My Family Secret
There are many nights of my childhood
Where I remember him not coming home
He’d go bar hopping and then gambling
While mom raised her four children alone.
Mom raised her children as a single parent
And there were many sleepless nights I had
My younger brothers have fewer memories
But I missed spending some time with Dad.
Then one night he stumbled in the door at dawn
I silently sat by the stairway, while trying to hear
I heard Mom yelling at Dad as she grew angrier
Then I heard what hurtfully brought many tears.
My drunken father had punched my mother that morning
Later on that day, I saw the bruise that was on her face
It was then I began having hurtful feelings about my Dad
And my home quickly became a more dangerous place.
Six months later, our Mom moved us to an apartment
And took extra shifts at work to help pay our many bills
She then got a divorce from our father whom we disliked
And I owe everything to Mom, who’s very strong-willed.
Not a soul outside our family ever knew about this secret
But my father’s horrible past can now be finally exposed
My mom is a very courageous woman I look up to everyday
She’s always loved us, more than my father could ever know.
