Caregiver, Life-taker

7/25/15

Your smile promised safety,
hinted at laughter behind your eyes
and coming attacks on my sides
where I was ticklish the most.
Your house was my castle,
your lap was my throne.

-- You made me feel like a princess,
and you called me your queen. --

When cancer came,
I held you as if my hands
could heal you.

You said they did...

-- .... but sometimes I wish that they hadn't. --

By the time I realized my castle
was a prison, the moat was
already filled and the drawbridge
had been raised.

You were the dragon
hidden in a suit of armor,
and your hands were burning
flames that scorched my skin.

-- I still have scars from your touch,
and I still burn in my dreams. --