ric-rac

ric-rac

Little girl eight
ric-rac on her collar
Bet you a dime
No, I bet you a dollar
she was old back then
( too young for lovers)
I want my daddy, she wrote
on the other side of the photo (a side note) sent
hoping he’d rescue her from tyrants
and boogie men under her covers
Underlining the best parts
Pen pressed hard against skin
Popping noises from walls
For God’s sake!
She still plays with dolls!
Did he read through dark circles
Did he read past lines and creases
Erased, then poked in bottled up glass, shattered
Fragmented {a million pieces}
Did it matter?
Her Mama brushed her hair that day
Spit curl, little girl
Suffer for Beauty, she said
Pulling on rubber bands
Hands bound around tight
She suffered all right, depleted
time and time again in her bed, repeated
The Lords Prayer
every night
The more times the better
It got her through the rest of her life
Our Father who art in heaven
Hallowed be Thy name
Thy kingdom come
Thy will be done
On earth as it is in Heaven.
At seven,
Daddy gone
No Father
ric-rac on her collar

LDN