Three little words
I never thought I’d hear her say
let alone shout at the top her lungs
for all the other soccer moms to hear
Said with tears of hurt in her eyes
and with venom in her voice
and malice in her heart
still echo in my ears
like the sound of a gunshot
in a closed room.

They have,
for the time being,
replaced three little words
that I’ve always taken for granted