BROTHERS AND SISTERS

[subjunct]

BROTHERS AND SISTERS

What do you do when
The only innocent person you've ever known
Is sitting on death row---
No trial by jury, no judge,
No lawyer to defend him.
He doesn't even know the sentence.

And how do I rant and rage
when there is nobody to blame
except maybe myself;
I'm supposed to protect him---
after all
That's what big sisters are for.
But I can't.

How could I stop needing him
When he comes to my room
Just to make sure I'm still there
And says, "I love you Sis", while I
Hug him tight and try to
Pretend the doctors never said:
"Thirty at latest... Probably around
Twenty."

Little brother, you
Will be twelve this year.
I wonder how many more birthdays
You will have.
Little brother, no matter what,
I love you.

My comfort lies in that
Neither of us will live forever.
So, if the sun sets for you still
far too early,
I will follow you into that night,
so you will never be alone and scared.
I'll hold your hand, keep you safe----
A connection in the blinding dark
(as we always were to each other),
And be the sister I never could before
without grieving.