You May Not Smack

Parents smacking their children became illegal in Wales, UK, on 21 Mar 2022

They now say they will send me to that hell,

where dark ones do await me, and of course

will assail me with insults and more; then

I might bleed, and cause my sore head to writhe.

Yes, dear son, they said, such fate awaits you.

Be good, they say, and earn our tolerance,

it may smile, pledge its righteous heart, greet you.

Belt or palm is not permitted here now.

Our home is kind, and words are kind, for we

are parents who treat their own so sweetly.

(posted 21 Mar 2022)

Reviews

[jacob erin-cilberto]

Such a controversial issue these days...I got the belt when I was young, but not often...didn't have to since I knew there was something behind the threats...I am actually glad I had the discipline and learned respect.
I think there is a difference between discipline and abuse.

I like this poem....and I do like the gentleness that shines through.
j.

[Andrew John]

Thank you so much for the comment, Jacob. I, too, got a bit of a thrashing now and again when I was a kid. Parents' temper, of course. They were nothing like the parents I depict in the poem, depicted there because I do know such people exist, and it seemed appropriate to mark a day here in Wales, UK, where corporal punishment had been banned.