When I was a kid
my parents would not
want me to watch
America's Funniest Home Videos
because I would cry too much
I could feel the pain in every
child's head when it was hit
with a ball or a bump on the table
could feel every smashed finger
and stubbed toe. I wondered
how long the mother had to
hold her child before they stopped
crying. I thought of the ice pack
they would hold to their bruises
until the bag was wet and full of
melted ice. I never saw how that
was funny.