Grass.

Green blades of grass.

Weeds.

Weeds in the sidewalk cracks.

White— no blue.

White clouds. Blue sky.

Shoelaces.

Untied shoelaces. I bend down.

No. The sidewalk blurrs and sways. Hands push against the cold concrete.

In. Out. In. Out

Take another shakey breath in and out.

Tears. In my eyes. Fog. A blizzard of emotions running through my head. Help. I need help.

I look around for any other hand to help. Nothing. No one. No where. Crowds. Cries. Murmers. Yells. Running past, staring at their hands.

One falls, screams. A rip at the elbow. Something gushes out of the rip. Images. Thoughts. Memories. Emotions.

No one hears the scream. They keep on walking until eventually they fall. They all fall one, two, twenty, maybe more.

More screams. They’re not screaming at the wounds. They scream at themselves. At others.

Help. They all need help. Everyting. Everyone. Eveywhere. Delicate woven rag dolls. Stuffed and encased to the brim. Their skin snaggs and finally rips.

Around me everyone lays in a jumbled mess. Gone. Eaten inside out by their pent up feelings and tears.

I wipe my tears, tie my shoes, dust myself off, and walk home. There, my family of rags waits for me. For the first time I see their seems pulled tight, their zippers struggling to hold. Through the faint smiles they give, I see their tired, dull eyes. I talk. They talk.

Grass. Weeds. Clouds. Sky.

I wont let them fall apart.