A pretty, puffy, lavender dress tight-fitting to her tummy
Seated at a plastic chair chomping on treats oh-so-yummy!
Plump lips slathered in clear lip gloss and a couple cupcake crumbs
She smiles at me, says 'pull up a seat', and I'm sure this'll be fun
Dolls and teddy bears, teeny plastic cups filled with kiddie tea
Batting long lashes and adoring eyes, she directs attention on me
A cloud of cotton candy perfume hangs in the air as she gushes
I compliment her party, and she looks away and blushes
"lets not talk about me, how about Bear?"
Taps his head "he's got all the latest gossip up there"
I laugh, "How about you, little one, any stories to tell?"
She pauses for a moment, bites her lip, "well..."
She's trembling, I see, it comes out in a stream
"There's lots of stuff I'm not supposed to tell about mommy."
"But ***** said she once lost three babies, where did they go?
and once upon she didn't eat, how'd ***** know?
I've got a lot of baby fat as well, take a peek
And maybe I'd be as pretty as mommy if I didn't eat."
"Mommy never pays attention to me, cause ***** cuts her wrist
We never play anymore now, I always get dismissed...
I was once in the room, you know, I watched her bleed
And there's some blades in this carpet now, it's terrifying."
"Also, did you know daddy's never home?
He's got a new.. girlfriend now.. and a house of his own
Mommy's still his wife so thats weird I think
It's also nice, when he was here all he did was hit and scream."
"But it makes mommy cry, I don't want to see her sad
and her and ***** always fight, why're they so mad?
Mommy's so upset with me too, I'm afraid she'll run away
Hey, is it my fault if my mommy doesn't stay?"
Bitter tea sweetened with the slow drip of tears
Aloud, this little girl has voiced my worst fears
I push away my chair, prepared to walk out
Her lips begin to purse into a childish pout
"I knew it! I knew it! I should've never even told!
I won't tell anyone ever again! Get out! Just go!"
.
A tea party with my younger self. Children understand more than you think.
