This poem by Genna was originally published in June of 2006 in the former Loft Book Club. It was ultimately selected for and won our Judge for Yourself competition, a monthly contest where readers voted for their favorite fiction and poetry. Unicorns and other fantasy horse creatures have always been a popular topic at GHC…

by Genna, age 11

As I walked the long dirt road

Hiding from my fears

I saw in the crowded meadow

Through the cloud of tears

A flash of white, then a flash of gold

Coming closer, coming near

The flash was a unicorn

Shaking with fear

“Shhh,” I whispered petting her nose

Her face was now slowly glowing with cheer

Her eyes spoke for her while saying, “Ride me”

Would I get on? Would I dare?

I gathered the courage to mount the unicorn

Happy as I could be as we sailed into the air

The clouds felt like balls of cotton

Easy to fall through

But I stayed on her back

And she made sure I did too

The unicorn and I trusted one another

That was when I saw the others

Children from all over the world

Riding on one too

Then I spotted, on a cloud, a treasure I could keep

To keep the memory of this time alive and awake

It was the chip of a horn off a unicorn

It was gold and glowing and very pretty

I grabbed the horn as if it would break in my hands

That delicate piece of a unicorn’s horn that traveled many lands

I put it in my pocket and sailed off again

I’ve been riding for hours but it seems like minutes of ten

The unicorn landed gently by the house right outside my window

Lifted me up to it then let me off in my bed, the rest I didn’t remember so vividly though

After a while I open my eyes, as I wake in my bed

But I put my hand in my pocket to see if the unicorn was all in my head

I pulled out a treasure, delicate as a feather

A piece of a unicorn’s horn

The proof of the night I’ll remember forever.