Frostbite

a poem about my mom

* my mother was lost in the woods in the cold, in the snow
I don't think she's ever coming back,
because she's still lost out there
her feathers are matted with snow


she's as frail as a dove,
bound to break
like the twig of her sanity,
snap! snap! there she goes


opening another bottle
sleeping with her self pity
confusing it for her husband
when will she come back?


I mourn my mother's "death"
we used to have a lot of fun
memories of movies and sledding,
but now she's walking on thin ice


take a breath and step onto the rocks
keep on trying, little white bird
fly away, your wings can still flutter,
you can still leave this all


don't you hear me?
come downstairs mother
we all miss you
get out of bed


you've done bad things
caught at the wheel
alcohol on your breath,
screamed and yelled


frost bitten
you use crutches to walk
because you can't face anything
empty space


it's so cold in here please, I'm shivering do this for me,
for your kids


before we all get frostbite

Author's Note

apparently she's been sober for a couple of weeeks now

Reviews

[D Connolly]

my mom never had a substance abuse issue (she left that for me) but she suffered from depression and paranoia. She had nervous breakdowns a lot. I was alone for a lot of my time growing up in that house, with no one to talk to me and teach me about life or how a parent's relationship could be with their child. My husband has a great relationship with his parents and it is so confusing to me, even now in my late 30s; I never had that. My mom was always in her room in bed, ignoring me.
Hope your mom gets the help she needs to stay sober, it IS possible, believe me.