It's not the beatings and broken bones that wrecked me,
It's the words that whent with the violence.
The broken bones have long since healed.
But the words still echo in every sleeping and waking moment.

I can learn Marshall arts to stop being afraid of her physical violence.
But how do I deal with the way my identity was erased?
My counselor says one day I'll recover,
It will only take 30 to 40 years.

I'm 30 and I don't know who I am.
All because of a heartless monster.
I'll be 60 by the time I know me.
All because of her verbal abuse.

I'd have preferred she had just beaten me to death.
Because her words have destroyed my life.
I will never know what it's like to be a good partner.
I will die having never felt joy.

You would think I was talking about an abusive ex,
But no I'm talking about a parent who doesn't deserve the title. ...