TW: This poem is about gender based abuse, marital violence, domestic violence, and has themes of assult and abuse. It features themes of sexism and mysogyny, and how badly women can be treated because of the way they are viewed.. Please read with caution. 

Waiting for her orders,

But they never come.

She's stuck there,

Unable to do anything until he says.

She must cover her skin,

Protect her voice,

Hide away her heart.

She must be forgotten. 

For she was born a woman,

And so she was born less.

She was born a woman,

And it will destroy her life,

Even though she cannot control it.

She has no control.

She must hide in the shadows:

She must not be seen. 

And then he comes home,

Drunk from a night out,

His voice loud and agressive.

He hits her for not making dinner,

And for not sweeping the floor,

And for not hanging out the clothes,

And for being a woman. 

Her heart is breaking. 

She didn't get a say in this,

And he is a bad man.

For their marriage bound them for eternity,

And she cannot escape.

She wants to escape. 

But she allows the abuse,

So she can be abused less,

And so she can please her husband.

So he won't hurt her more.

Her skin is like iron:

She's used to it now.

Her heart is bound up in ropes.

She cannot feel, or she will break.

She wants to feel.

She is breaking. 

But her journal lays open,

From where he read it earlier.

From where he got mad,

And hit her more.

It reads simple words.

Help.
Help.

Help.

Her hearts desires.

She wants to be free,

But God knows that's not allowed. 

So the pen sits forgotten,

Locked in a cabinet,

As she is locked in this house,

Unable to get away.

She cannot leave: it is treason.

He looks at her sternly,

Waiting for her to respond,

And so she stands up to make dinner.