Cellotape Man
Listen to Carmella : )
Gracie ripped up my picture of dad.
I'd spent all afternoon drawing him.
I had dressed him in a little orange hat,
Green boots on his feet, and multi-coloured gloves on his hands.
After it happened, I cried - I felt so sad.
Miss King and Miss Jenkins let me play on the corner cushions because of what happened.
And Bella came and held my hand.
Then we all found a roll of cellotape,
We worked together and stuck all the broken pieces back on to the cracks.
My drawing has changed a lot, it’s true,
And it's not the same man I knew and drew,
But now I have a magic, fantastic cellotape man!
I'd spent all afternoon drawing him.
I had dressed him in a little orange hat,
Green boots on his feet, and multi-coloured gloves on his hands.
After it happened, I cried - I felt so sad.
Miss King and Miss Jenkins let me play on the corner cushions because of what happened.
And Bella came and held my hand.
Then we all found a roll of cellotape,
We worked together and stuck all the broken pieces back on to the cracks.
My drawing has changed a lot, it’s true,
And it's not the same man I knew and drew,
But now I have a magic, fantastic cellotape man!
This poem is copyright (©) Carmella de Keyser 2026
About the Writer
Carmella de Keyser
Carmella de Keyser is a prize-winning British poet, known for explorations of identity and heritage. Founder of the Harlow Circle of Poetry Stanza, judge for the Harlow Poetry Open, she has five books published or forthcoming, from Hedgehog Press, Alien Buddha Press, Parlyaree Press and the Seventh Quarry Press.
