Abusive Behavior Poem by Kimberly Lindsey

I once thought if I loved enough,
It would make him love me too.
I thought if I could do enough,
But that was just screwed.
I thought that if I proved my love,
In a thousand little ways,
He would see how much I loved him, and change.
I thought if I did all the things that he wanted me to do,
He would finally realize, and he would love me too.
But all I did was enable him, to manipulate me more.
And when I tried to stop it, he just closed the door.
The door to his love and affection,
Was locked tight, and I could not defend,
Against the deep depression that ensued,
It was like I‘d gone off the deep end.
It took a long while to realize, that this was not love on his part,
It was just abusive behavior, which began right from the start.
When you let someone abuse you, it can never be turned around,
You can’t go back no matter how hard you try,
The relationship’s established, and it’s not wrong in his eyes.
If you find that you are being abused, controlled and made to suffer,
You should run like the hounds of hell are chasing you,
Pray to God, and let Him provide a buffer.
Don’t think he will change, for he can’t,
No matter how many times he apologizes.
He is sorry for the time being, but will soon take up his cold, cruel ways.
Perhaps he does not mean to treat you this way,
Perhaps he does not realize.
But to my way of thinking, even that is no excuse… for abusive behavior.