it's suddenly quiet in the other room

it's suddenly quiet in the other room

 

 

words strewn about the playpen

the child tires of his naive vocabulary

his Fisher Price toys are all broken

 

he can't play nice,

he screams from his crib

seismic sounds aloft

in a charming fragrance

that leave a strange scent

 

and in the next room

a mother weeps

as she ponders what she has raised

and with delicate hands

 

becomes a childless mother

tirelessly gluing together the pieces

of her shattered dreams

 

standing over his grave

writing his last speech 

for him

struggling with the ending

 

while exuding a wry smile

as she holds the pen in one hand

and a pacifier in the other.

 

 

erin-cilberto

11/16/16 

Reviews

[andrew mitchell]

Postnatal depression comes to mind but more importantly I think this write shows the struggles women have today juggling motherhood and careers.they are torn between the two. Of course a death of a child you depict is heart wretching too.

[jacob erin-cilberto]

thank you for your words, andrew.

j.

[Paul Bell]

Cry little baby, cry. till you can cry no more.
Mother wasn't well today, nor tomorrow too.
But she would like to say goodbye, in her way, to you.
She'll keep the toys, for who knows what the future holds.
Another little baby brought into the fold.
Tough one Jacob.

[jacob erin-cilberto]

thank you for your review and insights, Paul.

j.

[redzone]

interesting poem you penned Jacob... "a wry smile" along with the title leaves me to believe she couldn't keep going with being a mother anymore... many women suffer from depression after child birth, though most do not carry out their thoughts into deeds... and many women should not have children until they are wanting and ready to have them... no woman should be forced into having children whether from tradition or otherwise... I am of course reading into the reason for this little one's death, as you write in a way that different conclusions can arise from your poem... you do this often allowing the reader of your poems to experience your poem for themselves independent of your intentions.... well my intention is to find your poem wonderfully written and a satisfying read... thank you Jacob...

redzone

[jacob erin-cilberto]

i do like your replies so much...i get such interesting insights from you...

and am happy to hear that my poems allow leeway for the reader...always my intention to be universal, no matter what prompts the writings...

j.

[redzone]

well Jacob, my mind is strange and takes me to will and wondrous places... lol

I think Jacob, it is a sign of a good poet to be able to write, as you say, "to be universal" and you y friend as one of the best... and this is not from a strange mind, but reality and shared by many... as a long ago poet friend use to say "write on" (a play on the back in the day, 'right on')..

[redzone]

that's wild... ;0)

[FJ Davis]

For too many, your title says it all.
Devastating, Jacob!

[jacob erin-cilberto]

thank you, Outcast.

j.