I am grateful for the NHS.<br />
I thank them dearly every day.<br />
So, whenever you’re injured or ill,<br />
The NHS is here to stay!<br />
Grace Hindley (Year 6)
7<br />
Keyworkers<br />
Thanks to all the keyworkers<br />
Who help us every day,<br />
At 8 o’clock on Thursday nights<br />
We clapped and said ‘hooray’<br />
You are working so hard<br />
And doing your best<br />
We are lucky to have you<br />
Our countries’ finest<br />
You all work non-stop<br />
And never give up hope<br />
And seeing all that you must see<br />
I am not sure if I would cope.<br />
So we’ll make our signs<br />
To show we care<br />
For all key workers everywhere<br />
The nurses, doctors, drivers, soldiers,<br />
Teachers, Police and all shop workers,<br />
To brighten up this time of gloom<br />
We’ll show support from every room<br />
By putting rainbows on display<br />
Shows our appreciation every day.<br />
Brecken Walls (Year 6)
8<br />
Not all Heroes Wear Capes<br />
The silent killer has charged our world,<br />
School grounds deserted, now learning is online.<br />
Supermarket staff working over time.<br />
Hospitals bulging at the seams.<br />
Staff wearing masks and PPE,<br />
Protecting you and protecting me.<br />
Can you hear the clapping, the sound of our applause?<br />
The Thursdays’ that brought us together to thank you all.<br />
Duty bound in these unpredictable times,<br />
Keeping is safe but risking your lives.<br />
Filling our windows with rainbows of hope.<br />
Constantly cleaning our hands with soap.<br />
Waving keyworkers off to work,<br />
Eye to eye with the microscopic foe.<br />
Not all heroes wear capes!<br />
Kiara Moores (Year 6)
9<br />
Hope<br />
A candle in the darkness,<br />
Calm after the storm.<br />
A rainbow arching upwards,<br />
It really can transform.<br />
Forlorn blackness<br />
Becomes promising light.<br />
The depths of despair<br />
Have an end in sight.<br />
Smiling on situations<br />
Like sun on winter days.<br />
Opening doors<br />
In so many ways.<br />
Getting us through,<br />
It has; and it will<br />
Giving us a future,<br />
Something to fulfil.<br />
So now we can look forward,<br />
We can dream, we can aspire.<br />
We can come together as a team<br />
And aim for goals set higher.<br />
It conquers the hard times,<br />
The heartbreak and the tears.<br />
It is the thing that sees us through.<br />
Hope defeats our fears.<br />
Elodie Barnard (Year 7)
10<br />
Never Give Up<br />
When all is dark and there is no way out.<br />
When you are just about to give up.<br />
Hope.<br />
Hope comes and lightens up the room.<br />
It opens the door to success.<br />
And just before hope has to go to spread her<br />
Beautiful message to more people,<br />
She whispers in your ear…<br />
“Never give up.”<br />
Grace Hamre (Year 7)
11<br />
I Hope<br />
Desire whispers in my ear,<br />
As I run and train and try again.<br />
My goal is the light at the end of the tunnel.<br />
I hope.<br />
Faith is as constant as the rising of the sun,<br />
My prayers say that spring comes soon,<br />
And new life gives optimism.<br />
I hope.<br />
Belief in my body,<br />
As my strength and life slowly returns.<br />
But after the storm comes a rainbow.<br />
I hope.<br />
Hope beats along with my heart,<br />
Like poppies following a battle.<br />
The everlasting light will end this nightmare.<br />
I hope.<br />
Matilda Ainsworth (Year 7)
12<br />
Hope<br />
Hope,<br />
It’s what is keeping this country together,<br />
Even when we are apart.<br />
Hope,<br />
Is what is keeping the NHS<br />
From giving up.<br />
Hope,<br />
The feeling that we share,<br />
On zoom or FaceTime.<br />
Hope,<br />
The feeling we are giving the earth,<br />
On those Thursdays at 8pm.<br />
Hope,<br />
The feeling we all need right now,<br />
Rosie Walters (Year 7)
13<br />
Hope<br />
Hope is a feeling of expectation and desire<br />
for a particular thing to happen<br />
Don’t lose hope and you will score,<br />
After every hour of darkness in life you need<br />
Hope to survive<br />
Hope is a word that keeps you alive<br />
Hope gives you strength.<br />
Henry Goldup (Year 7)
14<br />
Hope<br />
Hope is the belief that<br />
Things will get better<br />
No matter how vast the storm<br />
It prevails.<br />
Hope is something that pulls us together<br />
When we are apart.<br />
Hope makes us stronger<br />
In our battles and over hurdles.<br />
Hope is the light<br />
In the darkness.<br />
Hope is something we hold onto<br />
And never lose.<br />
Hope is a chain which links us all together<br />
Whatever our race,<br />
Whatever our background,<br />
Whatever our story.<br />
We all have it<br />
No matter our beliefs,<br />
No matter our view of each other,<br />
