Mama, They Cry

Baby    feverish screaming thing   sick   not its, her fault     nights without
older child insecure clinging needing     Mama, they cry     craving his, husband’s presence
assistance     gone     alone with both     lonely     days without     both fluish angry needing   not
their fault     hungry   homework     nights without    can’t sleep, doesn’t      doctor says just one
pill per     small hands stretching, reaching     must watch them closely   always       loads of
laundry   hungry   exhaustion     just one pill     bedwetting wakes older   regression   consoling
clean sheets   back to bed   can’t sleep, doesn’t     days without     teething tempers tantrums   for
days     exhaustion     small hands stretching, reaching   a slap   tears     nights without     just one
pill     not their fault     waking to quiet cries bad dreams hungry missing daddy     Mama, they
whine     phone   a scrape tears stitches     should have been watching closer   consoling    should
have been     just one pill   one more     missed school bus   to get in time speeding   pulled over
baby   purple screaming thing     days without     signing his, husband’s papers     one more pill
burnt breakfast   both complaining needing hungry   not their fault     just one more     mounds of
dirty laundry dirty dishes dirty diapers   always     one more pill     bickering     just one more
world blurs     older has outgrown clothes needing     one more   world blurs     baby closes
fingers in cabinet stretching, reaching needing   should have been   one more   watching    one
more     Mama     one more     they cry     world blurs   quiets   slips   sinking   passing away
hours without     won’t wake, doesn’t     Mama, they cry and cry      sleep.