you must have seen her
she has a patchwork quilt
and each square of material
is one of your dreams

leaving behind,
leaving behind so much
so much pain
even at my age
reduced to tears

i cannot tell you how i feel
i cannot explain,
all i can do,
is say, i feel strange

smiling face
happy thoughts
mind almost unchained
from the cell,
which it finds itself in

what does the child do
it grows up,
but grows up –
and follows many different directions

the joke is on me
and the joke is so clear
yet its smile is vile
and it fills me with fear