UNDER THE WALL

We knew they were coming,

the unwelcome guests we had tried

hard to avoid.

Father was too sick to fight them off,

but Mother distracted them

with rubies and diamonds,

even her gold wedding band.

They were content for a time,

but now they are back.

Father is still ill,

and now Mother’s treasure box is almost empty.

Hunger has made itself at home.

Moved in and filled our bellies.

Emptied our minds of reason.

We can barely form a complete thought between us.

But Henry rallies.

He finds a hole,

an eye just big enough for a thin needle of a boy

to pass through.

We wait for nightfall,

then spool me into my father’s black coat

with big pockets.

“They shoot smugglers,” Henry warns,

but I’m not afraid.

Guided by moonlight,

I thread my way through

the forest to Janek’s farm.

Something moves in the darkness.

Wolves?

I sew myself into the night

until we are seamless

and hold my breath.

A rabbit flashes by,

doing what I cannot.

Running for its life.

Shining in the moonlight.