A Boy in Darkness -

«His name is Godfrey Fletcher

Eleven years old

Worked these pits for nearly three years

Does not know the alphabet

Cannot read in the least»

The pit shall keep him body and soul

But better that than going to school

Or ploughing the field

Hot as any fire and brimstone Methodist’s sermon down here

In the awesome stillness

Of the deep black

A Boy in Darkness

The seam they work is more than a yard

The headway here is nearly four feet

He hears the eerie sound of the whistling wind

Deep down here in the dry and the heat

A Boy in Darkness

Once upon a time

A secret shared

Threatened not to breathe a word

To a living soul

Especially mother…

He was just a boy

But even though

It wasn’t the way it’s supposed to go

Needed a father

Not this hunter

To speak of the unspeakable

Takes guts and nerve

It’s going to disturb

He can’t bring himself to say the words

Misplaced blind faith

In church and state

Tied up in too much red tape

If help comes, pray not too late

We face ourselves

Look long and hard

Make the difference

A safer place

But most of all

Don’t be afraid

To shine

Light

Into the dark

A Boy in Darkness