Broad Spectrum

I was born in a colorless town, near the astonishing light of my own being. I was a mistake hated by some, but eventually grew part of the family. The people lingered around me as the world I lived in carried a gentle aura and little worries. Hallways overflowing with children led me into a classroom of knowledge. A delicate timeworn teacher took me under her wing. At home a divorce severed the family. On Sundays, the cheerless child traveled from household to household, one long car ride away. My father was busy traveling the world. My mother told him the walls had ears. I learned the burden of secrets. Several remarriages but finally the right one relieved your pain and loneliness. Seven children called for a lot of money, sometimes, that we did not have. Children were caught sneaking around, as were parents. I moved into the stressful days and tear filled nights of adolescence. Soot yanked the childhood memories, even as we clinched until our hands were numb and blue. The fathers addiction led to verbal abuse, though one time, more than that. Two sons, one daughter, we followed the melody of the wind chimes. My grandmother held her head high as our chins quivered. In the new era, society spoke so ruthlessly. Eventually, I learned to close my ears. The harrowing, savage world turned the daughter towards poetry. Hopefully, she will become a mother like her own, head strong and independent. Ordinary life: the twists and turns of it. Lines drawing pictures to clarity. The past tucked away, the future left untold for the mysteries of the beautifully, difficult, hideous present. A life enriched with this. Then, I received word that you pulled the trigger. I too wanted to go home. I pleaded at the door to my childhood but it was barred shut. Nothing more could be done, years passed and we continued to grow. Later, another decided to leave us and we decided to let him. An aging ladies tears, an aging ladies loneliness. Bathroom floors, pills, and razor blades were used to feel something, anything. Then all at once, someday turned into today, and morphed into yesterday. So far, still hurt. Yet the scattered world is restless and I follow.

-Anonymous