When Mama's in a Bad Way

She just sat staring out at the fog-covered trees, trying to ignore the words.
Mama was in a bad way this morning, and took it out on her.
She didn't take initiative.
She didn't do anything.
She didn't live her life.
Stop. Rewind. Restart.
Mama started repeating herself when she ran out of things to find fault with her daughter.
So she just let the words flow over her, trying not to listen too much. It still hurt though. Yelling triggered a reaction in her. She could only cry when being yelled at, couldn't talk back, couldn't explain herself. And she wouldn't give Mama the satisfaction of seeing her cry again. So she just tried to ignore it, and was silent.
Pretty soon, that was a problem too.
Why didn't she respond?
Why didn't she respond? Mama asked.

Good question.