Unedited

The homemade swing my father made

Is too close to home

I remember the day he made it

He slung a rope over a tree He broke off the handles of my first bike Flipped it upside down And then he attached a support strap Tying it to both ends to form a seat Much to my amazement It was better than any tire swing You would twist one direction Spinning too slow for your impatient mind Winding up the rope Tiredness sweeping across your small body Until you stood on your tip toes With an ache in your legs And the uncomfortable feeling of tension you let go Finally feeling that release You spun faster than any park ride Feel your breath become shallow Your head becoming light Your hair whipping your face The strap digging into your legs And The harsh handlebars cutting your hands Out of control Here comes the warning Don't be shocked at collision When soft skin makes contact with rough bark Your body breaking against the trees trunk The handle bar knocking teeth lose The price of being uncontrollable For some reason I never realized That I never left that tree Over the years I thought about it in passing wondering if I could repurpose the rope How pills made the world spin just the same Wishing straps would replace his hands digging in Or Motion sickness instead of overdosing Remembering being only high in the swing I remember one time I let go of the handlebars My feet got caught in the straps And my body drug against the ground I don't know how I never realized That I never got back up