The Heard Cry

 And after years of crying out, crying to no avail,

Finally someone may come after so many you have failed,

And when they come you are confused, for you’ve come to expect

Naught but pure destruction, abuse, and sure neglect

 

There is cognitive dissonance whenever someone’s nice,

Whenever someone’s kind to you or makes a sacrifice

And though you inconvenience them, you know they do not hate,

They do not look upon you as something that obligates

 

After years and years of misery, and in the present even still

Most people clearly don’t love you and you know they never will,

But one or two acts of kindness, they come as a surprise

Can someone else truly love you? Can you trust they’re really kind?

 

The baby doesn’t ask for much, his brain’s fundamentally changed,

He hoards his food and shrinks from touch, expecting only pain

Though he has someone who now loves him and wants to make it right

It will take years to heal him of the neglect of his early life

 

The child fights and disregards the love that’s shown to her,

She knows it cannot really last, for she is not preferred,

For years other things were chosen above meeting her needs,

How could anyone love her or her real, true value see?

 

Perhaps after years and years of consistent love from those who don’t give up,

She will start to believe someone can now see her as enough,

But even so she fights it and will drive people away

Because her heart is wondering if anyone will choose to stay

 

The adult is a little older and so maybe she can see

That when other people hurt her, it was only out of their own needs,

That people who are very frightened just don’t have a lot to give

And it wasn’t really a comment on whether or not she deserved to live

 

But what the mind knows and what the heart feels are two very different affairs

And it takes concerted effort to convince the heart that anyone cares

Constant input for destruction must be met with equal love

Or even the smartest person can’t  believe that others think they are enough

 

Our society has told these people they deserve to be thrown away

Only those who are fully healthy at our table deserve a place

Do not ask for too much, do not need more than we’re comfortable to give,

But just a few consistent acts of kindness can help people learn to live.

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