A Poem by the Children of Longing

The screams at home they never cease,

All I wish for, a little peace.

My grades have dropped, but they don’t care,

We run wild, but no one notices, it isn’t fair.

We’re out all day, dusk to dawn, winter to fall,

My room is empty, they don’t even notice I’m gone at all.

But even when I’m here, I’m not at all,

My mind is hazy, left in a freefall.

Though it leaves tracks on my arm,

Causing my body all sorts of harm,

It’s a sort of silence, a peaceful hum.

So I let it take me under its thumb.

Because it doesn’t judge or scream at me,

For a few hours, I’m free.

And though I’m sure my time’s being took,

They’ll all mourn a life they never gave a second-look.

So I’ll crouch in the park, needle in hand,

Ruining a future my parents had planned.