Mother, I’m All Alone

by Mike Meraz

mother, I’m all alone.

let me sit on top of the kitchen counter
and listen to you speak.

mother, I’m all alone.

let me peek through the crack
in the bathroom door
and watch you put on your make-up.

mother, I’m all alone.

kiss me on the back of the neck
or pass by while I watch TV.

twist and writhe on the living room couch
while father begs you to come back
and I tell you to leave.