The Girl with the Glasgow Grin | Teen Ink

The Girl with the Glasgow Grin

February 6, 2012
By NickyJ BRONZE, Hyde Park, New York
NickyJ BRONZE, Hyde Park, New York
1 article 0 photos 138 comments

Favorite Quote:
“In three words I can sum up everything I've learned about life: it goes on.” ~Robert Frost


I see the monument in the distance
And a blossom blooms in my brain.
My feet stop dead in their tracks,
Omniscient of the lots around them.
January shivers down my spine,
Unlocking a memory I want to forget;
But I see her face every-time.
She has no name.
They call her The Girl with the Glasgow Grin.

My heart beats heavy
When I think of her.
I see her:
Her laugh, her fear, her plea;
A life clipped short.
But they don't care;
She's a present to them, a mystery wrapped in enigma,
Just as the Wolf-Man sent.
She is more to me, a part of me.
Why? Why do I feel this horrific bond?
I never knew her.
I never knew The Girl with the Glasgow Grin.

My eyes haven't tricked me, time has.
I see her there, lying among the clumps of brown grass,
Arms beckoning in false exaltation,
Her dreams eaten by weeds.
The curls of her black petals,
Burnt wisps in stagnant air.
Warm skin melted to ivory;
Translucent eyes turned opaque.
They rejoice at the sight of her, the Fiends!
This is all she is to them:
The Girl with the Glasgow Grin.

They like to gossip
And libel her.
She's the gutter w*****, the flashy escort, the exotic temptress.
She's divided, stem cut.
The flower preserved in perversity,
The roots tainted by noir.
But I see her unscathed:
Sweet.
Kind.
Naïve.
Lost, trying to find her way.
What have they done to you?
You are more than what they have made you.
You are more than The Girl with the Glasgow Grin.

I know the truth
But I am just one.
I can't stop them. They won't listen.
They need only what the Wolf-Man has given.
I want to tell her it's not her fault.
I want to tell her it's okay.
But she can't hear me;
She's a memory now,
Silenced in a world where she can not speak,
Can not feel,
Can not cry her liquid tears.
What about me? I come back to myself.
I should be moving on, yet I linger
So that I might catch a glimpse
Of The Girl with the Glasgow Grin.

The author's comments:
This is the first poem I've written in six years. I'm not sure why I felt so compelled to write this. It's dark, but it has deep personal meaning to me.

This is the first in a collection of three.

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This article has 145 comments.


NickyJ BRONZE said...
on Apr. 26 2012 at 4:46 pm
NickyJ BRONZE, Hyde Park, New York
1 article 0 photos 138 comments

Favorite Quote:
“In three words I can sum up everything I've learned about life: it goes on.” ~Robert Frost

Thank you, I'm glad you enjoyed this poem even though its not what you normally like.

And if your interested I Parts 2 and 3 already posted. Part 2 is "Look For Her" and Part 3 is "She is Not Gone". Check em out!


NickyJ BRONZE said...
on Apr. 26 2012 at 4:44 pm
NickyJ BRONZE, Hyde Park, New York
1 article 0 photos 138 comments

Favorite Quote:
“In three words I can sum up everything I've learned about life: it goes on.” ~Robert Frost

Thank you!

on Apr. 26 2012 at 4:28 pm
Kestrel PLATINUM, Warrenton, Virginia
29 articles 11 photos 189 comments

Favorite Quote:
-There are more things in heaven and earth than are dreamt of in your philosophy. (Shakespeare, Hamlet)

I really like this poem. I dont usually care for freeverse ones that dont have a clear rhyme scheme or rhythm, but this one was intriguing. :-) continue the series.

Pinipi said...
on Apr. 26 2012 at 3:11 am
Pinipi, Stockholm, Other
0 articles 6 photos 14 comments

Favorite Quote:
Sometimes you just have to pick yourself up.

That was beutiful! Keep writing.

NickyJ BRONZE said...
on Apr. 26 2012 at 12:04 am
NickyJ BRONZE, Hyde Park, New York
1 article 0 photos 138 comments

Favorite Quote:
“In three words I can sum up everything I've learned about life: it goes on.” ~Robert Frost

Thank you for taking the time to read and comment! :)

on Apr. 25 2012 at 4:32 pm
JosieFrost BRONZE, Mesa, Arizona
4 articles 0 photos 15 comments

Favorite Quote:
" Only if you believe it is."

