tiger pride
By scorp
When I eat dinner
My family sits around my father
Quiet when the table rattles
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
Bright, red, burning, fragile
I know she’ll remind me of everything I could be
But wouldn’t, couldn't,
When my mother talks
The ash is soothed by her tea
Because when I see smiles
Crinkled eyes, folded, rickety hugs
I know it will wash away when I won’t be
Able to keep up, never able to,
I cry when I see red circles on my papers
And falling numbers on my screen
I celebrate my tests instead of my smiles
It growls, the tiger of my own
An ash tongue and teeth sandpapered to a point,
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.
Author Notes: reworked version of "sophomore's pride"
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