Love should not hurt! A Poem about Protecting My Children from Child Abuse

In Answer to the HubMob Weekly Topic: Protecting our Children

This is a poem I wrote in the months after separating from a violent partner. My children had also been abused, and I wrote it to help myself stay strong, to remember why we needed to stay safe, and to keep sight of my goal of creating a new, happy life for myself and my kids, so that they can grow and flourish in an environment where they can live without fear in the warm, safe embrace of unconditional love. It also helped to keep me focused on the bigger picture, instead of reacting to the injustice of his continued attempts to manipulate and control me with stalking and counter-accusing me (mirroring) to shift focus away from his own appalling behavior...

Love should not hurt!

It's not about "justice"
Or "the principle of it",
So I will not react.
To do so wouldn't serve my purpose.
I've done what I had to and
I'll do what I must,
Because they asked me
To keep them safe and
I promised I would.
It was never for revenge against you.
It's not all about you;
It never was & never will be.
Nor is it about me.
It's about them & always will be.
Love should not hurt!

Please join some of my facebook groups:

• STOP the Violence Against Women & Children
• My kids are my HEROES!
• Organize to Resist! STOP the Violence Against Women & Children!!!!
• Agent of Light Family Law Special Unit Headquarters:
• I hate it when your soulmate turns out to be a psychopath
• To all the misogynists on FB (Yes, I'll wait while you get the dictionary)
• Pets are part of the family and suffer from family violence along with us!
• Pro gays, lesbians, hetrosexuals & all others, but ANTI psuedo-homophobics
• The Sarah Connor Effect

My related hubs

• How To Help Save Abused Children From Dangerous Family Laws
  I feel we all have a duty of care to these children, and I plead with you all to make their cases heard. Our children cannot speak for themselves! Remember that one drop raises the ocean! I have include links to many resources where you can find more
• I Will Prevail - A Poem Inspired by "Our Deepest Fear" by Marianne Williamson
  This is a poem inspired by Marianne Williamson's "Our Deepest Fear" (in A Return To Love: Reflections on the Principles of A Course in Miracles), which was quoted by Nelson Mandela in 1994, during his Presidential Inauguration Speech. I wrote in the
• The Fine Art of Institutional Grooming, Family Violence & Shared Parenting Laws
  A lot of people will have heard of the term "grooming", but most will think of the term only as it is used in the context of child sexual abuse. What many people do not consider, is that grooming is an art that is practiced by most perpetrators of an
• Emotional Violence & Domestic Abuse - Crazy Making Stuff....
  In This Hub - Crazy Making Stuff, Signs of Domestic Violence,Emotional/Psychological Abuse Tactics, Violence, Power & Control Wheel, An Insight into Abuse, How I became Safe at Last, Ok, so it's Abuse. What Now?, Why Domestic Violence is Often Ov
• My Favorite "Greatest Quotations" + Some of My Own
  Words of Wisdom to Inspire, Enlighten & Entertain. Dalai Lama. Oscar Wilde. Barack Obama. Bob Dylan. Buddha. Winston Churchill. Confucius. Albert Einstein. George Washington. Mother Teresa. Captain Jack Sparrow. Bill Cosby. Thomas Jefferson. Opra
• Staying Strong after Family Violence - Inspiration for Mothers
  This hub is for mothers who have separated from a violent partner, and who are trying to start a new life for themselves and their children but are still having to live with the ongoing trauma associated with attending family court, applying for rest

_{Except where otherwise credited, or where text forms part of an external link, this article is under the following copyright:}

_{Copyright © 2010 Mel Stewart, "safe-at-last", of Perth, Western Australia. All rights reserved.
Unless otherwise credited, all images are under the following copyright:
Copyright © 2010 Mel Stewart, "safe-at-last" and Licensors Nodtronics Pty Ltd. All rights reserved.}

Comments

Cimone A Billue from Syracuse, New York on March 09, 2012:

Takes me back to why I just needed to leave a similar situation. Its nothing like feeling safe even when your not afraid. Voted up I love it.

philipandrews188 on October 15, 2011:

Great hub. Child abuse must be stopped.

ShonEjai from California on October 09, 2011:

good for you. it's not about justice, it's not about the principle. it's the promise to YOU for YOU, to THEM for THEM. best of luck, www.picture-speak.com

kdupree on September 15, 2011:

Great poem. I hate child molest or any kind of child abuse.Abusive people must be doomed.

generalbrat from california,usa on August 29, 2011:

good read! thanks

Leptirela from I don't know half the time on April 26, 2011:

So touching, emotional what a journey.

Voted up , excellent writing.

But so deep x

N E Wright from Dover, Delaware on March 31, 2011:

I love this poem, Safe-At-Last.

You know what bothers me? When people ask me when I am going to date? And when I answer, "I have a child." I will not take any chances with his life." They do not get it. They will say something like, "Oh, you will find a man that will not have a problem with your son ...."

I simply reply, "I'm not clairvoyant."

To myself I am thinking I do not know if he's a pedophile or not. I do not know if someone in his family is or not. I cannot take any chances with my child's well being, and I won't.

I have never been with a woman beater, but I have known too many women who have. It is not pretty.

I wish you all the luck in the world. You did the right thing for your children, and that is why it is good for you.

Thank you so much for sharing this beautifully written poem.

I have placed it on my Face-Book page.

Take Care,

N.E.

Lisa Stover from Pittsburgh PA on January 10, 2011:

So glad you got out for yourself and def. your children, good job:)

Lovingu from London on October 20, 2010:

Very inspiring. Love should definitely not hurt.

vinividivici on September 25, 2010:

Love should not hurt, but it hurts some time. Safe-at-last, be safe always.

loveangel010 on July 11, 2010:

It's not about "justice"

Or "the principle of it",

So I will not react.

To do so wouldn't serve my purpose.

Love should not hurt!

For I love your poem and hoped the world was full of love as a mother love for her children

Mel Stewart (author) from Western Australia on June 17, 2010:

Thank you for your feedback and encouragement Sa'ge! aloha to you too - or should I sayG'day from the land of Oz....

Sa`ge from Barefoot Island on June 05, 2010:

Very inspiring, looking forward to more. Safety, love and many blessing with happiness to you and yours. ~aloha~

Awful Poet from The Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC) (m-M)_0 = 18.41, or 48 kpc (~157,000 on June 03, 2010:

I Enjoyed

This Very Much

As Will Many.

Mel Stewart (author) from Western Australia on June 01, 2010:

Why thank you ma'am!

susanlang on June 01, 2010:

You Go Girl!!!!!