Daniela Ponce- Her Long Poem

The streets of New York City can get dangerous and cold But there is one little boy who has always been bold. He has lived on the streets since he was eight years old And never bothered believing in everything he was told. His parents perished in a tragic accident, which left the poor boy emotionally spent. This was something that he overcame all alone, And the experience had made him all grown. At the age of twelve he survived on his own Occasionally finding food amongst wrappers and bones. The life that he leads consists of constant struggle to survive And no matter what good thing may come his way it cannot revive The young innocent child that once was alive. On good nights he sleeps on a stolen treasure of a sleeping bag, And on the bad nights his things get stolen and the night turns to a drag. The boy wrestles and struggles to keep his belongings No matter what not admitting to the deep ache of longing. His longing to see his parent’s faces again, To never have to live on the streets with the dirty men. While lying tucked in next to a grimy old wall The boy lies dreaming that he could have had it all. With a swift shake of his head and roll of his eyes The young boy stops his mind and simply lies. A minute passed, an hour, or two When suddenly a strange noise towards him the wind blew. He jolts up tensed and ready for a fight, Having no clue that something just landed from its flight. Once up on his feet he turns his head left to right Trying to find what could have woken him in the night. With nothing but pure curiosity driving his feet forward The boy is stunned and cannot find his words Once he comes upon the sight that stands before him. He turns around and runs far from it on a whim. He can hear heavy breathing and the padding of feet following And the boy just wants to lie down and continue his wallowing. With a look over his shoulder he sees the enormous beast And knows that his scrawny physique would not be much of a feast. Regardless the youngster pushes on with sweat dripping With each step his energy gradually slipping. The boy takes a desperate turn around the closest building His human instincts to survive remaining unyielding. As he keeps on running the wind picks up And when he looks overhead he gets a closeup Of a terrifyingly magnificent fire breathing dragon. The boy comes to a halt when he sees the creature of fiction And ponders what will be his next course of action. Before he can turn and continue to flee, The dragon says to him, “I come peacefully.” The boy startles and stares at him wide-eyed Feeling so frightened that his nerves are fried. Upon further inspection the boy can see that he is sincere, Perhaps there is more to this creature than appears. “I have flown far and wide across many seas, And have continuously seen you in several alleys. The little orphan boy with no home of his own. You are the one for whom I have flown.” A puzzled expression painted on the young boys face Was enough to indicate he thought the dragon a nutcase. “Dragons don’t fly to New York! They aren’t real!” The boy exclaimed feeling this was all so surreal. “If that were true I would not be here. I am an ally, my name is Emir.” His heart pounding deep in his chest, The little boy decided not to protest. “My name is Jo. Nice to meet you.” To say Jo was not scared would be untrue. “Jo I have travelled to this land with a purpose, Us dragons stay hidden and do not often resurface.” Jo was unsure if he were really seeing this Or if this was something he should dismiss. Emir continued speaking and Jo paid close attention. “The dragons fear there is danger and feel much apprehension, I seek out your help to ease their distress and tension.” “How could I possibly be able to help mythical creatures?” The boy watched the dragon and carefully studied his features. The only option he saw was helping this stranger. Besides, he was already accustomed to living in danger. “You are the boy who is destined to save our dying race.” Jo could not help but notice how this dragon possessed so much grace. “Fine, I’ll help you even though I don’t know how.” “Fantastic! We must leave now.” Before he could be sure of what had transpired, Jo found that to save a dragon race he had been hired. Emir threw Jo onto his back and started his long trek, As for Jo he clung desperately to the mysterious dragon’s neck. Carefully peeking downward all Jo could see Was a quiet and resting seemingly peaceful city. Jo took one final look at the city he knew And with not much sadness bid it adieu. The journey took many days and Jo slept for most of it, No matter where they were the sky was always starlit. Once they had reached the dragon’s resting grounds, All the other dragons came out when they heard the sounds. When they all came out there was at least twenty And Jo couldn’t help think that that was quite plenty. However he was still willing to help their race And didn’t sense from them any hostility, not one trace. The other dragons looked at the boy with hesitation, Not quite sure if he would truly be their salvation. Emir chose this moment to say to them all, “I know that he looks very small, But this young child will help us during our time of need.” Jo looked around and saw that with Emir they all agreed. It was not difficult to deduce That to this group of dragons Emir was their Zeus. The leader himself had sought out Jo’s assistance, When Jo did not even know of dragons existence. It was in this moment that Jo officially made up his mind. A way to save the dragons he was determined to find. With Emir as his companion Jo set out on his adventure.