I am an average poem. If I were personified I'd
be named jane, plain ol' jane. I shall try to maintain
a poetic code of conduct, respecting the tree, the ink, the reader, the word and of course, my subject matter.
But I don't have any degrees, nuggets of golden wisdom
to make anything of calligraphy except a need to say
I speak of the sisterhood of silent vows. I make no apologies for the way my words walk, they are step, step, stepping up to the stage of the page-one limb still fractured between an adjective and an explosive expletive found in fuckery.
Fuckery smells like men's body odour blended with boot leather, kicked into women's bruises that were rammed and battered yesterday, every nameless day that her partner had an alibi for screwology, show me a moan that isn't an action of an anagram of O man-I'll show you home made movies to sick to be screamed-fuckology-no one is shocked at the statistics of scars and scares caused by old Valentine's hands. Pain stitched to lips, to punch drunk with confusion and contusions, too terrorized to tell a soul.
Pathology should be left for the cold chill of preservation of fact after life has left the stage, but bites, bruises, bits of missing flesh measured with precision by Doctors are noted in files marked " just another victim of domestic violence" A moanalogue, a monologue with his voice narrating cause of injuries to himself. She was late getting dinner, she didn't move fast enough, jump high enough, make up for the bad day at work he had. Nobody speaks out loud, except him.
Although I am only an average poem I care, care enough
to say there must be a solution to so much distress disguised as love, I don't want to simply leave woundedness behind a closed page, please carry part of me
with you, take me to a shelter, either ask for help or offer to help, any act of random kindness is simply priceless and it's something that surely none of us can slip into a post it note and pocket without regret.
Author notes
1 in 3 women are within abusive relationships in the UK and 1 in 2 in the USA. In the time it took you to read this prose re domestic abuse another woman was left bruised and battered. This abuse has reached epidemic proportions. You may not know which of your relatives, neighbours or co-workers or friends are experiencing this, such is the shame that many sisters stitch their pain inside of themselves. When they do finally ask for help and share all too often they find that no one may help. We need more shelters for these women and their children. More help lines manned by counsellors so that they can talk to ears that understand and may guide them. More changes in the law so that effectively men are not merely cautioned and simply free to return to abuse all over again. Everyone has their own cross to bear, but along the way it takes only a little effort to offer a shoulder or a hand to another human being. If you are in an abusive situation and haven't yet sought help then please phone a shelter and talk to someone. If you are an abuser reading this, please consider calling someome to het help with your behaviour. If you are someone who in the future is approached by a sister in need, please consider offering them the help that, if you were in their situation, you would hope to recieve.
A contest entry
- OCTOBER is Violence Against Women Awareness Month by DragonBlue.
2600 points, ended November 10, 2008, 44 entries
Honorable mention
• next poem in this contest, remove from contest - A Call to Action by Backporchphilosopher.
700 points, ended February 4, 15 entries
• next poem in this contest, remove from contest
your thoughts please...
Comments
1 - 28 of 28
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this works too for men - when i was a kid my friend's dad was always getting battered off his wife, men though will not speak out as much as women on this topic.
chips fell to the floor
she cringed as he erupted
lava slapped her face
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Ian...
Thankyou for reading and commenting. Indeed sadly there are some men who are abused within the home, both in heterosexual and homosexual relationships. However, the amount of women in abusive relationships has reached epidemic proportions to the extent that it is endemic within western society and whilst we have , in the majority, men policing domestic violence, men making the laws and men breaking them then women have little recourse for safety. As an aside, several councils in the UK recently decided to withdraw funding from Women's Refuges stating that they were breaking the law on Sex Discrimination if they did not admit both men and women. I don't begrudge men safe refuge but not in the same shelter's and not at the cost of closing down the one's for women and children. I hope there are more shelters , for men and for women and that eventually the abuse will be eliminated before the whole world develops philophobia. -
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bloody councils, when they called here one time they were so cheeky i felt like slapping them. they think they own the place lol
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I can feel this poem on such a personal level.
I can feel your writing and am asking myself what took me so long to read your work. You write with feelings, something I find lacking in a lot of people's material. This I know is what makes you such an artist. I'm glad I took time to travel across your pages. -
points for great write!!!!!!
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graphic, to the point re horror of domestic abuse
like that you called to action in author notes too. I hadn't heard the statistic that 1 in 2 in the US is abused, is that among a certain population segment?...shocked and totally surprised and will investigate further. Thank you for entering. -
Wonderful write ... just another sad reflection on the "smartest" species on the planet... and as a male, this always abhors me
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This was a personal agenda for me in my professional life; I made a video with one of the woman I helped in her physical rehabilitation, in which she talked about her experience; she shared herself so that we could teach student therapists what to look for, what to do, and how to be of real help. Your prose/poem here is another very excellent teaching tool -- you write imaginatively so that this will stick in our memories. Kudos for your work!
