My mother

life as a child of an alcoholic

Everyone talks about the people who wear their hearts on their sleeves

But she wore hers like a noose around her neck

This certain darkness took up every last trace of the air around her

Simply sucking her further into herself with every breath

Exhausted from her love being given to the wrong people 

And avoiding the reality of what the truth made her become

If you stripped her down, you wouldn't see a monster

You'd see a scared little girl getting stomped on by the world

And seeking cover from the constant rain

You can't blame her for what she does

For she isn't herself, just a coat of armor with her name on it

And I dread the day she is passed on to me