At 10 years old I was a happy extrovert but everything changed the day I lost my pride at the age of 12 after I became someoneโ€™s wife. It all happened so fast. At home, violence took over and I, my dad and mom all changed.

I had to wake up every day in tears and sleep every night in sorrow. I had to wet my pillow every night before I slept because I had no one to talk or run to. I was on my own hurting, my mom was in bruises and tears were running down her face every time she looked at me. She was in pain, bleeding but she couldn’t talk. Where was freedom of speech? It was nowhere to be found.

Things got out of hand, and my dad was the root cause of it all. Violence overpowered my father and in return overpowered his family, us. There was nothing we could have done, because we were both women, powerless and unable to fight back. I saw my mom violated every day and I asked myself endless questions without answers.

I grew up without love and the definition of happiness was soon all gone. I was then sold off to a stranger because I saw my dad hitting my mom, kicking and slapping her harder. The moment he picked a glass to use as a weapon, I couldn’t handle what my eyes were seeing anymore. My mom could not cry anymore. I screamed on her behalf and that made him angrier.

It took no time for history to repeat itself, I felt whatever it was that my mom felt. I was ordered not to come back home and the only thing I thought of was what my mom was going through. I was sold to a monster who kept on calling me his wife and touching me in way that made me uncomfortable.

Time went by and a year later I discovered that my mom had died. I didn’t take it well and ran back home but my dad chased me away again. I went back to my husbandโ€™s house and he forced himself on me. There was nothing I could do, he took away my pride, the only thing that had kept me a confident damsel. But he was a man and he had all the powers in him so he didnโ€™t care.

He kept on hurting me until I couldnโ€™t take it anymore. I became my murderous dad and separated his soul from his body. For once in my life, I felt free and ready to take on the world but I could not because even at death he could still torture me. I ended up in prison and my dreams were destroyed…

I grew up without love and happiness. I was denied my rights as a young woman due to violence. But, with him dead and me in jail, I felt free and safe. I regained my rights in jail.

***

Tell us: What are your thoughts about this essay?