A Few Words for an Abusive Parent’s Funeral
Snow lights on a branch,
piles on it. The branch temembers
birds who touched down upon it
before something deep inside them
warned them to fly away.
The branch snaps, falls into snow,
until its memories of birds
have been buried and its dreams
of growing have been forgotten, and sunlight
seems like just another dream.
After snow melts at last
into now, into no and ow,
some well-meaning asshole
picks up the bent, leafless branch,
and asks it for a few kind words
about snow, a fun memory or two,
maybe an amusing little anecdote.
29 thoughts on "A Few Words for an Abusive Parent’s Funeral"
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appropriately bitter descriptions make this both funny and deeply serious
Thanks for reading, River.
Thoroughly enjoyed this. Thank you for sharing.
Thanks Ryan.
‘and sunlight
seems like just another dream.’
This breaks my heart.
Thanks Debbie.
Fascinating meta aspect of this, Tom. The connection with the title is intriguing and mysterious. As always, probing and serious work.
Thanks Kevin. I’ve devoted 40 years to the study of writing, all the while hiding from this one subject. I still don’t think I’ve mastered the craft enough to do justice to this material
“before something deep inside them warned them to fly away” is so apt and good. And sad. … And thanks for your comments on my poem yesterday. Machine poem twins!
You’re a helluva a poet and reader, Emily.
: ) Thank you. You are too! Hopefully one day we’ll meet in person. I’ve admired your work since the chili recipe poem which I LOVED. I think we’ve both been on here 3 summers now!
Beautiful and dark. Our minds must be in a similar place today. Love the snow melting into now.
Thanks Brian. I’ll go read your daily poem now.
I think I was projecting.
I had an abusive father. It took years to accept it. But I’m still trying to write about it.
Thanks for that. This poem is about my mother.
Last lines nail it.
How so?
I especially love this turn.
This turn, Sorry, for some reason I forgot to “paste.”
“into now, into no and ow,
some well-meaning asshole
picks up the bent, leafless branch,
and asks it for a few kind words”
Thank you!
I had a visceral reaction at “the branch snaps” — I sank down in my seat– then felt intense irritation at that “well-meaning asshole.” Those without an abusive parent may never understand that we don’t all have a sweet memory to spit out at asking. . . . Hmm. This evokes powerful emotions.
An insightful reading. Thanks Michele!
I found this poem rrally effecting. I appreciated this line in particular: “After snow melts at last/into now, into no and ow,” melting the word now too.
Good teading, Shaun.
It’s a challenging poem. It almost seems as though it is on a parallel track with the title, that you don’t want to delve too deep into the subject. But then you make the connection with “now, into no and ow.” And that branch, I saw it as a metaphor for the tool of abuse. I could be completely off base, of course, but at least all this verbiage tells you that I didn’t just read the poem; I wrestled with it.
Thanks. The branch (as in of a family tree) is being abused by the cold, hard snow.
Love the ending!
Thanks Mike.