They Came When I Was Eight
Andyi Maruca
They came when I was eight
To take me to my new home.
Away from the parents who loved me,
The brother who beat me,
The dog who mauled him,
And the sister who smiled,
As she played with her Peoples
And frozen Barbies.
They promised that it was best.
Said 'I was bought from the day I was born,'
In reward,
Regret.
An ancient guilt passed on from my Grandfather
To my mother.
They colored me cold, And
treated me like a project,
Like community service, Like
Orphan Annie Come home again.
They learned me the Bible,
And force fed religion
I couldn't find faith in.
Doctrine /
I wouldn't absorb.
The bruises were worth it.
Every bite and scratch
Was prayed for.
Any faith I found
Was stored away
In the life I never feared,
Sealed in a burnt envelope.
They came when I was eight
To take me to my new home.
Away from the parents who loved me,
The brother who beat me,
The dog that mauled him,
And the sister who smiled...
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