when
he was 7 years old,
he learned the meaning of hurt,
because he knew his father
left bruises around his mother's neck.
by 10 years old,
the sun didn't shine as bright,
the grass wasn't as green.
everything seeme dull.
at age 13,
he couldn't tell the difference
between nightmares and reality,
there were monsters in his head.
on his 16th birthday,
he counted the scars on his torso
and the pills by the night stand,
and thought some things through
but 3 years later (age 19),
he smiled that crooked simle because
he could feel the sun on his skin and
the blowers were finally blooming and
he had made it.
