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Trouble is not my middle name by Liz Lochhead

Scotland's Makar, Liz Lochhead, has written a poem to mark the launch of this year’s campaign for new recruits to the Children’s Panel. The poem, written from a child’s perspective is entitled ”Trouble is not my middle name”.

Trouble is not my middle name

Trouble is not my middle name.
It is not what I am.
I was not born for this.
Trouble is not a place
though I am in it deeper than the deepest wood
and I’d get out of it (who wouldn’t?) if I could.

Hope is what I do not have in hell –
not without good help, now. Could you
listen, listen hard and well
to what I cannot say except by what I do?

And when you say I do it for badness
this much is true:
I do it for badness done to me before
any badness that I do to you.

Hard to unfankle this.
But you can help me. Loosen
all these knots and really listen.
I cannot plainly tell you this, but, if you care,
then -- beyond all harm and hurt --
Real hope is there.