The price my father could've paid...

An abuser is a person who is color blind. For him there is no distinction between grey, black and white. When he crosses over to the dark side he gets the same gratification as when he's on the brighter side. Plainly speaking they're the same to him.

I have an aunt who had hells keeper as her husband. Mine was probably his lowly ignorable assistant in comparison. I remember as a teenager I went to stay at her place once. In that age it's fun being pampered by your aunties. At night after switching off the lights I was about to go to sleep when the door opened slightly at first. I wondered if there was something wrong with the door knob. Then it slowly opened just the way they show eerie scenes in movies. A shadow stepped into my room. I startled and got up and stared at the silhouette at the door. Uncle? What was he doing entering my room at this hour? There were two other bathrooms in the house. It wasn't possible that both weren't working. I have always been ridiculously soft spoken but at that time, in spite of the chill running down my spine I spoke loud enough for my voice to reach all corners of the house. "Uncle, what are you doing here? Do you need something?". My aunt appeared in what would have been a few split seconds. Her face white like she'd just seen a ghost. "What are you doing here?" she reiterated in a desperate, shrill voice. "What are you doing in her room?" followed by a whole volley of questions that meant the same thing in different words and languages. The desperation grew in her voice with every word that flowed out of her drying lips. Then he turned and looked at her. She suddenly stopped and stared at him. I didn't like the look in his eyes at all. In fact I hated it. I probably felt and experienced his menacing soul that she faced every day of her life with him. Then he turned around without a word and left. She followed him then quickly returned and asked me to keep my room locked from inside.

For our own convenience we tend to be shortsighted. There's nothing wrong with our eyes, it's a learnt short sightedness. So if a person crossed the line in his wife's room we don't think it would be possible for him to do it in our daughters room. Most of us feel we're immune to heart problems, cancer or AIDS and it "won't ever happen to us". And then we spend days, months, sometimes years to accept it has happened to us when it does.