round and round.
circling and circling
until the walls fell down.
yet still i stayed.
and circled more.
until my hands
fell through the floor.
but even now i linger
bound to the site
where she reached out
and heard my plight
paper in each hand
as thin as can be
but firm enough
for him to keep me
to hold me in his pocket.
day after day.
even the light
could not push him away.
so i remained shrouded
in a darkness so deep
the depths froze my fingers
and bit off my feet
a precipice.
over which i had jumped
but i knew from that moment
on i was trumped.
his word was law.
his word was law.
and screams of opposition
only left my throat raw.
i begged and i pleaded
choking on tears
but a disconsolate woman
provoked only cheers.
a hurrah!
to the work
done well by the men.
their stories concluded
with a resounding
amen.
for they all agreed,
a woman is silent.
treat it as if
it may become violent
a savage little beast.
locked away.
hidden beneath
the sounds of dismay.
a clinking of chains.
a rattling of cuffs.
an eminent man
will come and
he’ll huff,
he’ll huff and
he’ll puff and
he’ll blow your words down.
until you are
unable to make a sound.
but for now,
i’m stuck in this place.
a situation
each and every woman
must face.
because we all have a room
whose walls are paper thin.
but they never fail.
to keep us in.