Life was a blur of confusion; contradictions.
\nDays blurred together in a little kid’s present tense.
\nThe “always now” – too young to reflect and process.
\nPast days lurched forward through time, bursting unannounced into the present at the worst moment, like an obnoxious, uninvited guest.
\nParents forgot that they were the centre of everything. They went out of control, abdicated responsibilities like the careless children they once were.
\nTheir own offspring got lost in the mix,\u00a0left emotionally out in the wild.<\/p>\n
Some families seemed happy, bonded by trust.
\nMine wasn’t. Were there others like us?
\nFather’s hands that were calloused yet gentle were also feared,
\nsometimes raised in anger against those they should protect.<\/p>\n
Mother’s eyes and heart were kept to herself,
\nunable to deal as an adult, she surrendered to depression and booze.
\nNo response came from her. No conversation seemed to reach her.
\nShe was a woman thinking like a little girl, still missing her dead dad;
\nShe couldn’t take the responsibility of parenthood.<\/p>\n
Spun around in their young hearts, the offspring took on adult pains,
\nresponsibilities came too early; dark abuses twisted roles out of shape;
\nChronological adults became helpless from their misadventures.
\nKids, forced to grow up too damn soon, sought proxy-parents to show them love in safe, harmless little doses. Over the years, they learned to shrug off the burdens that weighed them down since birth.<\/p>\n
In my family that was, I was with them when they needed me.<\/p>\n
Love, trust, and sharing are part of a grand journey,
\nwhere you find out who your honest friends and beloved family are.
\nThe present time is the only time there is.
\nYou learn that loyalty and love need not be used only in moments of crisis,\u00a0but are a strength in the quietest, smallest daily moments.
\nYou learn to be comfortable in yourself, and allow yourself and others to just be.<\/p>\n
You learn that suffering, loss and recovery are common to us all.
\nMy family that is, understands these things and lives from them.
\nYou can forgive others, because you have worked to forgive yourself.
\nYou can truly love others, because you truly love yourself.<\/p>\n
In my family that is, they’re with me when I need them.<\/p>\n
I’ll fast-forward the dream, looking towards the babies and children of today, to envision the grown-ups of tomorrow.
\nSufferring will still come to them, as it does to us all,
\nbut they will rise to the challenges the world will offer.
\nThey will greet it with an open hand instead of a closed fist,
\nand an open heart instead of a closed mind or silent mouth.<\/p>\n
They’ll remember to live by the golden rule their predecessors forgot:\u00a0Treat others as you’d have them treat you.<\/p>\n
In my family that will be, they will know who they are,
\nand they will feel loved and be worthy of love.
\nThe family that will be will stay together and will be there to care.<\/p>\n
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