You are twenty-nine
I am fifty-three
The route I took to reach here
Proved a painful ride for me

I’m writing you this poem
So that you may avoid
The trap that I fell into
A deep and gaping void

That man that you spend time with
At the moment just a friend
Will soon become your partner
And your family tree will end

He doesn’t want to have kids
And you so desperately do
He’ll break the news when you tell him
You’d like a child by thirty-two

If you don’t walk away then
You won’t be able to leave
I wish I could explain the tricks
That he’ll have up his sleeve

He’ll keep you there beside him
And the years will slowly pass
As your friends become parents
You’ll feel your life’s a farce

There’ll come a time down the line
When you’ll attempt to leave
But he’ll talk you out of it
And for your unlived life you’ll grieve

You’ll grieve for those you would have met
On the journey of motherhood
For the strengthened bond with your mum
Who’d help out in every way she could

Every month you’ll feel another loss
At the sign of a period’s start
Wasted eggs, for he won’t spill his beans
He’ll have that down to a fine art

Then at forty you’ll rejoice
A missed period after a mishap
But his rage will drown out your voice
And he’ll treat you like you’re crap

Until three weeks later
When your period finally starts
Then he’ll go from hater
To mender of broken hearts

You’ll go back to college
Divert your thoughts and retrain
But expanding your knowledge
Won’t wipe torment from your brain

You’ll be beset by illness
From the conflict you feel within
You won’t feel true stillness
Won’t be comfortable in your skin

If you choose to stay for the ride
Then at fifty-three you’ll be free
A separation, finally untied
But only because he’ll agree

He’ll be tired of you at last
Fearing your resentment in old age
A member of life’s childless cast
You’ve escaped, but not unscathed

Better not to waste your life
Go now, say you can’t be friends
If he asks why, then tell him
Your future self knows how this ends

Anonymous