The Smell of Whiskey

~The Smell of Whiskey~

Her childhood snipped short.
scraps of life. the reel spins.
stops. suspended
at the picnic spot where he carved
his name in deep.
go…going…gone.
the planets realign.
reconfigure.
stop her in her tracks.
hold her fast.
he crept into her nightmares
making her feel plastic again
seven years
on the couch
learning
not to be a puppet to the past,
but the smell still makes her 
       vomit.