I wrote this poem as a 3rd grader, submitted it into a contest, and the American Poets' Society selected it and published it (ISBN 0-9743429-7-1).  I hope to win a college scholarship with this poem.  

As I look at the poem now, as a senior in high school, I think a homeless person could possibly find great encouragement hidden in this poem.  If God takes care of the leaves as they fall from the trees, as He crowns them with beauty,...and they seem to be "discarded"from those "connected" to the tree of life...a person found to be similarly "discarded" and homeless might look within and find great beauty inside themselves, being crowned with the beauty God has placed within their soul.

As one reads on, there is a new beginning in the poem...after the fallen leaves lie down to have a rest, the "crowning" with beauty happens again, when new leaves appear in the Spring.  Homelessness can be just temporary...and new beginnings will come...just like the seasons change and things begin anew.

Reading this poem again, after setting it aside for so many year, makes me contemplate, "What is the deep purpose of homelessness?"  Maybe God allows people to fall into hard times so that those with the means can reach deep into their pockets and help them out.  To give the homeless person hope...to help restore their dignity and give them a new crown of glory when we love the homeless person as a brother or sister.