An indifferent god
\nraised his fist
\nand before my eyes
\ncrushed my son.<\/p>\n
I stood frozen in the yellow light
\nof the tiny spare bedroom
\nI\u2019d made into a study,
\nbreathless at the cruelty.<\/p>\n
I’d failed the first test.
\nI felt sorry for myself,
\nstunned by rage
\nat the corruption
\nof my new father\u2019s pride.
\nWhy me, I sobbed. Why me?<\/p>\n
Rise above it, I told myself.
\nBe a man, I told myself.
\nI turned from flesh to stone.
\nI turned from stone to steel.
\nThen I turned to rust.<\/p>\n
The indifferent god
\nlifted his fist.
\nMy son sprang up,
\na shattered cherub made whole again,
\nhis smile empty,
\nhis gaze vacant,
\nhis entire being turned in on itself,
\ntrapped in a loop of exhilaration.<\/p>\n
Alone in the darkness
\nof our bedroom
\nmy son\u2019s mother
\nfelt no self pity.<\/p>\n
She died only to be
\ndragged back to life,
\na transfiguration in reverse.<\/p>\n
When she emerged,
\nher skin scorched,
\nher soul in tatters,
\nshe still moved with her dancer\u2019s grace,
\nholding him close,
\nclose but not too tight,
\npetrified he would break.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Transfiguration An indifferent god raised his fist and before my eyes crushed my son. I stood frozen in the yellow light of the tiny spare bedroom I\u2019d made into a study, breathless at the cruelty. I’d failed the first test. I felt sorry for myself, stunned by rage at the corruption of my new father\u2019s […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":309,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_is_tweetstorm":false,"jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":[]},"categories":[379,380],"tags":[388],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"yoast_head":"\n