I watch it happen
That is a crime
My hands learned restrain
Before they learn courage
I wanted to break something-
Him, his mouth, his hands-
I wanted to break the rule that said
\'stay quiet or make it worse\'.
I was old enough to understand it all
But too young to say \'stop\'.
So I stood guard instead of fighting
Turning my life in a lie
Smiled for the smaller one behind me.
Anger lived in my jaw
But I stayed quiet
Counting how many parts of myself
I can lose and still function.
They call it growing up-
I call it being forced-
To watch, to listen, to be part of
And to be stolen of my childhood.
-REBELLIOUS SOUL.