She Gave Him Up her baby

She Gave Him Up her baby

She gave him up,

not for shame,

not because she didn’t love him,

because she did.

She saw what rage could do

when the drink took hold,

when pills kicked in,

when a bad mood

turned dangerous.

He’d smash chairs,

kick doors,

curse the walls

for being too close.

He never touched the baby,

but she knew he would.

So she wrapped the boy in his blanket,

didn’t wait,

didn’t cry,

just drove through the dark

and gave him to someone safer.

Then she went home

and locked the door behind her.

He came back

drunk,

high,

ready to hurt her.

And he did.

He murdered her.

His wife.

The mother of his child.

No accident.

No excuse.

He was drunk.

He was high.

He killed her.

But the boy lived.

That’s what matters.

He grew up far away

from fists and slammed doors.

Her love,

he was too young to remember.

But it saved him.