Tuesday, August 20, 2013




The Toll

The laughter,
the booing,
the jeering
and sneering.

The snubs,
the scoffs,
the slights and the stares.

Sooner or later,
they all take their toll.

The people who break your window,
break your spirit,
break your heart when you’re young,
always seem to win
when you are old.

They grow up,
snakelike and successful,
never giving you a second thought.

The bullies, the aggressors,
the terrorists
always seem to win.

And me,
afraid of the consequences
of fighting back.

I tried to tell them
that every punch leaves
a bruise,
every cut leaves a scar,
and that not all pain is physical.

Now look at them.
Richer than Getty,
high on the hog.

Now look at me,
down in the dumps,
left in the lurch,
alone and loveless.

I pay the toll.
They don’t know
how high it is.


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