There once was a girl

Who was raised by a man

With eyes black as night

And heavily calloused hands

He taught her some things

She wouldn’t otherwise know

They caused long-term effects

Such as trauma and sorrow

This affected her whole life

A long shadow cast over

Trust was hard to find

She couldn’t forget what he showed her

When you look in this girls eyes

You can see the pain she has endured

You can see the fear and anguish

But also the love that she’s secured

She’s so hard to understand

What defines this girl? You ask

Is it the things that happened to her?

Is it what happened in her past?

She certainly thinks so

As she gazes in the mirror

She covers her face as she cries

And hopes no one can hear her

She wonders about her future

And if it even exists

She thinks she may well die soon

If good fortune permits

It’s hard, she thinks, to live like this

In constant fear and anxiety

She hardly knows how to fit

Into this unforgiving society

So she takes 

A blade

A rope

Some pills

Until 

One day

Finally

She stills

The dark consumes her

She likes it here

No pain, no sorrow

No more fear

No one can touch her

She’s safe from harm

She feels so free

For once, disarmed

And while she rests here

In this place

Anxious friends

And family pace

Please don’t go

They cry, so scared

We need you here with us

No one compares

Little one, please

You are not defined by

The things you went through

Or what they describe

You are here

And you are whole

You are precious

And full of soul

Little one, please wake up

We are all here waiting

For the moment you open your eyes

We can feel you fading

She wonders why

And how she ended up here

She wonders, again, why

She won’t just disappear

Her eyes fly open

A cry of despair

She sees all of her loved ones

Huddled in prayer

Her chest tightens

Tears fill her eyes

They hold her tight

And comfort her as she cries

One day she’ll see, they say

How much life has to offer

But she knows she’ll always be

The rapists daughter