Nightmare Or Daughter? Poem by Crystal Johnson

You never listen to me,
It's like you ignore me on purpose.
I try to scream at you,
But my mouth has been sewn shut.
Not a sound seems to escape through.
I've tried to pull the strings from my lips,
But they have become apart of me.
They are who I am.
They help me hold back my pain.
You'd hate to see how weak I was.
They help hold back my tears.
Even when the saltiness burns my eyes.
I am human,
Not dirt.
Why do you treat me as a doormat?
I want so badly to tell you how I truley feel.
You think I'm disrespectful?
You think I'm out of line?
Well, you're just as bad.
You must like putting your ear up to my door,
And listen to me cry.
You must like seeing me struggle to make it through the day.
Why can't you just accept me?
Why am I blamed for all of your actions?
Why am I treated like the biggest mistake you've ever made?
Why?
After all, I'm your daughter
Not your nightmare.