Today Poem by Christian Rivera

It's mid daylight and I hear screaming
The walls are shaking around me
Parents fight, throwing things
While I'm thought to be sleeping soundly

I open my door to take a peak
The shouting so strange to my ears
The weather outside is cold and bleak
A foretelling of my future years

Down the hall, her arms raised up high
Mother's backward marching as fists must fly
I sit on my bed and watch her pass by
Stepfather with a menacing look in his eyes

Soon the sirens sing of a peace unknown
Our bags are packed, and lost is our home
We travel the state, on and on and on
I'll never know truly where my heart has gone

As I grow up, I live here and there
From shelters to streets to I-don't-know-where
On floors I sleep, so cold and bare
A child grown up to be fair

I learn not to ask for the things that I want
To desire anything is a sin against God
I learn to dislike a God that stood by and watched
As my childhood, freedoms, and opportunities were lost

Today I'm a man who stands firm on two feet
I fight for my rights and I choose my beliefs
I'm alright with the path taken that made me
A man of wisdom and truth in all I shall speak