Oh Sweet Child
I feel your desolation
as your tentative fingers reach
deeply into your pockets
searching
for the coins you've set aside
especially for today
Oh Sweet Child
I recognize the yearning in your eyes
and flutter of anticipation your chest tries so hard to conceal
You've placed the last of your hopes
into a dilapidated pay phone
that you know will not deliver
Oh sweet child
You feel betrayed
by sting in your eyelids
the pain in your belly
as your heart plummets
and the harsh hand of reality slaps you
in the face
Oh sweet child
You're not a woman
but a child
but a child
wanting nothing more than to be
safe and warm
not lost and cold in this heartless city of loneliness
Oh sweet child
I know so well
the sacredness of the
secret you hold deep within your heart
the tiny part of you that
wishes
just for awhile
you could go back
to the familiarity
of the hell
you once called home
Oh sweet child
If I could
I would go back to the night of
Your 17th birthday
and let you know
what I now know to be true
you are brave and strong beyond what you know
and
will celebrate many more birthdays
none of them
being
being
alone
So beautiful. So sad. Your words are just perfection.
ReplyDeleteThis again just hits me in my gut. Darlene I want to wrap that one up in a big hug and make everything ok. Familiarity of the hell... Heartbreaking. You should write these for more than our small world to see.
ReplyDeleteBoy, that's the truth what Kim said! You are a gifted writer, Darlene. I love stopping by your blog to see what you're up to - it's always glorious.
ReplyDeleteKim is sooo right! This gets you right in the gut...so sad. It conveys such a sense of regret, a sense of longing to make someone else whole. Raises lots of questions for me about "the sweet child" and her circumstances. A beautifully written slice!
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