From a thousand miles away,
I saw my mother's face,
Smelled disappointment wafting
From her down-turned lips.
Mixed in the truth I told her
Glowed a single lie.

It leapt off my tongue,
Eager
To make reality less real.

My mother's voice comes from
A thousand miles away.
Tinny and tiny,
Her unhappiness magnified by distance.
Our connection is fragile and staticky,
and too much truth might have ruptured it.