From A Child’s View

My small body quivering,

I slip under the worn wood table

Clutching my ragged teddy bear tightly to my chest,

I peer out at the scene before me,

My eyes squinting and wanting to close

Outside my safe little shelter,

I see Mama and Papa facing each other,

Their arms swinging widly

As words are flung back and forth

I don't understand everything said,

But the bits I'm able to decipher,

Are angry and harsh

Not at all the way Mama and Papa usually speak

The words are loud, scary, carving into my tiny ears

I don't want to hear anymore

I curl up on the cold tile floor,

Holding teddy against me

And as the screaming goes on,

I eventually drift into a fearful sleep

A while later, I wake up to Mama plucking me out from my shelter,

Her hands gentle, her blue eyes red and puffy,

As she softly murmurs, "I love you,"

A tired, weary smile is on her face