THE CHILD INSIDE

i bite my lip from crying
when i hear your voice over mine
demanding & commanding,
overbearingly unkind
i try and try and please you
but nothing will ever do
then you later joke as if
you never uttered such words of abuse
it's hard to be this child
who feels like they'll never satisfy
it's even harder for me to know
that deeper than you realize
this hurt, it goes farther
this love, it grows smaller
and this damage has been done
enough to last me a whole lifetime

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