From the Padded Cell

in this your padded cell of silence you torture me in your straight jacket of neglect I writhe tormented tried from the observation window you look in cold hearted indifferent you take notes of my descent from this padded white room of insanity into hell you torture me wanting to break free I claw I scream straight jacket white now crimson sheened madness extreme I fall to the floor convulsing with the memories of when your arms straightjacketed me... the rocking almost stops I'm still you walk into the room not a sound silence profound deepens...deepens I've no fight left in me my eyes beg, "Please... See me! Remember".... Cold and calculated you do what you've come to do I'm waiting you remove the straight jacket and expose my nakedness for a moment you stare unaware of anything but that tattoo on my breast above my heart You finger it your name what a shame! you're not the same for a moment there is a flicker in your eye a glint of passion I sigh and look away too late too late I raise my arms I straighten my form "do what you came for" and you help me into a new straightjacket pristine white a sight a fright! Not a word spoken you leave I bleed from wounds not healed not cleaned I lie still there....there in the padded cell of your silence In the straightjacket of your neglect I lie still... I lie s t i l l Eileen Manassian Another of my deleted poems....Abuse has many faces. Though physical, sexual, and verbal abuse are easier to detect, neglect is one that often goes unnoticed. It causes psychological trauma, and at times, death. We read stories of children dying because their parents were too busy to feed them. There is also, the neglect of silence.