'Captivation' and 'Serenity'

Amelia Shirley received an award for these poems from her entries to the Junior Poetry Prize:

Captivation

We knew there must be
More to living.
We'd heard of places where
People laughed with genuine joy.

We knew that lying here in
Metal beds watching
The starless sky
Couldn't be forever.

We would be released
From our solitude,
Shown how to embrace
The moon's glinting hollowness
And tell them...
We survived.


Serenity

The pure look of understanding
In his eyes burnt a hole
In my heart.

The simplicity of his smile
And contentment of his soul
Screamed out to me through barriers of wickedness.

He had seen life,
Seen death.
Then,
He had seen me.