How To Respond To Your Daughter When She Tells You She Was Raped. (by writingsforwinter) Do not drag her over to the kitchen sink and force her to scrub her hands with lye soap: she is not the dirty one. She is not the one who did something unclean. But don’t be sad; be angry. Let rage harden within you like a hard kernel until it expands and grows like popcorn, until you prowl like a dog at night across the floor with clenched fists, ready to spit in the face of injustice. Do not be the mother that treats her daughter’s unraveling like a ball of yarn that will one day wind itself back together; instead, help her learn how to direct her blame like knitting needles at the person who hurt her instead of at herself. When she cries, do not offer her a glass of water and rub her back and think that after a good drink it will all go away. This is a thirst that is never fully quenched. Most importantly, never call her a liar. If she’s a liar, why, then, stars are just God’s projectile vomit after a particularly bad night at the heavenly bar, right? If the cops ask what she was wearing on that night, take them up to her bedroom and open the closet with pride, revealing every purple tank top and pair of shorts, then as they nod knowingly at the display, pull the black hoodie and sweatpants from behind your back with a flourish, like a rabbit being sucked out of a magician’s hat. Learn how to read her silences and sighs and don’t pressure her into talking about anything when her throat is choked with the weight of bad memories- sometimes, quiet is the best therapy. And no matter what you do, don’t ever tell her she was “asking for it.” That’s the kind of question that doesn’t even deserve an answer. -Rain
Posted on: Wed, 21 Aug 2013 06:24:35 +0000
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015