She turned on the record player and
heard Phillips sing
California dreamin’
and she thought the same thing,
because she was happy there
at the beach with her
friends.
So, she wrote a hello on a postcard
and sent it to her parents,
because she wanted them to
feel happy, too.
And she sat
and she waited
for the mail truck to come.

She turned on the record player and
heard Jagger sing
You can’t always get what you want
and she thought the same thing,
because she sure
didn’t want any of the silence
or the screaming that seemed to always follow,
which then finished up with a round of
boxing
and her dad would always win
and her mom would sit
defeated.
So, she wrote an email to her teacher
because she didn’t want to go to school
tomorrow.
And she sat
and she waited
for her mom to finish crying
so she could finally go to bed.

She turned on the record player and
heard McCartney sing
Let it be
and she thought the same thing,
because she stopped crying over
her mom’s screams when
the belt met her face,
And she couldn't remember the beach
anymore.
So, she wrote a note for her
parents,
(that would remain unread)
saying she would be back
soon
because she didn’t like to be in the house anymore.
And she sat
and she waited
for the night to swallow
her up before she went back
home.

She turned on the record player and
heard Simon sing
The sound of silence
and she thought the same thing,
because it was not the
yelling
that echoed in her room, but her
thoughts.
So, she wrote nothing in her diary
because that's what was going on in her
decisively
silent
mind.
And she sat
and she waited
for the morning to come.

She turned on the record player and
heard Lennon sing
Help
and she thought the same thing,
because that’s what she needed.
But she knew she wouldn't get it
or even would try.
So she signed a goodbye on each
wrist,
because she felt she owed them just
that.
And she sat.

And she waited.