You were so tall
I only remember shadows
and red pin points

where your eyes should be
raging with your towel whip
a furious slap

against his naked body
convulsive on the floor and crying
because he stole the family name

then ran away
to the basement of his childlike dreams
alone in the cobwebs

drawing pictures of Archie girls
in the nude
and offering nothing for a reason

when you caught him
only silence and an irritant
of frightened sorrow

the lasting moment of his beating, wide-eyed
and fearful, was never meant
to never end, was never meant to be

more delusional than human
for a child
and not some nine year itch

burrowed
beneath your skin
a septic child

remembers once
it was your naked body
standing in the doorway screaming

at the noise of lonely chatter
made with stolen toys
and hot wheel cars

remembers your face on fire
and the naked body
fevers of a nightmare rage

09/26/2005

Posted on 09/26/2005
Copyright © 2026 Jim Benz