The Princess Without Shoes

The Princess Without Shoes

Daddy’s young lady, he adored you very much,
Hard times came, no coins for trinkets and such.
He wanted to spoil you with tokens of expression,
This was impossible during the Great Depression.

Looking for a scapegoat upon to place the blame,
Ethnicity became an issue, America went insane.
You needed shoes so he went to get for you a pair,
This was the final cruel straw that led to your despair.

Because he was Russian the shopkeepers had denied,
His right to get your shoes so he broke down and cried.
Strong for so long, but he now felt nothing but despair,
Were his thoughts of you as he climbed onto the chair?

It was too much to see his little princess without any shoes,
He would end his pain by the end of a hang man’s noose.
He thought he was giving you a gift, not hurting you so bad,
He was giving you a chance to live the life you never had.

He took a piece of your heart that was missing all your life
You felt a tabooed shame and your soul was filled with strife.
Though you missed poppa, his absence you didn’t resent,
What didn’t kill you made you strong, that was his last present.

This poem is about my Great-Grandfather's suicide that devastated my Grandmother.
Being the child survivor a parent that commits suicide leaves scars that last a lifetime.
During the Great depression, propaganda made people blame race for the economy,
When it was all the fault of our own government. As a result, there was severe ethnic discrimination,
even between whites. It became so severe that it interfered with daily life and one's ability to have a job,
being denied service or products in stores. Our government tries to erase the truth of this aspect of the Great Depression.
If you are feeling suicidal:
Please seek help from friends, Doctors, and most of all, The Lord Jesus Christ.


By: Kimarie