not so bad poetry

cradle

i hold my mothers anger in my hands
fragile like a newborn baby
i nurture it with love and care
hold it close to my heart
beg for it to stop crying out

i hold my mother pain
like freshly folded clothes
i try to put it away
in the back of the closet
hoping i never see it again
like an unflattering dress
i hear it cry at night

i hold my fathers love
wear it like my favorite pair of jeans
wash it rarely
protect it with all my might
pray that it won't ever break
i hear it beg for more

i hold my sisters hope
like my favorite necklace
close to my heart
i clean it keep it warm
i pray it stays and doesn't fade away
i hold on to it when i scream to break
i hear it waile at night

i hold my family's expectations
3 feet away like a dangerous animal
hoping it won't attack and break me
i hold it in a glass casket
hoping it'll wither away
i hear it yell

i wear my family's history
like a dress that's too big
and i try to make it fit
to get it to love me too
to hold me as i want to hold it
i beg for it to fit like a second skin

and yet
i hear the cries at night
and wonder when will they shut up?