Bloody handprints on the wall Flesh stained with fingerprints Reddenned with re-opened scars This is his punishment The hand of his father strikes Knocking him to the ground He runs to hide in closets Where tears are often found His tears, they flow endlessly His scars, they never fade But they're unseen through the eyes Of intoxicated rage He tries to please his father The only one he loves But he's spent his seven years Trying to see through his blood He whispers in the darkness The truth to me he tells His words...sparks on dry timber I weep for this boy's hell... T.J.L age 14