Three hundred.

This many people fill up

One three hundredth of

The Rose Bowl football stadium.

Three hundred people would

Populate India four million times.

This makes the number seem small,

But now imagine a different scenario.

One small child,

An innocent little girl.

She has friends, family,

Parents who love her more than the whole world.

All she wants is an education.

Her education is worth dying for,

Worth abduction by terrorists for.

The girl’s absence leaves

A devastating blow on her community.

Her friends long for her presence in

Their games of tag or hide-and-seek.

Her older brother blames himself

For letting her out of his sight

On that day, of all days.

Her parents waste away into depression,

Knowing they can’t save her.

Now imagine that loss times three hundred.