In response to dVerse Poets Pub:
https://wp.me/p1GTyJ-8S1


Before I Had Words

There are years I cannot enter
without lowering my head.

Memory is not a hallway —
it is a cellar
with uneven steps
and the smell of dust.

I remember knees first.
Table legs.
The dark hush beneath beds
where breath felt too loud.

The world was taller then,
voices drifting like weather
above my reach.

I learned early
how to fold myself small,
how to listen from shadows,
how to wait for light
to move across the floor.

I suppose that is how it begins —

“The first thing I remember is being under something.”

— Charles Bukowski, Ham on Rye

— Maggie
The Afterlove Voice 💫


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13 responses to “Before I Had Words”

  1. poetisatinta Avatar

    Maggie, you’ve captured the scale of childhood perfectly in this, sadly it suggest a child who learned that safety meant being unobtrusive. It turns the act of ‘remembering’ into a study of space and invisibility 🩷

    Liked by 2 people

    1. Maggie Avatar

      Thank you Ange ❤️. Sadly that was my childhood with abuse . And writing poems or stories is my healing ❤️

      Liked by 2 people

  2. Sadje Avatar

    A beautiful poem Maggie

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Maggie Avatar

      Thank you Sadje my friend ❤️💜

      Liked by 1 person

      1. Sadje Avatar

        My pleasure, always

        Liked by 1 person

  3. paeansunplugged Avatar

    Maggie, you captured the world from a child’s eye perfectly! Albeit a child trying to be invisible. My heart goes out to this child.

    Liked by 3 people

  4. Lisa or Li Avatar

    Maggie, this feels like an eerie atmosphere for a baby.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Maggie Avatar

      That’s true Lisa .

      Liked by 1 person

  5. Lynne Avatar
    Lynne

    perfectly captured– this being small feeling.

    Liked by 2 people

    1. Maggie Avatar

      Thank you Lynne 💜😊

      Liked by 1 person

  6. Carol anne Avatar

    wow, powerful Maggie, really good! 💜💜

    Liked by 1 person

  7. shaun tenzenmen Avatar

    Agree with others here, this is a great write Maggie 👏

    My childhood memory doesn’t feel so small, in that I don’t remember knees or constantly looking upwards and you’ve got me wondering if that was due to my mother’s influence and making me feel included…. Thought provoking for me.

    Liked by 1 person

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