An extremely bright and distant child
Quite distracted while in school
His name brought up in quiet tones
Over coffee in the lounge
Daily conversation with his teacher
A subterfuge to check him for his wounds
They cannot talk to his mother
She's wearing sunglasses in the rain
A beautiful woman she is
With Rocky Marciano's nose
The father a well respected man
A contradiction on the edge
The wild look in his eyes tells you
It's best to leave it alone
Father to father, son to son
Poisonous legacy of tragic secrets
What can anybody do?
His mother is wearing sunglasses in the rain
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Yet another old one posted when I had very few followers and fewer comments. This poem is only autobiographical in the sense that there was a great deal of abuse in my childhood. There was no father in the picture to dish it out. That was my mom's job...
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Yet another old one posted when I had very few followers and fewer comments. This poem is only autobiographical in the sense that there was a great deal of abuse in my childhood. There was no father in the picture to dish it out. That was my mom's job...
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Powerful, Pat!
ReplyDeleteThat is pretty deep Pat. I like it.
ReplyDeleteVery good, Patrick! Powerful stuff.
ReplyDeleteAlex - Thanks Alex!
ReplyDeleteOilfield Trash - Thanks so much!
Bossy Betty - Thanks Betty! I appreciate it!
Oh wow. That is amazing, and so so powerful, I agree with everyone else...truly amazing.
ReplyDeleteOh my. She can't see a thing. Very powerful indeed.
ReplyDeleteI'm sorry you had to live that but happy you can turn it into such beauty and power for us to share.
ReplyDeletethe co-relation and we relate...late
ReplyDeletea moving piece Pat
Peace, hp
Love it! Pat, you are an amazing poet!
ReplyDeleteThat is the big deal question - what can anyone do?
ReplyDeleteLucy
Baby Sister - Thanks so much for saying that!
ReplyDeleteSharon - Also hard to see with puffy and blackened eyes...thanks Sharon!
Edie - thanks! What doesn't kill you, makes you stronger (or disfunctional as can be!)
hpicasso - Thanks buddy! I appreciate it.
Talei - Thanks so much for the nice words Talei!
Lucy - So true, especially back in those days, most folks just ignored things like that.
Powerful and shocking....Feel bad you had to have a rough childhood...the solution if you ask me - lock the offenders away for life....
ReplyDeleteOh, you slice straight to the bone, Pat. A beautifully written, achingly sad, perceptive and moving piece, my friend. Bravo.
ReplyDeleteI'm really enjoying reading all your poems, Pat. Great work.
ReplyDeleteSo poignant and strong, Pat. I'm sorry for what you went through as a child--but so glad that the man you became speaks the truth about it. Truth has power.
ReplyDeleteI'm happy you re-posted that, or I might not have seen/read it (hadn't had the pleasure of being one of your "followers" at that point I guess).
ReplyDeleteThat's some pretty cold truth in beautiful prose, no easy feat. Nicely done.
love the line: wearing sunglasses in the rain
ReplyDeleteHi Pat -- a very interesting (and hear-wrenching) post. Thanks for sharing. I've thought of doing the same thing, re-posting some of my old posts from before anyone mucyh read my blog -- but my old posts are not this interesting, so there was probably a reason why they didn't ;>)...
ReplyDeleteI love your picture below of the surf city -- we loved Rving in California and stayed once for a couple of months or so at Imperial Beach near Coronado. This kind of reminds me of the beach/pier there..
amazing work, Pat. Thank you for sharing it!
ReplyDeleteLike it when you re-post for those of us who weren't around yet.
ReplyDeleteI like the imagery in this...it opens a lot of things up and makes one question...just what can we do.
It seems you have come so very far, and like one of the comments above...sorry you went trough this all. But you tend to be able to help others through the same stuff once you've come out of the hell yourself....or at last understand hearts out there in the same situation.
You are a man of many talents and have incredible insight into those hurting!
The sunglasses in the rain line is so pitiful and yet beautiful. Wonderful repeated at the end.
ReplyDeletevery powerful loved it you always keep me held captive with your words
ReplyDeleteYou have a very nice way to forgive the past. That was excellent!
ReplyDeleteyou made me think of a friend i used to know and his mother. made me wonder how they're doing these days.
ReplyDeleteRekha - thanks so much! I'm not sure that punishment is harsh enough. I hate paying taxes for it!
ReplyDeleteShrinky - Thanks so much for all the nice words! I appreciate it!
Talli - thanks Talli!
Margaret - Thanks! You are so right! Family secrets are ALWAYS a bad thing...
Goofy Girl - Thanks! It's my pleasure having you here! Yep, the beaches down around San Diego are very similar! Not that far away either!
diane - My pleasure! thanks for reading it.
Dawn - I figured it's a good idea. I think I was posting for myself back then. At least I was one of the very few reading it! Thanks for the nice words and your support Dawn.
Tess - I remember this one lady who would come to work with sunglasses on every once in a while. Oh yeah, we worked the overnight shift. You could tell she'd been knocked around. Sad...
becca - I really appreciate you saying that! thanks so much!
Brian - Forgive, but never forget! Thanks!
Ven - A sad situation for sure. I hope your friend and his mother made it through okay...
