Warning: The following text contains adult-themed topics related to drug use, drug addiction, and sex.
They woke up
An infant surrounded by a puddle of tears
Searching for the care of their guardian
Reaching for the stars places above their crib as
Each star growing brighter then dimmer
Dreams forming beneath the recesses of their mind while
A thumb pulses in and out of their mouth and
A rattle shakes here and there as their hand moves
They woke up
Walking on two appendages across the cold floor
Eyes beginning to make sense of the world
Incoherent screeches escaping their mouth and
Curiosity gaining the better portion of them as they’re
Walking to and fro from one guardian to the next while
Dancing in front of illuminated lights ignited by a television
Broadcasting shows supplied by their guardians
They woke up
A child growing with a sense of wonder
Seeking every corner of their vision as an adventure
To be had, as their guardians watch behind them
Growing in consciousness, logic, and maturity
Welcoming strangers here and there as they were
Taught by their oh-so kind-hearted guardians
They woke up
Developing their complex, bottled-up emotions
Talking here and there with their friends and peers
And often getting caught vanishing into the night
When a curfew has been supplied by their guardians
Their behaviors are seldom expressed freely
As they sit idly in their room which is
A contraption meant to trap the precious thoughts
That enter into their nuanced, growing minds
Growing up to not question their kind-hearted guardians
And saying yes every time the opportunities came
They woke up
Following all the steps their guardians have made for them
To a future that united the family
They woke up
With a large, strong, and bulky build
Growing up learning that they were the protectors of society
Protecting the meek and weak around them
Like the smaller body that collapsed onto their chest in bed
Lying here and there as the both of them moved under the blankets
Eyes meeting one another in contempt
Dreaming of their futures together
They woke up
Disaster around every corner
Infertility, divorce, debt, eviction
Their lives at a ruin
Driving them through a manic state
Sleeping in alleyways to pass the time
Sore, lanky, dirty, malnourished
A cigarette in one hand, a crushed dream in another
Cigar butts by one foot, a half-pint of vodka by another
Devastated, they sleep
They woke up
Questioning their self-worth
Their dull eyes lessening the world around them
Their wrinkles telling all the wrong stories of them and
Repelling anyone from seeing them
The whole world seemingly against them
They cry in writhing agony
They woke up
In pitch darkness
Without form or void
Wishing they were someone else
From the monstrosity that so chained them
