I woke
Crouched behind the cozy recliner
Upon which Sherry soundlessly slept--

My arms cradled still my fantasy weapon,
The might of dreams, futilely brought into reality
When a tiny voice raised in fear from the girls' room cried

Daddy No!

And I knew
Once more I would engage my enemy
Sacrificing my body for their innocence.

They came for us today:
A lady dressed in tan
and the police man

Whose black skin insulted my fuming father
More than the smell of *****-tainted children
Offended the Worker whose perfume
Attempted to forcibly overcome us all--

My sisters succumbed quickly, escorted
Hastily from sight, hidden forever
But I was a soldier and so I fought
Until finally the official grip became irresistible

Mommy No!

In shock  she released our shared grip
And I was ripped up and away
Forgiveness lost forever to willful surrender.

The steady irregular beat given by the road
Through the tires resonated above the hum
Of travel with an intermittent

Fwap Fwap Fwap

Called out its message in indecipherable code
While I counted the lines
Drawn in yellow upon the asphalt
Alternating the spasms of my secretly tapping feet--

1 2, 1 2 3 4, always even, but never zero
Striving to force a pattern upon a world
That had none.

I know

The scene through the pane of glass exudes Winter
And should I choose to step into the outside world
To leave the comfort of my temperate prison,
Then cold would soon seep through me

I know

The trees do not bow to the wind;
The snow has not settled upon the ground;
No sign of Jack extends
To this seeming common surround.

Still I know.

I thought it clever to tilt the camera
But if I had it to do again I would take it straight.

Perhaps oblivion waits
At the end of an inward pointed gun
Yet what will the execution
Of the act accomplish once I realize the goal
And find myself still musing on the core
I know.