For the Boy Who Didn’t Come Home

There are moments when words feel too small for the weight of grief a community carries. When a young life is taken, the silence that follows is not empty — it is heavy, aching, and shared.

This poem was written in response to the tragic loss of a young boy on Hutton Road in Birmingham. It is not an attempt to explain what cannot be explained, but to pause, to honour a life, and to hold space for those who are hurting.

For the Boy Who Didn’t Come Home

By Marie Lee

For the boy who didn’t come home,

Evening settled heavy on Hutton Road,

A quiet that felt too sudden,

A silence no family should ever know.

In the fading light of Birmingham,

A life was taken swiftly,

Dreams scattered across pavement

Where footsteps once moved gently.

A mother softly whispers his name,

As if calling him back through the dark,

Holding on to memories

Now sharper than the night air.

The sirens painted the skyline red,

Their echo trembling through the streets,

While neighbours stood in heavy stillness,

Hearts clenched, breath caught,

Praying for answers not yet found.

For the boy who didn’t come home,

The city leans into its own grief

Shadow of this young life sweeps the roads,

Officers walking slowly with purpose,

Searching for truth in every corner.

Yet somewhere beneath the sorrow,

Hope threads its way through the quiet,

A promise whispered gently:

Justice will not forget him.

And for the ones who loved him most,

May peace find its way back

Soft as dawn, steady as memory,

For the boy who didn’t come home.

A Moment of Reflection

This poem is offered as a prayer in words — for the family whose world has been shattered, for the friends whose laughter now echoes in memory, and for a community grappling with loss.

As people of faith, we believe God sees every tear, hears every whispered name, and holds the broken-hearted close. In moments like this, we are called not only to grieve, but to stand together — in compassion, in prayer, and in hope for justice.

“The Lord is close to the broken-hearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.”
— Psalm 34:18

Our Prayer

God of comfort and mercy,
We lift before You a family in deep sorrow.
Wrap them in Your peace,
Hold them through the long nights,
And let Your justice and love prevail.
May light rise even in this darkness.
Amen.