Hello fellow co-worker. Hello fellow churchgoer. Hello fellow traveler. Hello potential friend. If I share my trauma with you, Will you hear me? Will you see my humanity? Will you hear my heart? Or will you analyze and...
Pigeonhole
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Tom M.
Blindsided by Suicide
To my fellow travelers: this month marks the tenth anniversary of my brother’s final decision; the incomprehensible decision to end his life. I wrote this poem three years ago and I’m sharing it now to honor my brother and to offer my heart to those experiencing...
Half Sober
Gregarious daddy-Monster,the life of the party,addicted to cleverness,always with an answer. Hundreds of friends.Always involved with others.A social butterfly.Admired by everyone else. He achieved physical sobriety.Most of his spare timewas spent at meetings.He made...
Drawing My Inner Family
Terrified inner baby:Born into domestic violence.Blindsided and shattered.He screams at full volume.No one hears his heart. Hypervigilant inner toddler:Hiding in a corner.Avoiding daddy-Monster.Trying to be invisible.Making himself silent.Making himself...
Strafe My Soul
To daddy-Monster: You can resentfully blame mebecause my existence – my birth –reminds you of your new dutyresulting from my illegitimate conception. Enraged, you can throw medown a flight of stairsbefore I can walk. You can pound your fists into meas I lie...