‘Are you for real?’ by Anushka Iynkaran, age 13, Year 9

I stare into the water and all I see

Is a strange creature which looks nothing like me

Its hair is long and floats in the sea

And I realise, that’s what I want to be

To be full of life and glee

And live without a single worry

To be lost in a placid reverie for eternity

No need to impress anybody

No need to do anything but lay under the canopy

Its lambent eyes reflect the light I need

The light to guide me to the deity.

To my only source of tranquility

I see the dove waft over the river dee

But as I try and reach for it, it once again flees

I want to find my path to serenity

But my life awaits at the quay

So I have to turn away  from my hopes and dreams

From the creature who I wish were me

Leaving her to rest for eternity.