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hawkeslake...
Thankyou very much indeed for sharing that with me. Well done for utilizing her experience as a learning tool for student therapists and also how admirable and courageous of the woman to allow herself to be videoed for that sole purpose; that could not have been easy for her on any level whatsoever.The Police Liason Officers could also benefit from watching videos like that to help them be alert for signs. Thankyou also for finding this a form of teaching tool. I get so frustrated with myself for not being able to write as well as I wish I could either with prose or via comments so you made my heart-smile. I am ashamed to say I am unable to find it within myself to do what that brave woman did; instead I write about it and voluntarilly counselled victims. Of all my writes it's the one's for these women and their children that are posted in shelters in the UK, the USA and in Australia that I am proud of and hope reach into their hearts and lives. Rather than ramble my own personal experiences may I just say that you have just given me a great gift and I feel humbled. I'm now going to think about suggesting this to our local physio/shelter/doctors and keep percevering trying to add audio to post on YouTube as Spoken Word. Any positive way to reach and teach. Thankyou again, even though I am feeling so very unwell you made me feel like attempting a cartwheel.
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I was in that situation...it took me but a minute to get out. The abuse was moving onto my son...and I don't care who you are, I will NOT put up with it. There was a time when I used the 'excuse'....""But I love him""..... I only wish women could see the truth. I have helped others and will continue to do so.
I vow to continue to help those that are in the same situation that I was once in.
I don't think I could have said anything better than you have here. Abuse is stupid, if making a woman feel less than human is what turns you on....
Then you simply, aren't a man.
Excellent!!
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That's awesome!!!! First off let me comment on "fuckery". Never heard it before, but now I think it should be added to websters, and "screwology" sounds like something from my socialogy class.
Your writting is so heart felt, honest and very creative. The flow was beautiful as well as the intent.
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Standing ovation!
I think your author's notes are just as poetic as your poem. Thank you for writing, for caring and for entering this contest. Your words speak loud and clear!!
Blessed Be~
)O(
DragonBlue
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Provoking indeed
Hac du! The fuckery of it all about the subject at hand shines through here. A to you, hac du!
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But I don't have any degrees, nuggets of golden wisdom
to make anything of calligraphy except a need to say
I speak of the sisterhood of silent vows.
I really loved that.
'to make anything of calligraphy' is a great line.
that whole idea was so poignant and cutting.
great write. -
I can only salute you, my friend for you have what we call "the courage to care" - and the emphasis here is on both courage and care. A big yes to this and say "bravo" - as always.
~ Nicolette
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Provoking
Again mum you've thrust us into your realm. Seeing with your eyes is quite something! -
Hard edged and realistic my friend,
superb,
Alex.
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Dear lord, I am again left speechless and near tears. I could totally see this in slam form, arms swinging, boots stomping.... One flaw? A few "to"s where you should have "too"s. Sorry, it about the only flaw I could find. Excellent write, especially...
Fuckery smells like men's body odour blended with boot leather, kicked into women's bruises that were rammed and battered yesterday, every nameless day that her partner had an alibi for screwology, show me a moan that isn't an action of an anagram of O man-I'll show you home made movies to sick to be screamed-fuckology-no one is shocked at the statistics of scars and scares caused by old Valentine's hands. Pain stitched to lips, to punch drunk with confusion and contusions, too terrorized to tell a soul.
This look? This is me being honored to have read this. Nothing more, and certainly nothing less. -
nods
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this is an awesome diatribe... i would like to see it take a more poetic form... loved the wordplay here... to another sister, Desi
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...scares and scares caused by old Valentine's hands..
Very powerful indeed.
Perhaps one of the most powerful writes I have read.
My sweet sister...
I only pray this is something you did not have to live through.
The entire piece took me by surprise...
It made me want to comfort and defend you.
Your vivid writing skills made me think that this was just the norm....that every woman should be familiar with.
Do not these men have sisters and mothers or any sort of decency.
You have brought this matter into the the light of the cold hard day.
You fascinating communication and writing skill has made this all to real.
The slant of the actual poem speaking was brilliant!
Just a slice of an unfortunate reality that only seems all the more real in the hands of an articulate poet.
Much love lass,
LOWELL
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"distress disguised as love,"
excellent reading...
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Peace sis. x
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thank you for writing this friend. thank you for making people think about this.
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Very powerful and confronting. This is a disease in the minds of a lot of men. It has to be faced up to and stared down. This is one time I am ashamed of my gender. Brilliant!
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A sad and terrible sisterhood, the initiation is the worst, and I guess once a member always a member. The scars are mostly invisible but the memory of how they got there is refreshed every day with some word or action or just an accidental bump on the head.
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