Study Guide

What happened to us

you ask me--

What happened.

Do you remember when I turned to you for help

I was so scared, and you, right there beside

me during our mutual struggle, together--

You have to fix this,

you told me-- Now. Or I’m gone. And you’ll deal with this alone.

What happened?

My partner in crime abandoned the scene. No-- worse,

rolled the weight onto my shoulders alone and

climbed on top

pressed down harder.

What happened-- I

was a damaged person, as we

all are, but my scars were a comfort, a

memorial tattoo of obstacles

put to rest, challenges

overcome.

But what you told me that day

in that unnamable place inverted

my mirrored shield-- I can handle anything reflected back

to me as I must handle everything

before it affects him-- or

face the consequences.

And suddenly, my vision of

the future-- our future--

was a physics exam I could never prepare for, and

I knew then

the rest of my life would be spent shoving

the report card deep in my

backpack where I prayed

you would never find it.

What happened? You

saw that hole we

were supposed to fill together and instead

of shovelling, you

planted the seed

that perhaps the digging

would be eaiser– or at least, less

frightening– alone.