Right to Grieve

My soul is torn and splintered
And I'm dodging all the shards
A thousand angry pieces
Headed for my heart

Every jagged memory
Plays hide and seek with time
Unbearable secrets buried
Now flash to my conscious mind

Thirty years of holding back
A cry that's become a howl
Submissive silence from the threat
'Just one peep and you'll be dead'

But pain has a force all its own
And it's busting through my seams
Splitting bone down to the marrow
Demanding the right to grieve

Every victim's tortured scream
Slicing through the night
Echoes through my restless dreams
From their mouths into mine

I will not live tongue in cheek
The wailing can be released
My right to grieve I now seek
And a measure of inner peace