Looking at tags on my shirts and pants, I often wonder about the people who made these items. Not many of us in developed countries sew our own clothes anymore. And while local food has become a movement, our clothing mostly comes from overseas. Sometimes I think about how easily my children or I could have been born somewhere different, forced to toil in a garment factory for long hours. Grateful for our circumstances, I hope for and believe in the right of education for all children.
I once read that Native Americans would thank animals who gave their lives for food, and in that spirit this poem grew.
Worlds Apart
A young girl
somewhere
far away
sewed the shirt
I wear today.
She cut the cloth.
She trimmed
each thread.
At a machine
she bent her head.
This factory worker
stitched to earn
while I read books
in school to learn
of songs and art
of maps and math.
Across the world
a different path
met this young girl
who's just like me
but may a classroom
never see.
I thank her
as I dress each day
and hope she gets
some time to play.
© Amy LV
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