One In Four

"One in four girls will know what it's like, to be broken. One in four girls will know the pain, of having their hearts torn apart, and their souls ripped wide open. One in four girls will have to learn to compartmentalize a pain, they never should have known. One in four girls will lose their childhood. 

One in four girls, will feel like they're always walking alone. I close my eyes, and I see them. And I want to do everything in my power, to save them. One in four girls; just like me, will struggle to feel any happiness or relief. They will grapple with who they were meant to be. They will plaster on a fake smile for the world, and hide all their feelings of shame underneath. I was sitting in the hair salon just the other week. And I saw two little girls draped from their mama's arms, and two in tow beneath. They were laughing and playing. And I thought to myself, which one of these precious little girls, will know the pain of abuse and sleepless nights? Which one of these precious little souls, will lose a piece of their light? You see, this is why I do this work. I wake up every morning, and I bleed these words that I write. I have to do something. It has to make a difference. Somehow, it has to save a life. I am reaching souls, that have known this pain I've spoken. But what about saving the ones, who have not yet been broken? I feel the weight of this burden every day; to fix the souls like mine who are shattered, while still fighting to keep more predators at bay. These statistics go swirling through my brain every day. 

Sometimes they render me unable to function. Unable to eat. Unable to know what is still left to say. I vomit this pain every day on these pages. I do all I can, to spew out my self hatred; to rid myself of a shame, that never belonged to me. I've spent my whole life in a war zone, fighting so incredibly hard, just to breathe. And I don't want this for them; not for any other girl. I want to protect them. I want to keep them safe. I am fiercely determined, to change the world. I need to fix this. I won't stop, until I do. They are counting on us, to break our silence. I am here listening; are you? I care more now, than I ever have before. My eyes have been opened, and I can't just close the door. I will fight, until these statistics change. I will fight, until there are no victims anymore. I won't stop fighting, until the number stands at zero. And right now it's still sitting, at one in four."