ABUSE TAG – POEM

It happened to me but it is not my identity

It was my past but it is not my present or my future

I was a product of its effects, but it only served to strengthen and build my character

It is a chapter in my life not my whole life story

People used it to try and box me in,

To harm me, to hurt me

It was their Ace card

They used to try to define and destroy me

The past was never the past, even though it was my history

The pressure to be what society expected me to be

With no parents, support, love or empathy

But no matter what it brought in the aftermath of its calamity

God has shown if he is for me, who can be against me?

Daughter Arisen, Daughter Arise

No one expected me to do that, because the odds were stacked high

I am not the stereotype they expected from someone defiled as a child

They expected someone down trodden and forgotten

Mentally broken, addicted, angry and wild

Yeah, I was that woman for a while

But Jesus in his power transformed my life and because he conquered, I smile

I am not ashamed of that

I don’t care how nerdy it looks

I lived the life, paid the price and wrote it in a book

And I am on a mission to show others you can escape its deadly hook

Society wants me to be quiet, survive and let life take its course

But I am on a mission to take back everything that was stolen from me, get double for my trouble and more

With guidance from my powerful source

I will not only survive, I will thrive and exceed

I will do the things that people laughed in my face

and told me

I will only dream

The box that sexual abuse tried to build for me, has been broken wide

For under its guilt and shame I will not cry and hide

It is no longer welcome to dwell in my life

It was never a friend of mine

You can choose if you want it to stay

Not only in your yesterdays, today and rest of days

Or you can take the tag off that it has labelled and packaged you in

But it will take courage to face your past, find your voice and dare to live,

You can do exceedingly, abundantly and above all things

The hope that you think is lost, is nearer than you think

Look deep inside you and the key can be found

No matter what your family, people or society say

From this day, if you choose, your life can start on solid ground

By breaking the abuse tag

You can be free

To live the life you want

Built on a new identity

Yvonne