You told me
it had no legs
it was time
to let it go
It was such a love
as I had never known 
complete 
bright and whole
as the full moon
You crippled it
at birth 
kept it hidden 
allowing only enough 
to keep it breathing 
while hiding it 
in shame
Abandoning it
then returning 
again, and again 
while I cradled 
its tiny heart
waiting 
I refused
to let it stop beating
though it had died 
so long ago 
I refused to see
it had been crushed
dead
under the weight 
of fear
in its infancy 
Resurrected 
by tender words
in a resolve
to nurture and grow 
full of hope
Then forgotten
as an addict’s promise
broken by words
left as a burden 
to the freedom 
that had always
been there for you 
It was crippled 
but I was blind