Silent Scars

Stop!

It was an early Friday evening, the sun was going down,

The smell of dinner drifted warmly over town.

Mum had done the shopping, Dad was home from work,

The kids, in from playing, bathed off all the dirt.

The cats mewed at ankles, waiting to be fed,

While the TV in the corner blared on until bed.

A simple Friday night, the weekly routine,

With Mum as quiet as ever, keeping the house clean.

She tidied up the kitchen, handed Dad his beer,

As he watched the evening news, the kids tucked up near.

They whispered in the darkness until, at last, they slept,

Awakened by the nightmares, as evening shadows crept.

The hidden, haunting terror shook them wide awake,

As they lay in fearful silence, hearing china break.

Listening to the darkness, with terror stalking night,

Their heartbeats small and frantic, as fear held them tight.

The little girl lay crying, her heart raw and sore,

“Daddy... Daddy… don’t hit Mummy anymore.”

They heard their mother screaming, the rage against the walls,

Felt their father’s anger echo through the halls.

Then silence settled, as the night’s storm passed away,

And the children drifted, tense, into morning light of day.

In the weekend sunlight, as dawn grew bright and clear,

Two sad-eyed children stumbled out to play near.

At the playground, they just stood there, quiet and alone,

Unable to share the secret of monsters in their home.

Their mother’s dark eyes holding tears that hide her pain,

The children hoped the policeman would stop by again—

To catch that lurking monster, take it far away,

And make their home a safe place, each and every day.