SLAM!

Reposted-- please ignore first post

Getting Lost

My mother’s finger gently runs
under the black print, feeding my reality,
guiding me into a love of words.
At four, I am already trained
to live in the world of fantasy,
solitarily curled up on the couch
with a glossy book between my hands.

My father comes homes after a long day,
sits down in the kitchen to eat his reheated food
with a sourness on his breath and a pinch
in his words that stings my sensitive eyes,
causing me to run away crying.

But on the couch I am in a new world--
one where Wild Things rule and worries
float away on the wings of butterflies.
I bury myself in a book,
pushing away the outside world,
as I dig deeper into its powerful void.