It was a life I was seeking;
Sitting here in a hotel room
Having bugged out with my kids.
Wondering just how it could be
That I'd been married to a man
Who belittled me, stole my self confidence,
Made me justify my very existence
And was responsible for extorting
Virtually all of my creativity.
It made me question my own sanity.
Why had I stayed so long?
It was a death, I realized;
A protracted one to be sure
But an expiration all the same.
Had I been aware of the insidious
Murder of all that I was,
Surely I'd have put an end to it.
Watching him becoming more
Verbally and emotionally abusive,
Made me realize if not for myself
Then for my kids, I had to get out.
Why had it taken so long?

March 15, 1999