Locked Up All Day

Locked up all day, she just played the day away
Not eating for weeks, when she did the food wasn’t okay. 
Cereal when it was there just
Cause mama didn’t care. 

Mom slept all day
While dad slaved away. 
Working day and night, he got tired. 
Now here comes the fight. 

So he began to drink
And to never once think
‘I have two beautiful children, 
Maybe I should go comfort them.’

The youngest was thinner than a stick 
And the oldest well, mom would always kick. 
Mama did bad things. 
Drinking, Drugs, never thinking of us. 

Their aunt would take them away from the bad for the weekends. 
She suspected all the abuse, she just couldn’t know for sure. 
The family moved a couple states away. 
Too far for weekend breaks. They were miserable. 

They stayed locked up all day. 

Soon the oldest now had enough. 
She told someone about the abuse. 
She told them about everything
She would have rather got a noose. 

The sisters were taken away just to be kept safe 
But the youngest didn’t understand. 
So she just cried 
And asked for her sisters’ hand. 

They went to the dentist and doctors for the first time in how long? 
They had atrocious teeth, they had bruises… Just not on their arms. 
They needed help and got that first but the youngest… 
She never told what was on her chest. 

She didn’t ever have an appetite
And didn’t ever sleep at night. 
She stayed up thinking ‘What did I do to be punished like this?’ 
She stayed locked up all day. 

Bullies at school would push her back and forth 
Because ‘her mom and dad didn’t plan her birth!’ 
They would yell at her in the halls ‘You’re a mistake!’ 
‘You’re mom and dad didn’t love you! That’s why they gave you away!’ 

As if it were some sort of a sick game! 
She questioned if what they said was true. 
She was still so distant. 
Now, still so young, she turned so blue

She had thoughts I just can’t repeat. 
She played it cool and just stood on her feet. 
She didn’t want her sister to stress it 
So she carried on and never addressed it. 

They moved house to house changing every week. 
The other kids convinced her sister it was all her fault that they were there. 
They chanted as she beat her to the ground. 
They were separated after that. 

They didn’t see each other in a while. 
The next home, the oldest stayed there for a while, she didn’t ever move. 
However… The youngest… Well… She moved and moved and moved again. 
She stayed locked up all day for the short time that she was in all the homes. 

She was so upset. 
She was so broken
That’s why it wasn’t a surprise when she heard the phone ring and someone told her to pack her stuff. 

She didn’t even look back. 
She knew she would never see this place again. 
She walked into a building. 
Now she’s curious. 

She looks at a familiar face looking for a hug. 
It was her sister. She ran to her and held her tight. 
At that moment, a woman with a daughter walked in the building. 
The girl turned due to her sisters’ face. 

It was their aunt. They ran and hugged her. 
They were sad to think they were just here to say hi. 
At the end of about 5 hours of sitting and waiting. 
We got in the car with our aunt and cousin. 

We drove to go and get food, we went to a hotel and slept in big huge beds. 
We had so much fun.
When we had to pack our things and put them in the car. I was fearful our visit was done.

I was moving. 
I was moving in with my aunt. 
That day was the first day of the rest of my life. 
I was 11 years old when I moved in with them. I weighed 67 pounds with wet clothes on. 

I had no friends, let alone a boyfriend. 
Now, I’m 18 years old. I weigh 130 pounds with wet clothes on. I love my life and I’m NEVER locked up all day. Not forced to and not by choice.