The hawk is breaking.

You see it.

Not flying.

Breaking.

Like glass under a heel.

The feathers scatter.

Not like leaves.

Like shards.

You watch them fall.

One by one.

Into the mud.

You are ten.

You are in the yard.

The mud is thick.

It sucks at your boots.

Your brother, Thomas, stands beside you.

He is taller.

He is angry.

He holds a stick.

He hits the air.

He hits the tree.

He hits you.

You do not move.

You watch the hawk.

The hawk is gone.

Only the shards remain.

They glitter.

They are blue.

They are white.

They are nothing.

"Look at it, Tom," you say.

Your voice is small.

It is thin.

Like a wire.

Tom stops.

He looks at you.

He looks at the ground.

He drops the stick.

It thuds.

It is loud.

It is final.

"Dead," he says.

"Yes," you say.

"It’s broken," you say.

"Dead is dead," he says.

His voice is hard.

Like stone.

Like the wall.

Like the world.

You pick up a shard.

It is sharp.

It cuts your thumb.

You do not bleed.

You feel cold.

You feel numb.

You look at Tom.

He looks away.

He looks at the road.

Cars pass.

They are fast.

They are loud.

They do not stop.

They do not care.

The town is behind the wall.

The school is behind the wall.

The church is behind the wall.

You are in the yard.

You are in the mud.

You are alone.

Tom leaves.

He walks fast.

His boots crunch.

He does not look back.

You stay.

You stay.

You stay.

The sun is low.

The light is red.

The light is dying.

You hold the shard.

You hold it tight.

The pain comes.

It is sharp.

It is real.

You are alive.

The hawk is not.

The hawk was whole.

Now it is parts.

You are whole.

Are you?

You look at your hands.

They are small.

They are dirty.

They are yours.

You think of Mr. Hale.

Mr. Hale is dead.

He died last week.

In the house.

In the bed.

He was the teacher.

He was kind.

He was old.

He had a cough.

He coughed all day.

He coughed at night.

He coughed in class.

We hid behind books.

We pretended not to hear.

He taught us.

He taught us words.

He taught us history.

He taught us to read.

He taught us to write.

He taught us to be.

He said, "We are what we choose."

You remember.

You remember his face.

It was pale.

It was thin.

It was tired.

But his eyes were bright.

His eyes were clear.

Like water.

Like ice.

Like the sky.

He was gone.

They buried him.

The ground was cold.

The ground was wet.

The ground was heavy.

You did not go.

Tom did not go.

The town went.

The town cried.

The town wiped its eyes.

The town moved on.

You did not move on.

You stayed in the yard.

You stayed in the mud.

You stayed with the shards.

The sun goes down.

The sky turns black.

The stars come out.

They are cold.

They are far.

They are indifferent.

You feel cold.

You feel small.

You feel lost.

You are ten.

You are a boy.

You are a child.

You are not a man.

You are not a hawk.

You are a shard.

You are broken.

You are not.

You are whole.

You pick up another shard.

It is blue.

It is bright.

It is beautiful.

It is dead.

You put it in your pocket.

You leave the yard.

You walk home.

The street is dark.

The street is quiet.

The street is empty.

You walk fast.

You walk hard.

You walk home.

The door is locked.

You knock.

No one answers.

You knock again.

No one answers.

You knock hard.

The door opens.

It is Mrs. Gable.

She is the neighbor.

She is old.

She is kind.

She is sad.

She sees you.

She sees the blood.

She sees the tears.

She sees the shard in your pocket.

She does not ask.

She does not say.

She just opens the door.

You go in.

The house is warm.

The house is quiet.

The house is safe.

She makes you tea.

It is hot.

It is sweet.

It is bitter.

You drink it.

You feel warm.

You feel safe.

You feel nothing.

You sit by the fire.

You watch the flames.

They dance.

They die.

They are like the hawk.

They are like Mr. Hale.

They are like you.

You think.

You think hard.

You think deep.

You think about choice.

You think about self.

You think about being.

You choose.

You choose to be.

You choose to live.

You choose to break.

You choose to mend.

You choose to be you.

You look at the shard.

It is in your pocket.

It is cold.

It is sharp.

It is part of you.

You are part of it.

You are not the hawk.

You are not the shard.

You are the hand.

You are the eye.

You are the mind.

You are the will.

You are the choice.

You are free.

You are bound.

You are free.

You are bound.

You are free.

The tea is cold.

The fire is out.

The night is deep.

The night is dark.

The night is endless.

You go to sleep.

You do not dream.

You do not wake.

You do not cry.

You do not scream.

You do not move.

You are still.

You are quiet.

You are gone.

You are here.

You are you.

The morning comes.

The light is gray.

The light is cold.

The light is new.

You wake.

You rise.

You dress.

You wash.

You eat.

You go out.

The town is waking.

The cars are moving.

The people are moving.

The world is turning.

You walk.

You walk past the school.

