What Can I Do?

What can I do?

The young girl wonders,

only to herself, for she is only a child

after all,

and children are not yet people.

Not allowed (not old enough)

to do, and say the things

only allowed by those superior (old enough)

to her.

But no,

thinks the girl,

I am a person too,

but what can I do

when no one sees or hears?

Her voice, barely a whisper

overtaken by tyrannical

elders, who,

stare curiously at her,

as her mouth moves,

but no words

are heard,

buried by their chaos.

Their faces betray their

anger and fear,

that she—a child!—

dare to speak.

Soon they are relieved,

they have overpowered her words,

her thoughts,

their faces shift to relief,

their crisis averted. For now.

For she was almost heard,

and perhaps heard by a few.

It was the fear she saw

that kept her silent after that.

For she knows,

Oh, how she knows,

that adults fear so many things,

especially the innocent musings

of a child, whose view of the world

has not yet been marred,

warped or forced to conform,

taught to hate, and

to fear that which should be celebrated.

That is the gift she has, that she will gladly give.

Yet no one will listen. Fear has taken hold of their

hearts,

poisoned their thoughts

away from kindness,

understanding.

Contempt has removed their

humanity.

And the girl?

she fights hard against

what they say, what they are teaching her,

for it feels wrong to her tender heart.

And she now knows fear,

for she despairs

becoming what they are.

What can I do?

The young girl wonders,

only to herself, for she is only a child

after all.

Many of us take in what we are taught and then go out into the world with those same views or behaviors. But we don’t have to. Therapy can and does help evaluate and change what we are taught. We can go out in the world and be better than what we were taught.

I recommend Online-Therapy.*

Check out some of my other writings about alcoholism and sobriety. “The Slow Descent to Sobriety” starts my December series about addiction and my journey with sobriety.  You can also check out my recent poetry,  What Happened to All of My Words??

* I receive compensation from Online-Therapy when you use my referral link. I only recommend products and services when I believe in them.