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Name Calling

You are a comforter,

a caregiver,

a parent,

a friend,

or you should be.

You are forgiving,

understanding,

compassionate,

and loving,

or you should be.

No, instead,

when she slips and falls

to the cold, hard, pavement

at two years old,

two years old,

and begins to cry,

you tell her crying is for pansies

and stand her up again.

Oh, how fatherly.

You are a punisher,

the keeper of the rod,

the authority,

the peace keeper,

and you do this job well

aside from the fact that the peace maintained

is the result of your violence.

Forgive!

Forget!

Move on!

Live on!

No, instead, when she says her first curse word

at eight years old,

eight years old,

and covers her mouth and apologizes profusely

PROFUSELY…

you call her a filthy mouthed child of Satan,

shake her down screaming,

“YOU NEVER SAY THAT AGAIN!”

only to sit her back down and leave the room

where she sits and cries for two full hours.

You!

You, father, never say that again.

You are a giver of advice,

a wise man,

a role model,

an example.

Or, you should be.

No, instead,

when she breaks up with her boyfriend

(she never loved anyway)

at fifteen years old,

fifteen years old,

and starts dating a boy she does love,

you call her a whore in front of all her friends

and they laugh

and laugh

and laugh.

She cries for six hours,

writes a note

and promptly hangs herself in her closet.

He is a comforter,

a caregiver,

a lover,

a friend,

and he does his job well.

Yes, even in the death of his love,

at her funeral

at fifteen years old,

fifteen years old,

he stands up and walks to your seat

and you call him a pimp.

(Wait a second-

You’re there?)

He promptly chokes you with her suicide note.

You never say that again.

There will be only one name on her gravestone.

None of which are

Pansy,

Filthy Mouthed Child of Satan,

or Whore.

There will be only one name on her gravestone.

Do not call her what she is not.

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