Mollie Thill - It’s the Inside That Counts - Jul-Dec 2001, Third Place (category 17 & under)

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Mollie
Thill

Contest
winners
Jul-Dec
2001

Third Place (category 17 & under), Webstatic Poetry Contest, Jul - Dec 2001

It’s the Inside That Counts

Once upon a time, yet not too long ago,
There lived an old man by the name of Joe.

Joe made dolls of all shapes and sizes,
Some wore coats and others wore disguises.

They ranged in colors from black to white,
And came in all sizes from heavy to light.

Each doll was different, no two were the same,
And every doll also had its own name.

Roger resembled a star football player,
And William looked a lot like the mayor.

Bertha was short, a bit round and quite plain,
While Jenny was pretty and destined for fame.

Joe sold the dolls in a small, red brick store,
Where twelve hours a day people came through the door.

Folks bought the dolls for kids, sisters, and brothers
Needless to say some sold better than others.

The boys liked the ones,
That held knives and ray guns.

A doll with long hair and a long, puffy dress,
Is usually the one that the girls liked the best.

Some people collected one of each kind,
Others had one special figure in mind.

One day a girl, who was unlike the rest,
Came in to pick out the doll she liked best.

She would randomly pick out a doll from the pile,
Then keeping her eyes closed, she’d hold it a while.

Then ever so careful, she’d put that doll back,
And pick up another doll from the rack.

Joe watched the girl as she held Annie then Nick,
Secretly wondering which doll she’d pick.

Then she picked up a doll no one handled before.
Not noticing the face or the clothes that it wore.

The doll had loose seams and was missing a leg
And the clothes that it wore were made out of a rag.

The hair on the doll was like the hair of a clown,
And the face of the doll bore an unpleasant frown.

The doll was about as worn out as they came.
It was the only doll without a name.

But as the girl held it she knew without doubt,
That this was the doll she’d been dreaming about.

Joe rang up the doll and when he was done
The total came to three seventy-one.

As she gave him the money she said, “It’s too bad,
That the doll that I want has a face that’s so sad.”

“What made you pick that one? It looks such a dread.
Why didn’t you choose one with a smile instead?”

She looked up at Joe and said, “I just bet,
I know why this doll is so very upset.

She sat on the shelf being the best she could be,
But an ugly old doll was all people would see.

Since no one would hold her, they never found out,
It’s not the outside, but the inside that counts.”

Joe was impressed by this little girl,
She’s one of those people who sees a rock as a pearl.

She was unlike the rest and what set her apart,
Was instead of her eyes this girl saw with her heart.

The girl took the doll home and after a while,
The doll’s sorry frown turned into a smile.

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