I am torn fur and
Blistered eyelids
Horrible to look at
But you never turn and see me
Not before and certainly not
Now that she’s gone
I fought for her
Every rasping breath
Each sigh of pain
I would have taken
Her place if I could
But I'm only the
Monster under the bed
I could help but not heal
My skin became
Grizzled and scaled as I
Tried to make her pain
My own and sometimes
When I held my breath and
You held her hand
She knew peace
But you don't know peace
Even though you fake acceptance
For your other children
I know how much you hurt
I go under their beds now
To make sure there’s no rasp
No odor of the sickness that took her
I do the best I can for them but
I don't know how to help you
How to reach someone who
Stopped believing in
Me so long ago
So I stand behind you
As you hold her picture
And weep so very quietly
That the others never wake
I'll keep the monsters
At bay—at least the
Unnatural ones like me—
While you mourn our girl