Poem by Frank Lin

The Dreaded Beasts Of Hunger

The shattering roar
of the Lion.

The maniacal laughter
of Hyenas.

Those claws that catch,
Those jaws that snatch,
for food.

Beware the hunger, my friend.
The twisting of minds,
The warping of fate.

For the hunger approaches
with eyes of flame,
devouring the essence of self.

We are no different
from the beasts we fear.
Divided by hunger,
soon to be near.

For what is society,
with hunger inside?
A terrible beast
feared by all humankind.

The fattened ones feast,
while the skinny ones crawl,
gnawing on scraps
if they get any at all.

Like lions hoarding,
like vultures who sneer,
the strong take their fill
while the weak disappear.

This poem first appeared in West Side Campaign Against Hunger.

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BIO: Frank Lin is a seventh-grade student at Hunter Campus High Schools who likes art and writing, and in general, stories, whether they be comics or long essays of information.