I can't let Mommy see me cry
Or know how much I hurt inside
She can never know the pain I feel
And all the tears I've cried


I pretend to be a happy little girl
Laughing and talking with my friends
I joke around with my little brother
But the hurting just never ends


The teacher told us in second grade
About lots of bad people in the world
Who lie and cheat and do awful things 
To hurt little boys and girls


We've been told not to speak to strangers
Or believe anything they say
But what do I do when my Uncle Gus
Touches me in that shameful way?


He told me he would kill all my family
It I ever tell the things he's done
I'm scared that I'll be left all alone
Why did I have to be the one?


I feel ugly and ashamed and dirty
And I can't wash the filth away
When I beg him not to touch me again
He just laughs and does it anyway


My little sister is only four years old
He plays horsy with her on his knee
I’m afraid he’ll start hurting her too
And I don’t want her crying like me


I wonder if this happens to other little girls
Or just to dirty, bad ones like me
I wish I was brave enough to tell Mommy
But I can't and I'll never be free


Kathleen McCoy Eldridge©
July 19, 2007
All Rights Reserved

















Rock-a-Bye Baby
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