For Children

Joshua Kuruvilla

The Unknown

2022 3rd & 4th Grade Poetry Winner

When you dream about La Liga,
The Premier League or Bundesliga,
Maybe Ligue 1 or Serie A,
remember the Unknown.

A starter on Derry City,
A sub in the J-League,
Ones who never made it to the National Team.
The ones who work too hard,
but the work goes to nothing at all.

The opportunity arises for so few of them.
But we presume that it knocks.
We talk more about the stars.
Their successes,
Their failures,
Their “What-Ifs”.
Unaware that the Unknown’s “What-Ifs”
Could change the world forevermore.

Yet they celebrate
A chance to be in the starting eleven,
A call off the bench,
A goal,
A win against their rival.

Let us admire the Unknown,
Think about the Unknown,
Learn about the Unknown,
And remember the Unknown.