She was raised to be a
Good girl, follow the rules,
Respect authority, answer
When called, smile when
Addressed, defer when
Pressed, put others first.
She met a familiar young
Man who swept her
Off her feet, told her
What to do and when to do it.
Her conditioning complete,
A life of smiling subservience.
At the pinnacle of success,
No other position higher in his field,
An unparalleled opportunity to
Make a huge difference
In the lives of people
Who are enduring the same
Slights he experienced,
He looks the other way,
Choosing instead to
Join his oppressors,
Making the lives of millions
Much more difficult,
Forgetting the chance he was given.
They hang out in groups
Because that’s all they know,
Parading around,
Talking endlessly but saying nothing,
One-upping each other,
Rough-housing,
Jostling for position,
Establishing dominance,
An all-too-common gathering of
Shameless insecurity,
Best of all,
There’s always someone there
To enable their behavior.
Unplanned encounter
In a store parking lot,
She averts her eyes,
Changes direction,
Intentional shunning,
Everything she heard
Recited in her family
Reverberating inside,
Programming complete,
Total indoctrination,
Unquestioning allegiance,
Accepting lies as truth,
Poisoned.
Trying to find a solution.
It’s not there,
No matter how hard she looks.
Not yet, at least.
She wonders how much longer
It will take, or whether
Fate conspires against her.
With no immediate answer,
She keeps going,
As she always has.
They huddle together
In their towns,
Wary of outsiders,
Hanging on to a myth
About how things are
Supposed to be,
Devised by people
As scared as them.
After the crusade ends
In carnage and devastation,
They recede into their lairs,
Pretending it never happened,
That they were always
Upright citizens.
Years pass,
They remain the same.
Every single man
In her life has
Been more than happy
To tell her what to do.
She’s dutifully
Followed their advice,
Even when it makes
No sense to her.
She’ll fight for
Their right to
Dictate her fate
At every turn.
They conveniently
Look the other way
As she gleefully
Serves them.
