where does magic go to die,
when the children grow and lose
the eyes to see it with?
does it float up and away to venture out
beyond the hills, or does it sink low
enough to burrow itself under the sea
with the world’s most covert creatures?
does it exist here, near and waiting,
beneath our feet in just the crevices
we would never see, too distracted
by the clock and the chase,
too busy to think to look?
does it rise to illuminate the stars
with pale glittering explosions of dust
our human gazes unlearn, shunned
from the loss of its home?
does it flicker and fade into
nothingness, or does it move down
the family tree, seeping into the next
young warm flesh it finds
until the skin grows cold and taut
and, with life’s cruel pull,
disappears up into the storm clouds
we pull each other inside from
under the guise of protection,
yanking the shutters closed and
pulling the blinds, steering each other
further from that soft, seductive swell,
that cracked, dangerous expanse
in the sky, where we tell ourselves that
only a child could fit; only a child could
jump high enough to reach it
About the Creator
angela hepworth
Hello! I’m Angela and I enjoy writing fiction, poetry, reviews, and more. I delve into the dark, the sad, the silly, the sexy, and the stupid. Come check me out!
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More stories from angela hepworth and writers in Poets and other communities.
roll down your window
I would never roll the windows down in a car that is not my own. I would not roll down the window in my father’s car, nor my mother’s car. I would not roll down the window in an Uber; I would not roll down the window anywhere, at anytime, for any reason, on my own.
By angela hepworthabout a year ago in Poets
📢 Raise Your Voice Thread: 01/08/2026
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By Raise Your Voice by Vocal7 days ago in Resources
Comments (10)
Great work
So wistful and beautifully written! The final four lines were a total mic drop moment. Very well done, Angela!
Love this. Inspire to hold on to the magic and wonder. It brings joy.
Woah! This poem dances with the bittersweet ache of wonder lost and questions unanswered. Its imagery swirls with mystique, from the depths of the sea to the stretch of the stars. A tender ode to childhood magic and the fleeting glimpses of the extraordinary we forget to seek. Enchanting and wistful!😊✨
This was very profound.
Wistful, Angela. I hold onto that magic but others, not so much. Loved your poem.
Such lost and wonder, fading of magic as one grows older. This was incredible, Angela! 💓
This was so poignantly beautiful. Loved your poem!
A marvelous poem that mixes melancholy and optimism quite deftly.
Magnificent!