you should be ashamed
he said
forgetting all the flavors of shame
you already knew
the shame of
being the small ***** child
reeking of cigarettes
crawling with lice
standing in the free lunch line
the shame of
learning to cry silently
so they don't know where it hurts
the shame of
learning to wear dark clothes
so they can't tell where
you were made to bleed
the shame of
being the one
good parents warned you about
the shame of asking for
anything
of anyone
and the shame of
all of that
striving conniving occasionally thriving
effort
still not being enough
to not be ashamed