If you came to Faces of Domestic Violence - Pt 2 for the rest of Sara and Eli's story, I hope you will not be disappointed, but I decided to tell parts of my story instead. Sara and Eli went through quiet a few changes throughout the years, and the rest of their story will require a little more research and time to complete. Changes: You and Me is a poem of my personal story of a marriage that went bad that involved the domestic violence of verbal and emotional abuse. Most women or men in these situations will justify themselves staying because there is no physical pain.

But, ladies and gentlemen, we all know that the tongue is the most powerful sword there is; and the mind can remain to be an open sore for years after the event has occurred. Whomever, created the sayings, "Stick and stones may break your bones, but words can never hurt you," obviously was never subjected to daily abusive words and the feeling of being emotionally drained. Years later after having read numerous books; I've learned that for every negative word that has been said to you it requires a replacement of at least 7 positive words to ease away the thoughts deposited by that one negative word. And many authors believe it takes a lot more than that to regenerate a positive thought about yourself.

Regardless to whether you are a victim to mental abuse, emotional abuse, verbal abuse, or physical abuse from your spouse or another loved one; you can bring about change.  You are thinking that you can't make it without them and they are the love of your life, and probably some of it is your fault, and on and on. Now take a moment, breathe, and think about where those thoughts came from. Are those your thoughts or some other person's words? Now for the next 30 days try replacing those thoughts with, "What if you can make it on your own?" I have been divorced now for many years and never once regretted walking out of that door... Hopefully, by the time you finish with this hub, some of your excuses will be taken away. If you think there is no way out; I want to inform you there is. If you think that you can not make it without him or her; I'm telling you that you can.

I sit, and I think of the past;

and I can’t help, but wonder why,

it just didn’t last.

I wonder what happened to you and I.

It seems we were in a play on stage;

being directed by the people who sit and stare.

You placed me in a box-like cage.

And no one seemed to care.

You’ve taken me, through a lot of changes, boy.

And now that we’re not together,

I no longer feel like a wind-up toy.

My tense, warped, mind even feels better.

You pounded thoughts into my mind,

until you thought you had corrupted my soul.

You know that within time;

your words would have me completely under control.

You made me not believe in myself.

I felt like I was ugly to every man.

But now, I know you didn’t want anyone else;

to take away your hard working woman.

Yes, you’ve taken me through a lot of changes.

You used my underprivileged imagination,

to make all the necessary rearranges,

in my mind, for me to resist temptation.

Then, you got so mighty that nothing was wrong.

You felt like you could treat me like dirt.

And I would stupidly continue on;

like a race horse, running, and not realizing its hurt.

There’s only one thing you forgot to do;

and that was give a little affection.

Yes, as long as you live, you

will remember when you stepped into the wrong direction.

And now, you find that you,

are having hard, unexplained times.

And the changes you put me through,

are just about to blow your mind.

You’re seeking a safe, purple fantasy.

But, you must come to realize,

that these changes, you and me,

will never be the same, for the rest of our lives.

Changes, you and me.

Isn’t it a damn shame,

how it turned out to be.

But, we both know who’s to blame.

It seems we’ve traveled through time

but, we didn’t find a pot of gold.

We only found a state of mind

that makes us both just feel cold.

Written by - Meme T.

"Not everything that is faced can be changed, but nothing can be changed until it is faced." - James Baldwin

Yes, change is difficult and it can be frightening; that is why I've attempted to share my experience and show you others that have taken one step at a time to pull their way out of bad situations. You can too! And the best thing about it is that you do not have to do it alone.

You are one decision away from a new life free from domestic abuse and violence.