I so enjoy your writing Pat. and as Tom Robbins says, "it's never too late to have a happy childhood".
ReplyDeletethe worst part of this sort of thing is "Father to father, son to son
Poisonous legacy of tragic secrets."
thanks for sharing. have a beautiful day.
I remember that one. I still love the image wearing 'sunglasses in the rain'. Just fantastic.
ReplyDeleteI come from a family full of abuse on my father's side. One of my cousins comitted suicide, he couldn't deal with the memories. My father abused me. It has taken years of therapy and God for me to get well, but I am well now. I am healed.
ReplyDeleteI think I'd like to give "daddy" Rocky's nose!
ReplyDeleteOne of the most amazing thing about so many artists is their ability to take something ugly, and present it in such a way that it becomes mesmerizing. Lovely, Pat.~
ReplyDeleteReminds me of my childhood. :( Thankfully my mom took us out of the situation but there will always be hidden scars.
ReplyDeleteThat's pretty intense,Pat. And very well written. Maybe a book of poetry AND photos is in the future for you.
ReplyDelete((hugs)) Pat to your inner child who still needs to know that the world cares.
ReplyDeleteYeah I totally saw and felt the parallels you expressed through your words.
ReplyDeletethis is the wrong way to phrase it but I like the image of sunglasses in the rain - I get it - it is just a really good line.
ReplyDeleteReally great, Pat. Best poem about Rocky Marciano's Nose I have ever read.
ReplyDeleteI read the poem a few times. The first time I read it as me, the second time I read it as someone else that had a different growing up than I did.
ReplyDeleteIsn't it powerful how words can mean so much to you and something completely different to someone else?
I think the best writers pull emotions from us that we guard in our daylight hours.
Powerful poem Pat.
Miss Becky - thanks so much! I'm trying to live mine now!
ReplyDeleteTim - You were pretty much the constant back in the first days of my blog. I really do thank you for the constant support from then until now! Thanks Tim...
Belle - I'm sorry to hear that and very glad that you've healed! Therapy is a great thing!
Marlene - Or in my case, my mom...
Katsidhe - Thanks so much for the nice words! I appreciate them...
Sally - I totally understand. In my case, unfortunately my mom was the monster and there was no dad.
Your mom did a great thing for you!
Chuck - Thanks my friend! Geez, I can't even get one of them done!
Joan - Thanks so much Joan! It's been a journey...
Jesse - Thanks Jesse! I wish I had the old stuff I wrote when I was done...
Jhon - thank Jhon! In my particular situation, if any guy would have laid a finger on my mom, I'm totally postive that she would have shot him dead...
Cheeseboy - LOL! thanks so much my friend!
OWT - I agree! That's why when I read somebody elses poetry, I don't always try to interpret what they meant. I only think about what it meant to me. Thanks so much!
There so much story in this poem, Pat. "Poisonous legacy of tragic secrets" <- you really have a way with words.
ReplyDeletexoRobyn
Wow. You are so talented! This is so sad and so powerful.
ReplyDeleteThe "poisonous legacy" of abuse is well documented. So wonderfully glad, Patrick, that you seem to have broken the cycle in your family. Blessings, Rosemary
ReplyDeleteRobyn - Why thank you my friend!
ReplyDeleteLauren - Thanks Lauren! I appreciate it.
Rosemary - Thanks so much Rosemary! I have have gone too far in the other direction.
Good poem for a legendary boxer, I know of American films but do not pay much attention, boxing does not appeal to me. Saludos.
ReplyDeleteWhat a sad story. And yet, it's so common. You write a very poignant poem.
ReplyDeleteThis is excellent. Great repetitive line: His mother is wearing sunglasses in the rain. I love it!
ReplyDeleteAnn Best, Long Journey Home
Just repeating what other folks have said - but great poem. Definitely powerful and full of phrases that stick.
ReplyDeleteOne can only wonder what life is like for most children. Mostly, they are resilient beyond what should be reasonably expected.
ReplyDeleteClarissa - Thanks Clarissa! At least people get charged with it sometimes now. Back in the day, you rarely ever heard about it on the news.
ReplyDeleteAnn - Thanks so much Ann! I appreciate it...
DumbFunnery - Thanks Brad! I'm glad you liked it!
Stickup Artist - They take a beating and hide it well...
Wow! I don't know what to say except thanks for sharing with us. Blogdom is a great place to tell your story. I think it's a safe haven because you can take your time and write and rewrite, then posy and allow people to respond at their leisure. Its a low pressure environment IMHO.
ReplyDeleteShame, shame! No child should ever endure what you have, Pat.. I'm sorry!
ReplyDeletePam
I've seen way too many women who wear sunglasses in the rain (and not because they have a migraine, like moi!) Very emotionally powerful poem. Really packed a punch (pardon the bad pun). Unfortunately, abuse becomes a family tradition as do so many other things. Very sad.
ReplyDeletePat, I so love reading your poetry! Thank you for posting it again for those of us who missed it the first time.
ReplyDeleteA stellar poem, Pat...perceptive and intense...thank you for sharing that. I know too well the "poisonous legacy of tragic secrets". It's good that we were able to break the cycle, hard as it sometimes seemed to be!
ReplyDeleteThe mother wearing sunglasses in the rain is a haunting image...it quite took my breath away...