My father has a quiet strength
so quiet
that you forget it's even there
so quiet
that I mistake it for silence
Silence in the midst
of my brother's threats
Silence made louder
by my mother's own voice
Loud, opinionated,
well-meaning, hurtful
My mother speaks too many words
All at once
Without pauses in between
to let anyone else in
No spaces left to tell
your side of the story
Forcing you towards conclusions,
leaving you gasping
My sister,
she wears her heart on her sleeve
Honest, flawed,
every piece meant to be adored
And she shines a little too bright
And hurts a little too much
She is a lot like our mother
and like her, Â
hurts without meaning to
My brother on the other end,
is a lot like me
Putting up walls
in places that do not need them
Thinking that the world rejects,
when we are the ones
that refuse to let it in
The part of me that finds familiarity
symphatizes and despises him both
And I,
selfish and lonely,
continues to break for him
For them
For me