I felt my feet gently slide across the stairs plastic carpet roll and hear the
Snap
Crunch
Crinkle
We’re decorating
As I reached the top
I heard a shout, is that you mum?
I heard his smile through his words, telling me he knows
exactly who’s coming up the stairs
Just from the sound of their feet
His simple, sweet observation
hugged my heart, quelling my quickening pulse
There was a house where the same familial sound meant something different
I remember the thick heeled fabric strapped sandals
I remember the ominous heavy thud on the stairs
I remember the frightening
Clack. Clack. Clack
Wait
I remember the sounds echoing through the wood still now, letting me know my skin
would soon be her prize
Listen, hear the cries
I remember a child who knew the exact tempo of terror
Just from the sound of her feet
That was a house that was a derelict, decaying dwelling
I was trapped inside.
A structure built on rot and rancid malice
I spent years creeping through the corridors of your coldness
foraging for the reason why you couldn’t love me
searching for a soul that was completely empty.
Always to be reminded
Just from the sound of your feet
That was a house with acrid dust that rose every time you spat
The dust where trust was forced to dance like an acrobat
I walked barefoot on the broken shards of promises,
painting the debris the colour of my pain.
Every ceiling sagged under the waterlogged weight
of fake apologies. Fooled again
Just from the sound of her feet
That was a house where I made myself small.
I’d curl into a ball
Just from the sound of your feet
There once was a house……
I’ve let that world dissolve to grey
A place where the past is mostly washed away
Here is my house
with walls soaked in bright easy laughter
where we are all living happily ever after
How do I know?
Just from the sound of our feet