Never Have I Ever

by Abundance Okenwa, 14

Let’s play a game: Never Have I Ever.

But only if you promise to be clever.

Never have I ever hurt someone,
For the way they looked, the skin they wear,
Or the style of their wild, tangled hair;
For the clothes they have on their back,

Or the money that they lack,
For the choices they made or the path that they’ve tracked.

Never? You swore you wouldn’t lie,
As we sit here, staring eye to eye.
In this fragile moment, I hope for the truth,
To surface at last, to rise and to start—
To show what you hide deep inside
Your cold, dark hole of a heart.

Never have I ever spoken harsh words,
Before weighing the weight they might bear,
Said something cruel behind someone’s back,
With a twisted smile, like I actually care.

Never have I ever stabbed someone deep,
Ripped their heart out just for fun,
Indulged in gossip, basked in disdain,
Dimming their shine just to feel I’d won.

Never have I ever?
Never have I ever,
Not thought before I spoke behind another’s back,
Twisting a knife in the trust that they lack,
Stabbed them through the back with a casual word,
Ripped out their heart like their pain was unheard.

Never? In this game, let’s lay hearts bare,
Reveal the shadows we all hide there.
In a judging world, let kindness be,
And strip away this fake dignity.

So let’s play this game—
Never Have I Ever, but honestly.
Unravel the truths and embrace each scar.
So that we can be free as we are.

Plano, Texas

This piece won THIRD PLACE in our 2026 Voice & Verse Writing Contest, poetry ages 12-14 category.

Judge’s Note: I really love the way the writer describes that feeling of everybody wanting what the other has, the grass is always greener … and how we aren’t always grateful for what we do have.