A darkened room
Bedroom, kitchen
Living room all in one
And four small children
Living, playing in fear.

Father asleep
Due to shifts
Children playing in silence
To avoid the rage
Of a father gone wild.

Beatings, sex
We all could view
Heads turned
Or fake sleep
Blind to what went on.

What else happened
In that room
Buried in my mind?
Imagining only left for me
Of what life must have been.