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T H E ' S ' W O R D By Anonymous from far away
she calls me voice cracking "your brother he locked himself in the bathroom" from far away i hold my breath board games in my head phone to my ear "the medics are on their way" from far away weekend morning tv shows make her words turn off "they're breaking down the door" from far away birthday songs preparing for the worst "we're at the hospital now" from far away play-acting at grandma's house pretending this isn't real "they're pumping your brother's stomach" from far away playground swings zoom in the sky and from now on chocolate ice cream pie will taste like induced vomit "i'm so glad you picked up the phone" i'm lost in the park on our bicycles in pop song parodies remote control fights dressing up as ghosts "i'm sorry you had to hear all this" a decade sharing his room on our walls superheroes in tracing paper and she says in her voice soft "good night sweetheart try to get some sleep" from far away i can't forgive her for calling me making me listen creating images that are now carved on my brain she knew I was sleeping a different time zone and she says "this isn't good for my anxiety" from far away belly laughs and fart jokes now replaced by his hospital gown "it was a cry for help that's what the doctor said" from far away her screams fear devouring my face and she calls again in her voice harsh "he'll be okay thank god thank god but don't tell anyone you hear me?" from far away i won't tell my friends about the broken bathroom door i won't say the 's' word "i'll pay for your flight home tell them it's a family thing" from far away everything is fine "i'll pick you up at the airport" from far away during takeoff i cry for the first time from far away i see them waiting the terminal is packed he's standing behind her eyes down i haven't rehearsed what to say what are the right words? the wrong words? the worst words the words that will harm words that might send him back and she turns to him "say hi to your brother" from far away my cry for help she can't hear With sincere gratitude to the person who submitted this poem to Unsilence. THE 'S' WORD, published here by Unsilence anonymously and with full permission, accompanies our interactive feature TOMORROW. Copyright 2019. All Rights Reserved. |
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Until 2022, Unsilence was a 501(c)(3) charitable organization. Tax ID: 47-3960765
Privacy Policy Terms of Use