Only Sixteen

Only Sixteen

Kathleen McNamara


She's growing up way to fast.
A rising star,
meeting every challenge.
Her competence a wall,
a fortress,
against a crumbling world.

The sanctuary of family
shattered by illness.
The one she needs the most
losing a battle against mind and body.
She is now the anchor
for others caught in this tempest.

Outside of this vortex
some worry about the husband and son.
They sing praise to her performance.
Never questioning the burden
on her sometimes slumped shoulders.
Forgetting...she is only sixteen.


(18 lines)

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