a hollowing

the bond that had been between them

got hollowed out

by the stress of taking on too many

responsibilities

as a young happy couple

who thought that for some reason

the world would bend at their will &

let all the hopes & dreams come true

(in a short time).

 

but the typical american family

with the typical white picket fence

was born out of typical american illusions &

with them came the

typical american

problems,

all spun from a country that makes it

increasingly hard

to raise kids in a family with two parents

who do not become so stressed out & damaged

by the whole lot of their situation

(emotional, financial)

that they end up taking it out on each other,

eventually splitting up,

divorcing,

dealing the kids like cards at a poker table

(winning hand to the player with the most dough),

with the subsequent repetitive slamming of the

court doors behind them

for years to come

over custody battles.

 

now, opposite ways they walk

each with visitation rights,

each with a crushed dream of the

hollywood home life,

which they had both so desperately

wanted---

left with an absence,

left with a hole, a lack,

left with a sense of failure &

emptiness,

just as scooped out as an acorn squash round the

“holidays,” just as a deep dark well

echoing that last toss of the

penny.