The Bare Minimum Poem by Ella Rae

You fed me
Dressed me
Kept me alive
And for that, I was supposed to call you a
savior

But survival isn't love
And doing the least
While demanding the most
Isn't motherhood

You poured your pain onto me
Like I was a sponge
Meant to soak it all up
And I did
For years
Until I broke

Still I forgive you
Because maybe you didn't know better

Maybe no one poured into you either
Maybe love was never modeled

But I know now
And I won't pass this down