by Milo M., 14 (any pronouns)
you gave her words to speak,
and taught her how to use them, in
hopes that your shy little turtle would emerge
from her shell.
you gave her words to speak,
whispering their meaning, to think
before she speaks, well maybe,
you should try that too.
you gave her words to speak,
then talked all over her, daring to
take her words away.
you gave her words to speak,
but her mouth never learned to move, the salt
backing up ‘till it leaked out her eyes, landing
in wet splotches, a crashing wave
onto her shirt.
you gave her words to speak,
then parroted them back to her, till
she fell in love with the words of a liar,
spilling from mouth, like moths to a flame, but she
never learnt the truth behind a lie.
you gave her words to speak,
then used them to turn on her, when you
never noticed how often you go back on
your own word.
you gave her words to speak,
teaching her how they
grow intro phrases and sentence, paragraphs
and stories, letting loose the emotions in her mind.
then you collect them up one by one and
shovel them into the freezing snow.
you gave her words to speak,
and her bright angel eyes learned to
glimpse the light in each devil’s eye, but
not this one, you’ve gone beyond
the point of no return.
you gave her words to speak,
and watched them blow away, her
skin and bones melting into the
dust, her longing gaze turned
back, a cry for help.
she can’t bear to be left behind, again and
again, but you walk away, confident
she’ll grow up with her newfound power
of words staying quiet.
you gave her words to speak,
and finally one day, she learned
to use them against you.
Speechless now, what do you
say?
Milo M. (any pronouns) is a genderfluid poet currently writing a collection of novels in verse. Their hobbies include baking desserts for their friends, performing in their school’s theatre production, reading anything from nonfiction to sci-fi to high fantasy, and of course, writing, whether that be poetry or songwriting or the occasional short story. He is also a big lover of nature and is currently working with his local library to teach kids about the importance of trees through eco-poetry. Find her at @poemofadaydreamer on Instagram, where she is just starting to publish her work.
Bridge Ink 