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Violate (updated author's note)
by Clara Mae GregoryBroken nose.
Split lip.
YOU look
at my face.
But don't
see it. 03/06/2011 Author's Note: I want to add something about healing but can't quite find those words yet... this can be about what lies under the surface....of anyone, much less myself.....and it is about our ability to coverup....and make it hidden from others...never judge a book by its cover.
*I've had a broken nose. It healed.I've had my upper lip split wide open from a beer bottle, needing stitches. It healed.I'm the only one that still "sees" those wounds, though, that nobody else can see. It is the emotional wounds associated with those events and why they happened that are the hardest to heal.
Posted on 03/06/2011
Copyright © 2026 Clara Mae Gregory
| Member Comments on this Poem |
| Posted by Charlie Morgan on 03/06/11 at 11:49 PM ...OOO, a distant distance lies between our pain and an anothers...line breaks are superb. i mean superb! |
| Posted by Alison McKenzie on 03/07/11 at 07:39 AM This is the shortest, most effective poem about violence that I've ever read. |
| Posted by Glenn Currier on 03/07/11 at 06:17 PM Although I have not experienced physical abuse myself, I know people who have and the kind of harm it does. The healing bit needs to be in another poem, I think. Thanks for sharing, Mel. You are Beautiful. |
| Posted by Glenn Currier on 03/07/11 at 06:17 PM OH - and I agree with what Charlie and Ali said above. |
| Posted by E. A. Pugh on 03/08/11 at 12:06 AM Yes very clear short message. perfect. |
| Posted by Joan Serratelli on 03/08/11 at 08:20 PM I love this! i definitely relate |
| Posted by Kristina Woodhill on 03/08/11 at 11:45 PM Really well thought out in what this evokes in me- the impact is quick and unforgettable. Thank you. |
| Posted by James Zealy on 03/09/11 at 05:21 PM Wonderful, Mel such an approriate way to say un declared damage of abuse. |
| Posted by Elizabeth Jill on 03/10/11 at 05:16 PM mmmmph
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| Posted by Julie Adams on 03/10/11 at 07:09 PM Wow Clara, so vivid and thoughtful. I love that you wrote an author's note about this piece, b/c this is something I think we all deal with on one level or another. Kudos star, keep healing, jewels xoxox |
| Posted by Elizabeth Jill on 03/10/11 at 11:00 PM Note* What I meant (by "mmmmph") is that this poem packs such a powerful message in so few words, and if I were trying to move a mountain, for sure, this sound would come from my chest. Healing from violence is similar to moving a mountain: tough to take on to begin with, and likely not possible completely, maybe just moving a few rocks, not the whole mountain ~ but let us try to heal nevertheless. I understand the whole scene all too well. Have counseled with persons/victims in the thick of being invisible in the midst of their obvious wounds. |
| Posted by Ken Harnisch on 03/12/11 at 06:50 AM Long ago, I lived in this world...I know the grief and hope for th absolute best for you |
| Posted by Chris Sorrenti on 03/12/11 at 12:29 PM A compact message with a lot of impact CM. Great the way it is, but yes, if you could somehow work in healing and emotional scars, it would certainly be a different poem, in fact two different versions, equally good. A very strong reminder that in some way we are all damaged goods, and yet we survive, and do good. |
| Posted by Maria Terezia Ferencz on 03/15/11 at 09:03 AM If only the soul could heal as quickly as the skin....
It is a very rare thing for another to really see what lies beneath. Thank you for a glimpse. |
| Posted by George Hoerner on 05/06/18 at 07:42 PM Just read this piece and like it a lot. |
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