Afraid Poem by Nichole Herrin

Afraid of being herself
she became what they wanted.
She tried to hide who she was
but after a while
it all started to show.
All the pain she had hid
all the tears finally started
showing.
Her smile fades
they find out who she
is and what's going on in her life
instead of the lies she feeds them to protect her family
and herself.
She would rather suffer then
allow them to destroy her family.
One day she finally figured out,
they were already destroying her
and she was letting them.
She was no longer afraid to be herself.
No longer ashamed of herself and her family.
She was no longer afraid.