You just
need a day to feel what you feel
because the world has grown hard
and your fingernails are dirty
not just because you’ve worked
tending this fire
burning these things of your past
and cried
so much
because this shit is hard
and your kid comes
out of the dark blue
to tend to you
and you’re proud of her
as she drives you home
in silence
knowing you’ve taught her this
as you weep
quietly
not wanting to burden her
with this pain that you’ve carried
from your own mother and you
but
goddamn
someday
sometime
it’s got to break
this pain
it’s just too much
sometimes