For My Foster Sister (about growing up with mom drunk)
We used to run through the sprinkler
we double jumped & skipped rope
we danced along to the radio
our lives were filled with hope
then something made her dad leave
and soon her mom was always drunk
she didn't have clean clothes to wear
she often felt like a dirty punk
she didn't have anyone to talk to
and the shades were always pulled tight
her mom didn't want any noise
and hated when she turned on the light
she no longer made her lunch
and asleep when she came home
she wore a ratty bathrobe
and never used a comb
it's a good thing the house was paid for
so she never had to sleep in the street
but if she didn't cash in coke bottles
she would never have anything to eat
nobody ever called the cops
they lived out towards the woods
she learned how to steal real well
and that's how she brought home goods
Mom used her welfare money
to buy her favorite drink
she ate all her leftovers
and put dishes in the sink
She didn't want a foster family
but was too scared not to tell
the day she found her on the floor
she told me her mom wasn't well
But instead of speaking out
She left home that day
she slept under the railway pass
got to school, ran all the way
We don't know who called the cops
but they cornered her in the hall
took her to the counselors office
where she stood against the wall
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poem by Linda Racaniello
Added by Poetry Lover
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