That was good. I like how the emotipon tied in with the story. really good, keep writing!!

on Apr. 25 2012 at 4:32 pm
JosieFrost BRONZE, Mesa, Arizona
4 articles 0 photos 15 comments

Favorite Quote:
" Only if you believe it is."

That was good. I like how the emotipon tied in with the story. really good, keep writing!!

NickyJ BRONZE said...
on Apr. 16 2012 at 9:23 pm
NickyJ BRONZE, Hyde Park, New York
1 article 0 photos 138 comments

Favorite Quote:
“In three words I can sum up everything I've learned about life: it goes on.” ~Robert Frost

Not exactly, but thank you!

on Apr. 16 2012 at 8:54 pm
madlinejoy SILVER, Deale, Maryland
5 articles 0 photos 64 comments

Favorite Quote:
let go and let God
"Love is not an emotion but a choice"

gost story? cool non the less i like it

on Apr. 16 2012 at 9:51 am
katieRainbows BRONZE, Stockton, California
2 articles 2 photos 38 comments

Favorite Quote:
I was going to take over the world, but I got distracted by something sparkly.

kk i will. will you be on tonight?

NickyJ BRONZE said...
on Apr. 12 2012 at 10:33 pm
NickyJ BRONZE, Hyde Park, New York
1 article 0 photos 138 comments

Favorite Quote:
“In three words I can sum up everything I've learned about life: it goes on.” ~Robert Frost

Thank You for the read!

NickyJ BRONZE said...
on Apr. 12 2012 at 10:33 pm
NickyJ BRONZE, Hyde Park, New York
1 article 0 photos 138 comments

Favorite Quote:
“In three words I can sum up everything I've learned about life: it goes on.” ~Robert Frost

Thank You! And just click "help" in the chat window. It'll explain it all. :)

on Apr. 12 2012 at 9:42 pm
Allicat001 SILVER, Waukesha, Wisconsin
6 articles 0 photos 170 comments

Favorite Quote:
"Love is not someone you can live with, love is someone you can't live without."

"Always stand up for what's right even if that means you're standing alone."

Really, really good!  Your diction was great!

on Apr. 12 2012 at 7:45 pm
katieRainbows BRONZE, Stockton, California
2 articles 2 photos 38 comments

Favorite Quote:
I was going to take over the world, but I got distracted by something sparkly.

hecka good Nickie but show me the codes

NickyJ BRONZE said...
on Apr. 8 2012 at 5:20 pm
NickyJ BRONZE, Hyde Park, New York
1 article 0 photos 138 comments

Favorite Quote:
“In three words I can sum up everything I've learned about life: it goes on.” ~Robert Frost

Thank You very much, I appreciate it!

Dominotes said...
on Apr. 8 2012 at 1:16 am
Dominotes, Duarte, California
0 articles 0 photos 1 comment

Favorite Quote:
Whether you think you can or think you can't, you're right.

I'm mad, now I have to read everything ever written by this person :P

NickyJ BRONZE said...
on Apr. 5 2012 at 11:57 am
NickyJ BRONZE, Hyde Park, New York
1 article 0 photos 138 comments

Favorite Quote:
“In three words I can sum up everything I've learned about life: it goes on.” ~Robert Frost

Ah, Thank You for taking the time to read it. It's much appreciated ;)

lol no need to bow down, but I'm grateful for the kind words.


NickyJ BRONZE said...
on Apr. 5 2012 at 11:55 am
NickyJ BRONZE, Hyde Park, New York
1 article 0 photos 138 comments

Favorite Quote:
“In three words I can sum up everything I've learned about life: it goes on.” ~Robert Frost

THANKS!! I'm glad you liked it!

on Apr. 5 2012 at 11:51 am
Wonderment DIAMOND, Scranton, Pennsylvania
75 articles 0 photos 141 comments

So I keept seeing this appear everywhere in the chats. I decided to read it today and wow.

Just, Wow. This poem is amazing, and wonderful and it makes me want to bow down. Good job! :)


on Apr. 5 2012 at 11:50 am
_ella_herondale BRONZE, San Diego, California
4 articles 2 photos 222 comments

Favorite Quote:
"...If the Thames that ran beside them...recalled a night where the moon shone as brightly as a shilling on the same boy and girl... and thought to themselves, 'at last, the wheel comes full circle,' they kept their silence."

WOAH!! awesome at its peak, this is poetic, fluent, mysterious, and complex. LOVE THE BIG VOCAB! amazing job!