UNSHAKEABLE INFLUENCE

            The unshakeable influence of my painful childhood has remained with me for five decades.  My father’s beatings were a lesser thought but rather the cruel names carried unfathomable pain.  I was a sick child so the intensity of the dehumanization crippled me.  I gave my best efforts to keep my head up.  Today, you see the hurt in my demeanor but you still judge.  And even though I have not spoken you silenced me.