A five year old stuck in no-child’s land between
The hospital and the duck.
The hospital had my mother,
The duck had me.

Once bitten
It was so hard for me to take even
One small step
Outside the old Virginia farmhouse.

Inside, the house was dark,
Shades pulled against the heat.
Books lined the walls
I couldn’t read.

By day,
I followed the thin black woman
Who told fortunes in tea-cups,
(And they were never good).

By night, I tried hard to huddle by my aunt,
Who didn’t like to hug and made me sleep alone.