she wants to put some distance
between herself and this fractured family;
her idea of home has been demolished
ruined by a storm of emotional violence

at fourteen, she has already seen too much;
love has become a "four-letter word"
marriage a farce, death an escape;
she does not want to enter this world of adults

I move to offer comfort, to reach out to her
but she withdraws, turns towards Antarctica;
already I see her eyes freezing over
her smile become cold, her heart turn to ice.