No matter our current circumstances.<br />
Hope can change the darkest times<br />
Into the funniest,<br />
It can turn the most alone times<br />
Into times where we are more connected than ever.<br />
It changes the most divided people<br />
close to each other<br />
It drives us to believe in a better tomorrow<br />
Chelsey Makhubu (Year 7)
15<br />
Hope<br />
I always have hope when I look out the window,<br />
I will never lose hope,<br />
I always have hope when I think about my friends,<br />
I will never ever lose hope.<br />
I sometimes lose hope when it starts to rain,<br />
I will always have hope,<br />
I sometimes lose hope when I can’t go outside,<br />
I will always have hope.<br />
I will always have hope for the future,<br />
I will never lose hope,<br />
I will always hope for Covid-19 to end,<br />
And nobody can get me down.<br />
Rhys Whiting (Year 7)
16<br />
Hope<br />
Hope is the feeling you get when you’re waiting<br />
For something you want.<br />
You wait and want then.<br />
You’re waiting for longer and longer<br />
Then you feel yourself get stronger.<br />
Then you finally get what you want<br />
After a really long wait.<br />
Aidan Edrupt (Year 7)
17<br />
Hope<br />
Hope is a feeling that you have in your heart when you desire to do well in<br />
something or you want something to happen but you don’t know if it will.<br />
Survival - Everyone hopes to survive this deadly virus and want all of his or her<br />
friends to survive.<br />
NHS – Put their lives at risk to save the people with coronavirus and to stop it<br />
spreading.<br />
Keeping fit – For sport that we would have done before lockdown happened<br />
Getting out of lockdown – Everyone hopes for us to get out of lockdown and to<br />
resume what we were doing before lockdown and socialise with friends.<br />
People that are dying because of the deadly virus – They feel weak and they<br />
hope that there body can keep fighting the challenge to survive.<br />
Family – wanting to stay with them as much as possible because you never<br />
know if they could pass away.<br />
Government – Doing their best to advise people on what they’re allowed to do<br />
and what they can’t do.<br />
“There is hope, even when you brain tells you there isn’t”<br />
Kiera Broad (Year 7)
18<br />
I Hope<br />
I hope I can ride my bike this afternoon<br />
And that I can hug my grandparents again…<br />
That ‘Danger Mouse’ is on tonight<br />
And that my family don’t get ill.<br />
I hope when my heart hurts.<br />
I hope I get 27 gazillion presents for my birthday<br />
And that my dad doesn’t lose his job…<br />
That I can watch cartoons all night long<br />
And see my friends again one day.<br />
I hope when my heart sings.<br />
I hope I get Kylo Ren’s shuttle next week<br />
And that school will start again soon…<br />
That I can play ‘Doodle Jump’ on mums’ phone later<br />
And find enough food for dinner tonight.<br />
I hope when my heart burns.<br />
I hope I become the most famous “baller” ever<br />
That my teacher’s stop setting so much homework<br />
And that there are jobs left for my generation.
19<br />
I hope when my heart smiles.<br />
I hope I get to stay up past my bedtime<br />
And, above all, that we learn from this…<br />
That we remember what’s really important:<br />
Fish fingers sandwiches with ketchup AND mayo!<br />
I hope.<br />
Hamish Campbell (Year 7)
20<br />
Hope<br />
Hope is where you believe<br />
That something is going to happen<br />
Like when you get older you would like to be a footballer<br />
you have to practise and practise till someone may scout you.<br />
Zachary Cook (Year 7)
21<br />
The Brightest Light<br />
The<br />
Brightest<br />
Light<br />
Hope,<br />
Dares to fight even in<br />
The darkest night<br />
Hope,<br />
Tries to keep us from fright<br />
Even when there is no light<br />
Hope,<br />
Feeds our minds with confidence and promise<br />
Even when there seems like theres nothing<br />
Logan Clifford-Kennedy (Year 7)
22<br />
Changes in Our Life<br />
As I lay in my bed I enjoy the quiet of night,<br />
I think about the day of what I could have done,<br />
A walk around the neighbourhood,<br />
A meeting with my friends but…<br />
Daylight shines through. A day begins again,<br />
Cars driving by taking people here and there,<br />
A dog barking letting everyone know it’s there,<br />
People walking and talking.<br />
I hear the birds but here the rain is falling<br />
I should be going to school but…<br />
Keep my distance; watch who I meet.<br />
This year is different; a year has been changed.<br />
All helping each other, giving and receiving.<br />
Pulling together for the good of the people,<br />
Staying alert of the virus not seen<br />
