Being Good

“You are a good girl, aren’t you?”

Said my grandmother, and made me drink

a tall glass of over-sweetened milk.

I thought she was praising me,

but it was just a bribe

to make me drink the disgusting liquid.

 

“You are a good girl, aren’t you?”

Said my mother, when I stood before her with tears,

pleading her not to send me to school.

The bribe worked again and

I went to school, pretending to be bold.

 

“You are a good girl, aren’t you?”

Said my father, when I fell down from my bicycle

and scraped my knee.

The statement made me feel like a coward

and snatched away from me

the right to release my pain through my tears.    

 

“You are a good girl, aren’t you?”

Said the man I loved,

when I refused to feed his male ego.

The statement aroused guilt in me,

making me feel like an educated harlot

and I was compelled to destroy my self-respect.

 

“You are a good girl, aren’t you?”

Said the world, when it saw me

cherishing my individuality with all my weaknesses.

They wanted me to be helpless…

They wanted me to seek their advice…

They wanted to shower pity on me…

They wanted me to be grateful for their concern…

This time, I understood it was a trap.

I turned my back to the world

And boldly said, “I’m not.”     

Reviews

[MAC]

how awesome of write is this! just love your style and bold content.

[Sami Khalil]

You boldly vented and shared your experience...Thank you for that...:)...............

[Vidya Bacchus]

People placate us with words and make us feel guilty as if we have done something wrong by having a mind of our own.I love your poem it is very empowering!!!!

[Jeff]

Nice venting! Great way to stand up for yourself!

[DarkFantasy]

Thank you...:)

[Laura Harrison]

I love the powerful ending! There are times when we just have to stand up for ourselves and say "enough is enough!" Thank you for sharing this :)

[DarkFantasy]

Thank you for sharing your views on the poem. glad to know that my thoughts are reaching out (at least to a few)...:)

[zainul]

Your bitter experience made you bold.
Your boldness to protest against the false statements may be a lesson for others who experience similar lies.
Great write,talented research scholar.

[DarkFantasy]

Goodness and morality are just synonyms of hypocrisy. We need to accept it and learn to live a life for ourselves..not for pleasing others.

[DarkFantasy]

Thank you for the review..:)

[zainul]

If we agree that goodness and morality are just synonyms of hypocrisy then we have to agree that read moreIf we agree that goodness and morality are just synonyms of hypocrisy then we have to agree that
we are all hypocrite too in some way or other.
Thanks for sharing your thought provoking idea.

[Dhaye]

A creative vent! All of them say you're a good girl just to please not you but themselves. Sometimes the best thing to do is to express ourselves freely.

Hence the ending is powerful. It reveals your strength:

I turned my back to the world
And boldly said, “I’m not.”

Keep going.

[DarkFantasy]

Thank you for the positive response to the poem..:)

[Dhaye]

Sometimes we just have to let it out, girl.
You're welcome.

[Avinash]

It has soul raising value.

[PearlPoet]

Awesome write! Thank you for sharing it.