Raised To Be Independent Poem by Lawrence S. Pertillar

I did not understand it then,
But I was in good hands...
When I was raised to be independent.
And learning at an early age,
What it takes to accept in life...
About those things I had to do,
And did not like!

I did not understand it then,
The taking on of responsibilities...
That seem to have no end.
The crying alone inside,
And not showing not a tear outside.
For fear an assessment of it,
Would earn another name to be called.

I did not understand it then,
How to be patient with an ignorance displayed...
At my expense.
Or...
An unconscious ignorance everyone pays,
For the dispense of it!

I did not understand it then,
But I was in good hands...
When I was raised to be independent.
And learning at an early age,
What it takes to accept about my life...
And those things I had to do,
But did not like!