People remain captives of childhood
when injuries had to be endured, which were intolerable.
Based on defenseless times, at the mercy of others,
development is compromised, the inner world
is shattered, and reality gets distorted.
Joe must inflict on others what happened to him,
playing out again and again the film of being hurt,
showing to all, “Look! This is what they did to me.”
Blind and indifferent to the injuries of the others
he must be paid attention to and indulge
in the excitement of tasting the forbidden fruit.
It’s a sweet dream where he is the player,
the one who holds the power.
Josie never got permission to say, “No” to anyone.
She goes along with it, whatever it is.
Attention by any man is exciting,
she shows up for enchantment
only to find herself in the same movie
again and again.
Jane has remained a blamer,
attracting men who keep the past alive,
wrongdoers to accuse with unrelenting vengeance,
oblivious of the futility of punishment.
Unaware of herself, she rejects forgiveness
within the big picture that is human nature throughout the ages.
All of them disown the power,
seeking relief and distraction on the outside
while foregoing their own existence as is,
doomed to keep the past alive with an ongoing
slam dance on the precipice.
The broken child inside wants to be reeled in and held.
The path to freedom leads through metamorphosis.
Some of us find the gates of forgiveness for us all
and get the chance to become whole.
* metamorphosis – profound transformation into a new type of animal, e.g. tadpole to frog