Spotlighting an impressive poem from a 6th grader

“There is always light. If only we’re brave enough to see it. If only we’re brave enough to be it.”
–Amanda Gorman

What a wonderful surprise to return to my office after a series of meetings and find a poem by 6th grader Nidhi on my desk! I felt both honored that she would share it with me and awed that a student this young would produce such a beautiful piece of work. I was so impressed with the poem that with her permission, I am sharing “We Will Rise” below. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.

The same day, I interviewed Nidhi so I could learn more about her writing in general and the background of this poem in particular. She explained that the inspiration for writing this particular piece came from watching National Youth Poet Laureate Amanda Gorman recite “The Hill We Climb” at the Presidential Inauguration. Nidhi felt that contrary to the notion that “a picture is worth a thousand words,” a writer can convey more with words than either visual images or talking.

Nidhi also pointed to Sarah McKay’s poem “If I Should Have a Daughter” and how it portrays the relationship between mothers and daughters so eloquently. McKay’s evocation of a mother’s wishes for her children moved Nidhi to consider her own mother and all she does. Nidhi explained “My mother is a doctor and does many things for other people;” Nidhi decided to use poetry as her avenue for bringing attention to other front line workers and the importance of their work.

Nidhi hopes to inspire people to express themselves through poetry. She paid tribute to Ms. Luckie and Ms. Holden for all the poetry they had their students read, saying “I never realized how much poetry meant.” Nidhi wants others to understand how much words can mean in their lives.

When I asked Nidhi what she wished readers take away from her poem, she pointed to the following lessons:

• “I want them to know that they’re not alone.”
• “People always have something to say.”
• “Never forget where you came from.”
• “We all have voices. It’s how we use them that matters.”

Perhaps most movingly, Nidhi composed this poem as a present to her mother for her birthday. To Dr. Malhotra, we say “Happy Birthday!” What a beautiful gift from your daughter to you and to all of us !

We will rise

We will rise
Like the sun rises
Every morning
To start over with something new

We will rise
Up to the stars
Because if we miss
There’s always the moon

We will rise
To meet new people
Even if they treat us with hatred and defeat
We won’t come and complain

We will rise
To know right from wrong
But even if we make mistakes
We will accept that we’re wrong

We will rise
To make a better country
A newer country
A stronger country

We will rise
To come together,
Not fall apart
And drift away

We will rise
We won’t be nice
We will be kind
We will give, not just take

We will rise
Up above them all
But we will help them climb
Because they deserve it too

We will rise from the flames
Strong, brave, and bold
Ready to help, and love
But ready to learn how to navigate the world

We will rise
And climb up
No matter how hard it is
We have each other

Because we have support
We are lucky
We know our rights
But we will stand up

For others when they can’t themselves
We will help them find who they are
To find what they are
To be who they are

Because climbing is hard
But we have to conquer the mountain of life
And develop our identity
Our likes, dislikes, duties, and virtues

We will read and we will write
We may lose, but we will fight
Because together we are one
And apart we are scattered

We can follow the rules
Together
We can pass the tests
Together

We can unite as one
And build our home
We can share our stories
And write them down

Because we should not burden the next generation
We should help them,
Through our words and actions
Our promises and laws

We will right our wrongs,
But together we will stay strong
We will help and learn
From one another

We should leave this world
Better than when we started
Stronger
And beautiful

We should leave the world as ourselves
But better than before
Stronger,
Happier

And we should speak
For the world
And we should unite
For the world

And we should never stop
And try our hardest
Because there are no redos
No do overs

We will rise
And find the light
We won’t just help others see it
We will help them be it