Strength Poem by Kitty Marie Lucas

how was i to know
i was so fragile,
a frail and small,
little frightened animal?

they keep saying,
'so strong, so strong.'
i'm not!
if i were, i would have fought.
i would have screamed,
but i forgot.
two strong hands,
one strong man,
and i lost.

i keep saying and saying,
'it's not my fault.'
but i can't convince myself-
what a terrible fall.

how was i to know
i could be broken
oh-so-easily?

beauty and grace i now replace
with callous hate
of this form,
because a little trade and take
is all i've been shown
i'm good for.

i'm not strong...
don't call me that.
hearing that word hurts so bad.

so you all can go to hell
for leaving me,
it's just as well.
if i'm not good and pure or chaste,
if you can't forgive me for my haste,
or see past the crude jokes
and the laughs,
or know i'm the result of a past....
then i guess i'm not good enough for you.

but i would have been
if strength i knew.