Speak No Evil

“He was a good man. Everybody loved him. He was a deacon in his church, and when he died, his funeral was packed.”

She blurted out the words as she told me her story,

Confusion outlining her face,

                                                  Torment highlighting her eyes.

I can only imagine what it was like for her to sit through holidays and reunions,

Hearing the living sing praises of the dead,

                                                         Pretending all is well,

                                                                           Knowing he was good,

                                                                                           Understanding he was bad.

He was a family member. And because she loved him and her family, she didn’t speak of his evil, and no one ever asked.

And she did as children often do,

She protected the guilty,

                                          To protect the innocent.

Perhaps to some, she would be considered a hero.

                                                                    She hid the crime.

                                                                                              She took one for the team.

But should sin ever be protected?

                                 Should a child ever bear the wounds of a hero?

                                                                     For the sake for the family?

                                                                                          For the sake for the team?

Perhaps if someone would have asked, she would have told. And she could have laid down the wounds long carried. And someone would have been a hero,

                                                       For the sake of the child,

                                                                         For the sake of the family,

                                                                                               For the sake of the team.




When was the last time you spoke to your child about sexual abuse? Be a hero.




Image'>http://www.freedigitalphotos.net/images/view_photog.php?photogid=3062">Image: David Castillo Dominici / FreeDigitalPhotos.net