A floor of eggshells
No, we cannot light his fuse
He drains the bottle
Your mother with bruises
And brother receives his now
Yours will come in time
A heart of sorrow
A desire to be safe
A life full of fear
Abuse rains down
The chain will continue on
Sins of the father
© February 2021
Duane Windell Phillips
I thought I would try doing haiku for this one
Mrs. Hughbanks continued writing on the chalkboard. A feverous weariness enfolded Paul like a blistering coat. With sightless eyes, he stared toward the fuzzy blob of teacher against the board. She called out instructions as she wrote.
“Children, be sure to use correct spelling and punctuation. We have been working on this for a month now. If you aren’t sure about something, ask your parents or brothers and sisters. Does everyone understand?”
A classful of third grade voices replied in unison, “Yes, Mrs. Hughbanks.”
But Paul’s voice wasn’t heard. He thought he spoke but his lips only moved. No sound was uttered. The fever continued to burn in his body and he felt the heat in his cheeks. The focus of his mind roamed from topic to topic as if peering through a blurred kaleidoscope. Her voice echoed with reverb but the writing on the chalkboard was like ice skates scraping across the ice.
He imagined how ice would refresh him. Paul envisioned himself flopping to the ice and pressing his cheeks and forehead to the frosty surface. How soothing! So refreshing! Then Paul felt his dog, Nicki, licking his face and giggles of delight spilled out.
“What’s so funny, Paul? Would you care to share with the class?”, Mrs. Hughbanks demanded.
Paul heard the voice come from his dog, arresting the hilarity. With bewilderment, he gazed at the canine. With the love of a devoted pet, Nicki returned his gaze, panting. Then the hound lunged forward, planting more licks on his cheeks and forehead. Then Nicki said, “Oh my lands! You’re burning up with fever.”
With a burst of laughter Paul exclaimed, “What are you doing at school, boy? You silly doggie.”
With that, Mrs. Hughbanks rushed the boy to the school nurse who would contact his parents. Though she feared it was another case of scarlet fever, she hoped and prayed that wasn’t the case.
In case you didn’t know, great people are born on Feb 12th. If you know one, wish them happy birthday.
This is the first of a multi-part series based on my observations from a recent Eastern European trip my wife and I took. In each I will sh...
