I cannot bear the responsibility
for my brother’s pain, separated
as he was from my mother, raised
in his own kind of hell, estranged;
could not save him from himself
even if I tied him to me, carried
him by my side, bore his shame,
supported him by finding work.
I would just be trying to resurrect
old dreams, choosing to follow
already trodden paths, repeating
patterns of partnering with failure;
stir up memories of abuse, relive
the discomfort, castigate myself
anew for not asserting propriety,
contemplate revisiting the old.
No, I am not my brother’s keeper;
cannot right what has been lost;
only in looking forward can we
hope to bridge our familial ties.
(Image: quotesgram.com)
One Woman's Quest 
“…..hope to bridge our familial ties”.
With you on this…. all the way !!
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There is a consistency of theme and quality to your poems and I think I have said it before that they have behind them the urgency of something that has to be said…have you thought about putting together a collection??
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I am starting to gather them – I write for therapy – a bit embarrassing, but it works. Thanks so much for saying so. It means a lot.
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