21 Years

21 Years

Those dreaded thoughts I once used to hold,

Of Lady Elf's story that's never been told.

That very first day as husband and wife,

His mission alone was to destroy my life.

Fights with my head that drove me insane,

As I tried to be strong and take the pain.

He warned me each day if I tried to leave,

He would hang himself; I'd better believe.

I hated his anger, mind games and lies,

That red clenched jaw and dilated eyes.

Crazy laughs as he bent my arm back,

Threats if I left, I would hear it crack.

I stood in the woods on one terrible night

To switch off my life and never see light.

My stomach all tight like an elastic band

Shaking all over with a blade in my hand.

Maybe he was right, I was a terrible wife,

Totally worthless and didn't deserve life.

Thoughts of my kids locked in my head,

Fights with demons that wanted me dead.

Three mental breakdowns, twenty-one years,

That I lived with that man in total fear.

Those long nightly plans to exit my life,

Just to live in peace and not be his wife.

He left me broken with his deadly touch,

Trapped in a life that I hated so much.

Those crazy rages that scared me to death,

Hands around my throat gasping for breath.

7 Stanzas

28 Lines

228 Words