When I eat dinner
My family sits around my father
Quiet when the animal prowls
Because I know his lips are sewn
In silent agreement to the words leaking from
The canines of my mother
When the tiger talks
The chicken in my mouth turns ashy
Because when I see her eyes in a fire
I know she’ll remind me of everything I could be
But wouldn’t, couldn't, the voice says
When my mother talks
Her tea down my throat soothes the ash
Because when I see the hope and joy
I know it will wash away when I won’t be
Able to keep up, never able
I cry when I see red circles on my papers
And falling numbers on my screen
I celebrate my tests instead of my smiles
I have produced a tiger of my own.
I am jealous of smarter friends
Who don’t have bruises under their eyes
Shaky eyes and shaky hands
I am jealous of better people
Who are quicker with a pencil
Than I am with words.
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United States • 17 years old