The Things We Need to Know
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| image by Vika Krokina, Ukraine 2022 |
THE THINGS WE NEED TO KNOW
Parents don't always know how to tell you just how awful the world can be to you, if you don't have money, or power, or a voice.
They don't consider than one day before you are ten you might be alone in the world, living in the rubble of what you knew, learning the difference between foraging and scavenging. They don't give you the background on why your second grade class is learning shooter drills in order to preserve the American love of guns, so you might not understand. Nobody has tips on how to get to sleep after seeing your best friend die.
I wish I had learned what loss was before I lost everything. I might have recognized it as it smothered me. But these are the things they don't tell us.
The things we need to know, to live in your world.
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A prosery piece based on the line:
These are the things they don’t tell us.
– Girl Du Jour, from Notes on Uvalde
and prompted by the diverse poets over at DVerse poets.
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I would love to know what you thought about this piece.
Please consider leaving a comment.
Christopher, your poem reminds me of a video I watched the other day, where one of the surviving students talked with the media about watching her best friend get murdered and then walked them inside to show them where it happened. I understand why her parents allowed it as she seemed so numbed by it, which is disturbing in and of itself, but there is a sense she also needed a kind of community grieving process to help her get through. It has got to be so difficult for those left behind in the tragedy of a mass shooting.
ReplyDeleteI think I may have heard the same interview that Lisa saw. Or a similar one. The young girl was assuring everyone that she was fine, and she didn't want people to worry about her. She was trying to stay strong for her family and the people who lost their children. But I just kept thinking that of course, she was a victim, too, and there was no way she was OK.
ReplyDeleteThis is chilling to read. As a septagenarian, I can't imagine how young parents talk with their children about these things today and the fears they have, if they stop to think, when they drop their children off at school. I remember, when I was little (and I'm 75) having drills where we had to hide under our desks but they didn't seem real because what we were drilling for never really happened. How different for today's kids when they have "shelter in place" drills because it has happened and keeps happening.
ReplyDeletePowerful stuff, with several scenarios extant between thee lines, like how at 10 was the child left homeless, and shifting gears to shooter drills. As a parent, I struggled with how to talk to children about the real real. It is a conundrum for sure.
ReplyDeleteI could feel your choice of the word "smothered" in the last few lines. Haunting write! 😔
ReplyDeleteA powerful piece of prose that packs quite a punch, will resonate for quite some time.
ReplyDeleteThis is devastating. It's impossible to understand why America tolerates this.
ReplyDeleteI agree with sarah...it really is difficult to comprehend. How does a love for a weapon that was created to kill become more important than the lives of innocent children. As I told someone today from your country, I think every American should spend a few months in Canada to gain a different perspective. U.S. senators may need a few more. Your prose is very powerful and I pray for your country along with the Ukraine.
ReplyDeleteThank you for this. Every time someone speaks out I feel a tad better, especially when it is poetic and goes deep.
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