Protection Sadie Maguire

Integumentary means covering Protection Like how the world protects children from harm From terrible people To terrible things. Organs and systems within the body are sensitive. Children’s feelings are sensitive. We tell the world that if you don’t have anything nice to say Don’t say it at all But this isn’t helping. This is covering But the covering can crack. The covering should crack. Crack and crisp Then calm and clear Like a rash on your emotions Which can only clear if you expose it to the real world. Rip away the band aid And let it heal with its own protection Just like the integumentary system. How is change supposed to happen if we won’t let anyone talk about it? It’s like going into the sun with no sunscreen Letting it burn you. But when someone tries to tell you to put on sunscreen You say, they hurt your feelings by saying you did something wrong. When you end up with skin cancer years later it’s not the (integumentary) system’s fault. It’s your own For not changing because you don’t like the mean thing someone said

For covering your feelings But not protecting yourself. The child’s feelings are not more sensitive than the organs or the systems. Integumentary means covering Protection But there are many ways to protect. For the integumentary system, there are nails, hair, skin, the epidermis, and many more. There is more than one way to protect yourself, your feelings, children, and society too. We need the somewhat unkind, yet true things to be said as well as the compliments and niceties. The only way things will change is if we help protect ourselves too. We can’t rely only on the integumentary system We need to work too. The system won’t protect the children’s emotions But neither will only compliments, Niceties, And Protection from the truth. Integumentary means covering And Protection.

Sadie Maguire, Grade 7 Sanford Middle School, Minneapolis Teaching Artist, Frank Sentwali