Spoken Word: ‘Dear Little Girl’ by Myla Jones

This piece placed second for spoken word submissions in the 2022 Ánimo Voices Writing and Art Competition, which invited students to respond to the open prompt “I’ve Got Something to Say.” The competition is an opportunity to motivate, recognize, and celebrate our strong student voices through writing, spoken word, and art.

 

By Myla Jones
Ánimo South Los Angeles Charter High School 

Dear Little Girl

 

      She never cried, she never wondered,
she never asked, she never begged.
But what she did do.. she hurt, she
hurt in silence.       She was taught to never show
your emotions to the public eye…
because that would represent her
as “weak”. That was something which,
she was not.       She had to carry her siblings
on her back, while lifting her household
on her head and somehow fit school
And work in between because her bum ass
Father couldn’t lift a single finger to
Help!

Dear little girl, don’t you cut?

      Her wounds kept opening and her
wounds kept getting deeper like they were
never supposed to heal. She always tries
her hardest to be the best at everything
because if not.. she’s the unknown person
in the corner of the room.

Help her.

      Her story was constantly surrounded
around pain like she carried a crown
of thorns.

Dear little girl, aren’t you tired yet?

      People constantly take. They take and
hurt, take and leave, bruise and stain.

Dear little girl, why didn’t you bleed?

     When she was 11 she realized no
one would save her, no one would
listen to her pain. By the time when
she was 13 she stopped believing in
god all together.      Because where was he when
that man’s dirty finger rubbed
against her silk soft thighs. Where
was he when he pushed her down?
She wanted to scream for help
but it felt like she was screaming
under water       The only words he said during that
time was “did it hurt” like the physical
and mental pain he was putting her
through right then wasn’t enough.       It didn’t matter because she was
used to hurting, right? Where was
he when she was in pain. Where was
he when the bathroom floor stained
RED?! It was all in “god’s plan” huh?       She constantly had to heal from
things she didn’t deserve.

Dear little girl, where did you hurt?

      It’s not like she had anyone to talk to.
Therapy was an unknown thing so the only
people she would talk to is the voices
coming out of her head.

Help her.

SHE STARTED TO CRACK..
SHE CRACKED..SHE CRIED,
SHE BLED,SHE HURT,
SHE CRIED, SHE BLED,
SHE HURT, SHE CRIED, SHE BLED??       She tried to heal..but she couldn’t.
everything she ever had you guys
took it all away from her hands.
She was constantly labeled as the
“quiet,loner always by herself type of girl”.
But they only biased this off
of what they’ve seen, not what
she has been through. Her heart
drowned in the venom..the venom
of your words as they slithered into
her self confidence..it broke her hope
and tainted her innocence.Ran through
her veins like poison.       She always liked the color
red, ever since she was a little girl
but she never thought that would
be the last color that she would
ever see.

Dear little girl, are you okay now?

YOU SHOULD’VE HELPED HER, BUT NOW SHE’S FREE.