Normal

No, he is not; he is normal

Normal, just like everyone else

I heard at the head of the hospital bed, by the heartbeat of my mother

Curled feet, a tiny chest, too small beside my twin brother

Heart with slow pace, starved lips, infant in a cradle

And when I stopped breathing, in the first days of my life

She wept as she brought me back with her love, back to life

Always has been a good mother, woman, and wife

* * *

No, I am not; I am normal

Normal, just like everyone else

I said, in that city center flat, to the ears of my mother

She shook her head as I stubbornly dismissed those crutches

For she taught me to walk, but I still limped every step

Words came late, and letters swam, unlike for my twin brother

And as I tried to stop my breath in the early years of my life

She brought me back with her love, back to life

Always has been a good mother, woman, and wife

* * *

No, you are not; not normal

I read, at the edge of the rehab bed, in the eyes of my mother

As I longed for more, just one more sip

I could finally do something better than my twin brother

When he took a glass, I finished the whole bottle

In the past, I rose up, now I can't brush off the dust

And there she wept, as I took my last breath

She could not bring me back with her love, back to life

have been a good mother, woman, and wife