Was it a traffic light
a smoke signal
a not so coded message?
The book lay flat
cornered on our bookshelf
picked from its upright neighbours,
still and quiet,
closed,
there but not there
a metaphor
for its contents.

"How to Cope 
with Abuse"
the title
briefly removed
from a bookshelf
Taken but not kept
held but released
opened but briefly,

The story of a thousand
Pains 
Historical traumas
Fractured hopes
Broken lives
carried within its pages,
forgotten buried,
desperate hands emerging 
seeking from the grave
nails cracked
crying for help.

Was this book
left extracted
but returned
a silent teared whisper
from a brief borrower?

Starting Thoughts: What do we read into the actions of others? Truth from our perspective or theirs? Do we see the hidden messages in what they do? How alive are we to others? I found a book that had been extracted and moved to a lying down position on our shelf . As I reviewed in my mind the conversations we had over the previous hours I wondered, "Did the visitor do this deliberately?"
Poem Topic Tags: #abuse, #abusive, #broken, #help, #hurt, #hope, #messages, #pain, #rape, #traumas,
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