Notes About The Poem
Loosely based on different stories I have seen on crime channels on TV. This takes place more often than some people may realize!
Degradation
It started out so nice. He wined and dined her
and brought her flowers when they had a date,
so gladly she agreed to marry him.
In fact, to be his wife she could not wait!
But with the ring securely on her finger,
he wasn’t the same man he used to be.
The house he also made secure, and when
he left, he locked her in without a key.
The windows were shut tight. He took her phone.
She could not call a relative or friend.
No internet; she only had TV.
She lived inside a nightmare with no end.
She was his slave, and when she cooked for him,
he’d better like whatever he was fed,
for if he was dissatisfied with dinner,
he’d break a dish or hit her in the head.
Rape was his idea of love-making,
but pregnancies at least gave her relief.
The pregnant female form he found repulsive,
and she felt glad that he had that belief.
He’d pick up other women then. His wife
delivered seven children in ten years
because he would not let her use protection.
In ten years’ time, she’d cried a million tears.
Each child was born at home, and the seven
were all the world to her. The children too
lived locked up with their mother, so her love
and things she taught them were all that they knew.
They had no clue of what a father was
except for what they noticed on TV.
But children get rebellious. Two of them
would one day help the family to flee.
This is a tale of total degradation.
The psychopath who wielded such control
at last got put away, and then each child
was able to move on and heal their soul.
Sept. 30, 2021
For Edward Ibeh's This Or That, Vol 7 Poetry Contest
title chosen: Degradation
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