I am three, and I want the shirt at the top of my armoire.
I begin to climb each shelf to the top as if it were a ladder,
and my brother watches.
I reach for the shirt, and I begin to tip.
I fall as the armoire falls over and lands atop me.
I hear the deafening crack as it smashes into the floor.

Now there is nothing, absolute silence.
My eyes are open yet there is nothing,
nothing but darkness, vast empty darkness.
Could I really be dead?
Could I really have killed myself getting a simple shirt?
I am certain that I’m dead; it could never be this silent.

I lie in the darkness alone,
I try to move, but cannot.
I know my body is there but I cannot feel it.
I can smell the wood of the armoire.
But now I can hear muffled voices…

The frantic voices get louder
It is my brother and my mom!
I can see the bright light again as they lift the armoire from me.
I try to move away but I can now feel the stinging in my leg.
I look to examine it and it is completely skinned and bloody.
It had perfectly encased me within one of its shelves.
The armoire could have easily killed me,
but luck was on my side.
I had almost killed myself,
but I still live, to die and greet that silence once more.