#NaPoWriMo 2021 Day 8 : “The Way It Is”

The Way It Is

girl, that’s just the way it is

thrift store clothes
as lawn ornaments,
the neighbors
have staring problems
& there’s a show
going on over here
they can’t stop
rubbernecking at

there are sirens
in the distance
but not for us,
we haven’t crossed
the emergency
threshold just yet

how it is, huh?
in the every day —
this scene is
fairly tame,
broken bottle
brigade at bay

my siblings & I,
browned baby chicks
keeping their distance,
this is growing up

how it’s always been,
but we keep our yards clean now
(if we have them), brother’s got one
in prison

clothesline violence, we peck
at the aftermath, looking
for the shiny objects
the little ones
may cut their throats on

on & on

we’re suturing the wounds
with rope licorice, smashing
the dandelion heads
with our fists because
a wish is never granted
when promises
come with ultimatums
like this

girl, that’s just the way it is

& with our elder eyes we see
that it’s how
it always will be