I could not speak
For you have poured cement down my throat
You told me once that my opinions were too strong to be heard
I ingested your indignity
And silenced myself
You told me to quiet down
As you wrapped your hands not around my body
But around my neck and my mouth
You made me fear the sound of my own voice
I began to believe that everyone else did too
This is what silence is
It is both the sound of my love for you
And my own despair