Ladies,
As usual, I hope this message finds you doing very well!
I wanted to share something with you all. I, along with another lady, witnessed an act of domestic violence this past weekend. It’s one of those things that prior to it happening, you always feel like you know exactly what you should do at that exact moment. I was caught completely off guard by the incident and all of that pre-rationale was gone. At any rate, we never know what is going on in another woman’s life, in another woman’s home. I just want to say that, although we’ve all heard it many times, NO man is worth the abuse of our minds, our bodies or our spirits. And unless the Bible or Webster’s dictionary has redefined love, it certainly does not equate with a man putting his hands on a woman. I will refrain from going into a complete speech about it all, but just want us to all know that we deserve more and should never settle for a male (he is not a man) who would display his ‘love’ in any kind of harmful way. So, with all that said, I wrote something called ‘Behind Closed Doors.’ I hope you read it when you get a chance. (*Stepping down off my soapbox now….*)
Take care and be safe.
Behind Closed Doors
unsuspecting eyes bore witness
to the unfolding at their doors
misunderstandings and miscommunications
appeared to be the reasons for their argument
hell-bent on his position
her opposition meant nothing
and his belief that he was right
self-justified each slight of hand
upon her face
his coiled hands
repeatedly found a place in her side
and with each connection
the perception of the
hidden eyes implied
that this could not be
the First time
unsure whether to open up
their lines
to make an emergency call
his arm around her neck
causing her to fall
further horrified the hidden stares
she got up
unaware
that her son had just appeared
on the top stair
not understanding
that this vision
of her degradation
had now been
planted
and with continued fertilization
could grow to produce
another hand
that fell upon
another woman’s face
but that man-child’s eyes
held No surprise
giving rise to the fear that
what was happening here
was no where near
the blows that landed behind closed
doors
sending her child away
she stayed
perhaps in an attempt to
diffuse the situation
but he refused any further contemplation
leaving her with a bruised rib and swollen eye
but she gave chase
and raced after him
leaving the secret onlookers
with a dimming view of her damaged
spirit
and just because
they could no longer hear it
didn’t mean it wasn’t still
going on
and just because
they could no longer see it
didn’t mean it wouldn’t happen
Again
but when she came back in alone
an offer of help was declined
saying she was just fine
she climbed the stairs
prepared to continue her night
and for her
the fight that had taken place
at the doors of her neighbors
was brushed aside
like the blush she used to hide
the bruise on her face
leaving the only trace to be found
in her eyes
that she kept as protected
as the hidden stares
that watched her
and maybe just like them
she just didn’t know what to do
so instead
she just went back inside
closed her door
and did
Nothing.
