EIGHT YEARS OLD
,

EIGHT YEARS OLD


the truth hid
in the kitchen drawer
for eight years
before it was discovered
hiding between recipes
and the crumbs
from yesterday's cookies,
written on a light green envelope
that had faded over time:

BABY
seven pounds
two ounces
June 28, 1969.

BIRTH MOTHER
five foot, four inches
hair - blonde
eyes - blue
twenty-one years old
allergic to bee stings

BIRTH FATHER
five foot, nine inches
hair - black
eyes - brown
thirty years old
divorced
a bartender.

then,
she took me in her lap
my "mother"
five foot, four inches
hair - brown
eyes - green
forty-two years old.

the smell of Jean Nate,
wrapped around her neck -
my arms, holding on
as i tried to understand
that what she was trying to tell me
didn't mean she loved me any less.

but the truth hurt,
I was a mistake.