Student Publishing Program ::

Shun Fan

Time to Turn Off the Subtitles

He always watched movies with subtitles,
Afraid to miss a line.
Turning them on he always thought,
That relying on them is fine.

Life he lives like watching movies,
Afraid to stand alone.
Always fearful to make mistakes,
For his differences to be shown.

So where others went he would follow,
He’s safe if he does the same.
Always afraid that they would laugh,
The mocking laughter that came.

But one day it failed,
He saw no subtitles appear.
He knew not what to do,
His mind overwhelmed with fear.

He will not understand,
If his ears do not hear.
The assignment, the due date,
Oh how it draws near.

He watched the movie,
It was all the same.
All along, he realized,
It was just a game.

He did not need subtitles,
He could watch by himself.
A lesson he learned,
You need to trust yourself.

He looked in the mirror,
And liked what he saw.
How did he miss this,
He wondered in awe.

Before he was blind,
His actions they were few.
But the confidence he saw in himself,
The others they saw it too.

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