Rooms Between Homes, By Scarlet Jay*

Scarlet Jay* is no stranger to sharing her thoughts and feelings about growing up in foster care. This National Poetry Day, we are incredibly proud to share this emotive poem that she has written.

Rooms Between Homes

In rooms between homes, where echoes sleep light, Children drift softly through dreams made of might.

They carry a suitcase of memories worn, with stories half-written and edges all torn.

The walls may be strangers, the beds unfamiliar, but hearts still beat strong in the face of the unclear.

They learn to be brave when goodbyes come too soon, and wish on the stars that peek into their room.

Each fostered tomorrow, a chance to begin, to gather the pieces and stitch them back in.

Some hands are gentle, some colder than stone, but every kind touch says, “You’re not alone.”

Social workers racing through files and halls, patchwork solutions and late midnight calls.

The system is weary, the cracks start to show, yet seeds of compassion still struggle to grow.

But oh—there is power in one open door, in one steady voice that says, “You are more.”

Not broken, not lost, not a name on a chart, but a soul with a fire, a mind, and a heart.

To foster is not just to house or to feed, but to water the roots of a delicate seed.

In the garden of healing, time may be long— but love is a whisper that grows into song.

* Name changed to protect the identity of the young person.