Community spirit there and to keep clean.<br />
Tyler Goddard (Year 8)
23<br />
Community and togetherness<br />
Time well spent with family via zoom.<br />
Online learning in your pyjamas!<br />
Grandmas cooking missed considerably.<br />
Everyone missing family and friends.<br />
The kitchen has never been so busy.<br />
Home schooling with a new teacher.<br />
Elderly family members not to be seen.<br />
Really long queues at every shop.<br />
Neighbours helping each other.<br />
Every week clap for carers on the drive.<br />
Silly haircuts for everyone!<br />
Such an unprecedented time.<br />
Joshua Mizen (Year 8)
24<br />
When <strong>Lockdown</strong> is over<br />
When <strong>Lockdown</strong> is over,<br />
When all is said and done,<br />
I will go out dancing,<br />
Dancing in the smiling Sun,<br />
I will take my shoes off,<br />
And feel the grass between my feet,<br />
Under the Oak tree, wizened like a crone,<br />
My friends and I will meet,<br />
We will talk about the changes,<br />
And things that we have seen,<br />
Reassuring each other that things will get better,<br />
Because there’s no more quarantine,<br />
New-borns can meet their families,<br />
Lovebirds can finally tie the knot,<br />
Support groups can meet face to face,<br />
Charities can continue their invaluable work from the place that they left off,<br />
We will hug all of our neighbours,<br />
And paint rainbows on every door,<br />
For finally, after all of this time,<br />
Life, once halted and frozen, can go on once more<br />
Rachael Snelling (Year 8)
25<br />
Our New World<br />
We've been through it all, thick and thin<br />
We’ve heard of the people getting killed by the colour of their skin.<br />
We've celebrated many birthdays in this<br />
New world of ours and thought about fleeing<br />
To the planet we call Mars.<br />
It’s different here now, much different than before,<br />
We no longer have our best friends knocking at our door.<br />
Although there is one thing, one thing that has not changed<br />
Something that doesn't need to be rearranged.<br />
Togetherness and Community the thing that<br />
Has shown a rise, the thing that we<br />
Have shown more by opening our eyes.<br />
Opening our eyes to a place called earth,<br />
The place we live, the place<br />
We’ll give birth. The place we’ll make more memories<br />
Better ones than before and remember the time you never heard<br />
A knock on your door.<br />
Ryan Burgis (Year 8)
26<br />
Anonymous, Year 8
27<br />
Togetherness is…<br />
Togetherness is calling your friends, whilst you can’t be there,<br />
Togetherness is speaking to them, like nothing has happened.<br />
Togetherness is being there for each other even though we are stuck inside,<br />
Togetherness is speaking when you cannot be heard.<br />
Togetherness is getting outside every Thursday to say thank you,<br />
Togetherness is saying thank you to the people who we hardly know.<br />
Because they are the ones that will make us be together again,<br />
Because they will make this all end.<br />
Togetherness is looking after each other,<br />
Being there for each other,<br />
And Protecting each other.<br />
Togetherness is not giving up on each other,<br />
Staying with each other when we cannot.<br />
Sticking together throughout all this,<br />
And never leaving each other behind.<br />
Arthur Pettitt (Year 8)
28<br />
Togetherness<br />
Together is a place<br />
Where it’s wonderful<br />
To be side by side<br />
And here’s where<br />
The entire family<br />
Loves to reside<br />
Kindness is given and received<br />
With no guilt or demand<br />
All are leaders here<br />
There is no command<br />
That’s why you need togetherness and community<br />
Anonymous (Year 8)
29<br />
Waiting.<br />
Even in the darkest of times,<br />
we all stay as one community.<br />
Until we wait for our unity.<br />
Even though most of us are forced to be home,<br />
we still want to be together.<br />
Even if it takes forever.<br />
Even though we can talk online,<br />
I still feel very lonely.<br />
Always waiting until we can meet again.<br />
Anonymous (Year 8)
30<br />
Untitled<br />
We went and sat out in the rain,<br />
Just so we could see you again.<br />
Cranked up the barbecue and put on our coats,<br />
Talked about how dad can hit the high notes.<br />
The weather was miserable but spirits were up,<br />
Sat around the table and drank tea from a cup.<br />
The dog razzed around and dug up the garden,<br />
As we watched the sky starting to darken.<br />
With kisses blown and hugs passed across,<br />
We got in the car, coats damp like wet moss.<br />
Hopefully soon we'll see you again,<br />
But fingers-crossed not in the rain.<br />
William Blackwell (Year 9)