"Song of the Broken Toys" by Qianqian Subbiah - Contest Entry

Song of the Broken Toys

by Qianqian Subbiah

A doll’s severed head

Collects dust on the curbside,

Mud on her ear from a car that drove too close,

Eyes forever glued open

To see the sad state

That she has become.

Four china plates

Decorated with a web of swirling blue

Stood proudly in the curio cabinet for years and years.

One day, they slipped and

Shattered on the floor

Like a million little galaxies

What were you before?

A toddler’s most prized possession?

Rubber from a spacesuit that saw the moon?

The emperor’s finest robes?

You used to be something great—

You used to have a story to tell.

Now you are nothing;

Old, forgotten, abandoned.

You have a story, but no one will listen;

You had a story, but no one will care—

Your story is over.

And then—a miracle!

Some soul sees you,

Holds you up like a

Single, flawless emerald.

To him, you are something—

To him, you are perfect.

He sees life where others see death;

He sees stories where others see just cracks

You go with those

Just as broken as you,

And somehow, together, you are

Not broken but

Wonderful.

Now you are something.

People stare when they pass you by.

You are not pretty anymore—

You do not gleam with the polish of the brand new,

You do not float on the cusp of the latest trends.

But you are unique,

Beautiful.

You are not who you used to be,

But you create new stories,

And you live

Forever.