to perdition…and back?

by Jonathan Hunter-Kilmer

in the cellar

is a deep, wide hole

my parents knew it was there

when they bought the house

they put a plank across it

and told us to be careful

not to fall

never a question

that they'd fill it in

and eliminate the danger.

better

just to keep us scared

of the basement

(creeking wooden steps, everyone falls

once in a while)

the basement

was the last thing to fear

in that house

dust

cold

mold

(hot in the summer)

dark all the time

nightmares

them

nobody fell in that hole

(that I know about)

but

many jumped in

after my parents

and never

came out

again

they walked above ground

but their hearts

minds

souls

drifted steadily down

that hole

covered

by a smile

the one they made in me

You filled

covered

healed

and maybe

I can pull them free