A BULLY’S SMILE

Today my guest is Mel at PushingOurLimits. She wrote a poem that represents the devastation and harm bullying can produce. Please welcome the talented lovely Mel Douleur.

A BULLY’S SMILE by Mel Douleur

I smiled at you.
A hope of what might be
And with what I thought was grace
You smiled back at me.

A soft, kind face with
Carefree pleasant eyes.
Housing some faint expression
I did not recognize.

A great relief that first day
At a brand new school
I’ve replayed it so many times
Man, was I a fool.

I was an easy target,
So sweet and, yes, naive.
Too busy seeking approval
To notice the kindness leave.

If I saw that look today
I would grimace and turn.
If I’d known what I know now
I’d never have stayed to burn.

Exactly where you wanted me
I stood and let it all fall apart.
Maybe I did know what was coming,
But I didn’t believe you’d break my heart.

I’ll never forget your grin that day
That look is frozen in my brain.
Because you didn’t even notice
My tears, my confusion, my pain.

When I saw you again, I smiled.
To hide my hate and my grudge.
That look of disgust on your face
Has never, ever budged.

You smiled again, smug satisfaction,
That power trip must be fun.
But you’ll never wear that look again.
After I steal your smile with my gun.

Mel Douleur is a working wife, mother and writer exploring the boundaries of her marriage, life and imagination. You can currently find her work at https://pushingourlimits.wordpress.com.

12 thoughts on “A BULLY’S SMILE”

Thanks for asking me, Hasty. I think it’s important for us all to remember that the victims of bullies can often become bullies themselves, in vengeance.

Often the worst bullies were bullied themselves, at some point.

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Reblogged this on Pushing our limits.

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Savage poem!

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The evil, bait and switch smile can ruin a perfectly naive person. Beautifully expressed and scary.

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I would imagine that this is fairly close to what goes through the mind of kids who are bullied. Sadly, some of them actually act on the thought. Chilling poem.

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Powerful… moving… awesome… remember back when ‘bully’ meant awesome? I mean, back when Teddy Roosevelt use to use it as an expression…

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Just read another post where the bullied ended up bullying in return – these make a powerful point that cruelty just begets more cruelty.
Powerful poem.

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