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A Child’s Prayers

As a child institutionalised
behind the cloaks of religion
I prayed each night before going to bed
following their direction

We believed that we were safe
with those that we could trust
we were guided by religion
and to honour them we must

Each night I knelt beside my bed
with tears rolling down my cheeks
I said my prayers between the sobs
that fell heavily on my sheets

I prayed for god to ease my pain
and to stop the hurt inside
I prayed for him to save us all
from this devil we could not hide

I prayed for guidance and humility
knowing when the sun went down
that we would suffer yet again
by those that wore the gown

Its where many lost their innocence
and their trust in humanity
its where we began to hate nightfall
and where we suffered inhuman-ly

Its where we often had nightmares
waking up with sweats and tears
with bed wetting and screaming
its where we learned of fears

Our innocence was stolen
our childhood stripped away
but we would survive this
and their would come a day

That we would tell our stories
of the abuse that they delivered
of the trauma that they dealt us
that left us empty and livid