The school is closed.

The school is quiet.

The school is empty.

You walk past the church.

The church is quiet.

The church is empty.

You walk past the wall.

The wall is high.

The wall is strong.

The wall is solid.

You walk to the yard.

The yard is empty.

The mud is dry.

The shards are gone.

The hawk is gone.

The memory is gone.

The pain is gone.

The fear is gone.

The anger is gone.

The sadness is gone.

You are gone.

You are here.

You are new.

You are whole.

You are broken.

You are mended.

You are you.

You stand in the yard.

You look up.

The sky is blue.

The sky is wide.

The sky is free.

A hawk flies.

It is high.

It is fast.

It is strong.

It is whole.

It is alive.

It is not you.

It is not the shard.

It is not the dead.

It is the life.

It is the choice.

It is the self.

It is the truth.

It is the lie.

It is the truth.

You watch it go.

You watch it fly.

You watch it disappear.

You turn.

You walk home.

You walk fast.

You walk hard.

You walk home.

The door is open.

The house is warm.

The house is quiet.

The house is safe.

You go in.

You sit down.

You wait.

You wait for the world.

You wait for the end.

You wait for the beginning.

You wait for the choice.

You make the choice.

You choose to live.

You choose to be.

You choose to be you.

You are you.

You are here.

You are now.

You are alive.

You are free.

You are bound.

You are free.

The hawk is gone.

The shard is gone.

The boy is gone.

The man is here.

The story is over.

The story is just beginning.

You close your eyes.

You open your eyes.

You are here.

You are you.

You are alive.

You are free.

You are broken.

You are whole.

You are the choice.

You are the self.

You are the truth.

You are the lie.

You are the truth.

You are the end.

You are the beginning.

You are the life.

You are the death.

You are the life.

You are the hawk.

You are the shard.

You are the hand.

You are the eye.

You are the mind.

You are the will.

You are the choice.

You are free.

You are bound.

You are free.

You are you.

You are here.

You are now.

You are alive.

You are free.

You are broken.

You are whole.

You are the choice.

You are the self.

You are the truth.

You are the lie.

You are the truth.

You are the end.

You are the beginning.

You are the life.

You are the death.

You are the life.

You are the hawk.

You are the shard.

You are the hand.

You are the eye.

You are the mind.

You are the will.

You are the choice.

You are free.

You are bound.

You are free.

You are you.

You are here.

You are now.

You are alive.

You are free.

You are broken.

You are whole.

You are the choice.

You are the self.

You are the truth.

You are the lie.

You are the truth.

You are the end.

You are the beginning.

You are the life.

You are the death.

You are the life.

You are the hawk.

You are the shard.

You are the hand.

You are the eye.

You are the mind.

You are the will.

You are the choice.

You are free.

You are bound.

You are free.

You are you.

You are here.

You are now.

You are alive.

You are free.

You are broken.

You are whole.

You are the choice.

You are the self.

You are the truth.

You are the lie.

You are the truth.

You are the end.

You are the beginning.

You are the life.

You are the death.

You are the life.

You are the hawk.

You are the shard.

You are the hand.

You are the eye.

You are the mind.

You are the will.

You are the choice.

You are free.

You are bound.

You are free.

You are you.

You are here.

You are now.

You are alive.

You are free.

You are broken.

You are whole.

You are the choice.

You are the self.

You are the truth.

You are the lie.

You are the truth.

You are the end.

You are the beginning.

You are the life.

You are the death.

You are the life.

You are the hawk.

You are the shard.

You are the hand.

You are the eye.

You are the mind.

You are the will.

You are the choice.

You are free.

You are bound.

You are free.

You are you.

You are here.

You are now.

You are alive.

You are free.

You are broken.

You are whole.

You are the choice.

You are the self.

You are the truth.

You are the lie.

You are the truth.

You are the end.

You are the beginning.

You are the life.

You are the death.

You are the life.

You are the hawk.

You are the shard.

You are the hand.

You are the eye.

You are the mind.

You are the will.

You are the choice.

You are free.

You are bound.

You are free.

You are you.

You are here.

You are now.

You are alive.

You are free.

You are broken.

You are whole.

You are the choice.

You are the self.

You are the truth.

You are the lie.

You are the truth.

You are the end.

You are the beginning.

You are the life.

You are the death.

You are the life.

You are the hawk.

You are the shard.

You are the hand.

You are the eye.

You are the mind.

You are the will.

You are the choice.

You are free.

You are bound.

You are free.

You are you.

You are here.

You are now.

You are alive.

You are free.

You are broken.

You are whole.

You are the choice.

You are the self.

You are the truth.

You are the lie.

You are the truth.

You are the end.

You are the beginning.

You are the life.

You are the death.

You are the life.

You are the hawk.

You are the shard.

You are the hand.

You are the eye.

You are the mind.

You are the will.

You are the choice.

You are free.

You are bound.

You are free.

You are you.