I am a keeper of secrets
of child abuse and paedophilia
of family domestic violence
of gang rapes and torture
of war crimes on both sides
of neighbourhood atrocities
told in graphic detail
gross disturbance of the psyche
these victims filled with fear
and the more secrets I hear
the way to cure such demons
is to blow it all wide apart
have NO secrets
for they eat away
from the inside
corrode our well being
the less you talk about it
it corrupts your very soul
leaving a deep dark hole
manifesting in dysfunction
sharing it with professionals
eases our way to hope
they offer ways to cope
a lifeline up that steep slippery slope
those darkest secrets
really need to see light
nothing was done to cause this
you are each precious, all right
so find someone you trust
don’t allow corrosive rust
healthier to reveal
talk it out to heal
nothing can change the past
find your healthy outlet fast
coz the impact is vast
talking it out will last
aroused 
I can tell these words were written from a place of wisdom that comes from living this truth. Secrets are never healthy to keep. The trick is to find the right person or people who can help bring secrets out of the dark and into the light of love and forgiveness (not necessarily for the perpetrators but for ourselves).
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You are so right Irma, we need to forgive ourselves in order to heal … unfortunately most of blame ourselves when we are victimised 🙂
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Quite true. Healing needs to include letting go of that self-blame but it is hard to realize our powerlessness over the action of others especially when those actions affect us. 😢
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true but we need to learn to go with the flow … what goes down will surely come around!
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No matter what, the wounds our soul receives never heals up. The smile on those faces, who go through unspeakable horrors, is certainly haunting.
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Some escape into books and writing. Sometimes trusting others can be a hard road when trust wasn’t a lesson that was available early on. Each day a new dawn to seek the best of the day. That is all one can pray (for the self and those who need to find help to move on in positive ways).
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escape will only take it so far … eventually that trust needs to be rebuilt. Either with a close loved one or with a professional. But demons inside will find a way out so best we help that to happen in a healthy manner …
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Best is to communicate. Take it out whatever is corroding you inside. You only heal when you share but with the person who cares.
Loved you lines 🙏
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A good one Kate.
Recently I have seen some very well made short videos about speaking out loudly when someone tries to abuse. The soul purpose was to educate kids and young adults but they were good for all ages.
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yes the quicker and louder we speak out the sooner
a] we get help
b] they know they will not get away with it!
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You cannot keep pain in the shadows. When it is brought to light, then healing can begin. So many beautiful souls have endured much affliction; yet, they overcome as one who climbs to a mountain peak and sees only the beauty; the echos of things past no longer chain them. There is freedom for those who take those bold steps, one step at a time…up, up, up, the mountain.
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Powerful, wise, important messages in your poem, SweetKate!
Your poem brought tears to my eyes, hope to my heart, courage to my mind, and peace to my soul. Thank you!
(((HUGS)))
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I ❤ your poem of empowerment and encouragement. The secrets are like kryptonite, sapping our strength. The road to recovery from trauma can take time but the first step has to be telling your story to supportive listeners, while at the same time understanding the machinery underlying the institutionalized and patriarchally entrenched protection of monsters.
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Good point about secrets eating away from the inside.
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Absolutely, Kate, openness cleanses wounds and even heals them. Frequently, it stops what had been, often, a millennia-long chain of abuses.
After all, the perpetrators themselves once were victims, as those who made them monsters once were victims themselves, etc., etc.
All of this is obvious to us, the outsiders, yet the victims themselves are afraid of revealing their secrets, buried beneath mountains of embarrassment, guilt and resignation.
What to do, then? I can’t say with perfect knowledge, though it seems beneficial to offer our best to those who have been through the worst.
We may not be as effective as are the professionals, but we still have a part to play.
Thanks for the heart-rending call to action, Kate!
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we can all lend an ear and a shoulder Keith, acceptance by others is a big step in the healing process!
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A sad circumstance in our world. Truth will set us free is not just a flippant phrase but a signpost to point us the right way. I love the poem on a very serious problem. Healing is hard but the human spirit is resilient!!
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An important message! So many have kept secrets because they feel shamed, even though they were victims. And yet, a person has to be ready to share.
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oh yes, it should not be forced … but they also need to know it’s not their fault and healing comes with sharing Merril … thanks for the prompt!
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Secrets mean shame and thus it is best not to have secrets. We need hard hitting poetry to drive this point home.
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I love how your beginning is discordant and violent, even brutal, and as your words begin to focus on hope, the rhyming and the cadence become more soothing, the message powerful with hope. Beautifully written.
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Yes the beginning was …oh my… I am not sure I can read this.. but hope came at the end.
Very very very powerful piece, raw in its truth.
Well written
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powerful writing Kate and sharing, compassion fatigue on a very negative end of the spectrum, secrets weigh down the soul.
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lol I’ve been sharing all those secrets with my supervisors and in poetry for a long time now Gina … and it works!
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Oh yes, I’m a big believer in letting it out, purging and allowing forgiveness to creep in. Wonderfully written.
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That’s good advice, Kate. Often the keepers of the secrets are the ones who were betrayed and suffer shame that they were treated so badly.
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exactly Norah so hopefully educators are teaching kids to call it out … the bullying, the inappropriate touches, etc the instant it happens .. they must know it’s better to talk and that they will be heard!
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The beginning of your poem was sure very sad and not very good to the taste with what is happening with us human beings but later the poem turned out to be nice when we take the strength and go and talk it out with people or organizations who support the cause. Nice poetry, Kate.
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I agree about the burden becoming light and lighter. and the ending with wise words.
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the beginning was heartbreaking but the cascade is full of hope and bravery. i love how from heaviness the burden became light and lighter. and you closed with wise words!
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So sad Kate, to think of what one human is capable of doing to another. Talking and…. blogging are cathartic!
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This saddens me Kate
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hey there are many who turn it right around to become very successful in their own way … they have real inner strength! But the torture not so good recovery and china specialises in it!
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Beautifully written dear.
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