he did not kick her in the gut
he did not bring her to her knees
he looked down on her though,
made her feel as if she did not matter.
he did not beat her black and blue
he did not raise his hand
he bruised her heart though
he did not let her speak her mind.
it was not physical
it was abuse nevertheless.
he did not admit he was wrong
always made her believe she was
her opinions mattered only -
when they tallied with his.
and to know -
it was a woman who helped shape him the way he was
was the biggest shame of all.
he was pampered all this life,
always told that he was right no matter what.
his opinion mattered the most, he was told
indirectly telling him that others’ did not.
if some good things had been infused in him
when he was a child,
perhaps he would have been a different man.
each one does have his own traits
but right talks help shape them for the better.
no one did that for him,
no one taught him to take the blame.
of course, that did not make him the victim,
he had the chance to grow up and change;
he made a choice not to
and everyone just went along.
people need to understand
even though there are no marks on the body
even though there is no physical abuse
the constant gaslighting, or verbal accusations -
the shutting her up when she tries to talk
to make her feel inferior
are signs of psychological abuse
which leaves a deeper and more permanent mark
than the physical ones
and takes more time to heal.
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