Unbound

Once again, I scratch her head
“You’ll understand” mom always said,
“One day when you have kids, how much
Love can be felt in just a touch”

Truly I could not have known
The depth of feelings rarely shown
And now I fear to understand
How anyone could hurt a strand

Of hair upon their loved one’s head
Or give them existential dread
Betrayal of that fragile trust
Leaves scars just like a killing thrust

Imagining a better world
Consumes my mind, at last unfurled
She doesn’t know, and never will
She only stays, and licks, and heals

I must give her autonomy
To sort out how she wants to be
And I cannot bear to leave a trace
Of generational trauma space

For all the things mom said were true
It hurts the most to see this through
My dog has helped me realize
The harm of fear, control, and lies

It’s all bullshit, the rules and norms
The rituals to mask the storms
There are no gods, nor fates, nor futures
There’s only love, and pain, and sutures.