Bridgette

My best friend through the first 9 years of school
She lived in an old farmhouse with her grandma
When I was little, I always wondered why.

I remember her being so sad because she missed her mom
And I remember the bad days, the tears in her eyes
As she told me what her uncle had done
About how she told the teachers
And how they thought she lied.

I remember her first babysitting job.
She loved those kids so much!
She even brought them to church to show us how cute they were.
She always loved kids.
Some women are meant to be mothers.

I lost touch with her over the years
But I knew she'd made some bad decisions.
Didn't we all?

Last week I heard an update on her.
They said her kids were in foster care now
The different fathers of her children had abandoned her
And she was alone.

They described how the baby had cried
And she had yelled for it to JUST STOP!

And my heart broke.
For the woman who just needed some help
A woman to teach her the things her mother couldn't
A friend to just say "here, I'll take the kids for an hour
So you can have some time alone"
Someone to help her stop the past
From being repeated.