I always felt bad for her.

I watched him give her withering stares,

Crumbling her self worth,

Staring at her withering soul

And treating her like nothing.

He did the same to me.

To my brothers.

And that's how we grew up.

I always saw her as an equal,

Another prisoner

To his iron bars of control.

But I'm older now.

And all I see

Is her failure to support

And protect her children.

Every cry for help,

Every description of the pain I lived with,

She ignored,

And disregarded,

_Because it was worse to be married to him. _

But she never tried to understand

How it would feel

To be his child,

To see him as a superhero

And watch him turn into a monster.

They should be my support system,

The ones that love me unconditionally,

And give me a sense of security.

But I walk silently through this house

To not disturb anyone.

And suddenly,

I don't feel bad for her anymore.

She had every reason,

Every opportunity

To get us all out.

She never did.

Instead she pretended,

And ignored the irreversible damage

That she put us through.

I'm sorry she doesn't have the strength,

But I will never see her as a strong woman again.

Her sense of self wasted away,

And she let our spirits die with hers,

Before ours even got a chance to live.