A Cutting Sneer

A barbed remark, a cutting sneer,
A thoughtless jab, a cruel career.
Their words like daggers, sharp and keen,
Piercing through my armor, unseen.

I long to strike back, to give as good,
To show them that I’m understood.
To prove my worth, to make them see,
That I’m no pushover, wild and free.

But then I pause, I take a breath,
And realize their words are death.
To their unkindness, I’ll not bend,
But I won’t stoop to be their friend.

For in their rudeness, they reveal,
A heart that’s empty, cold, and cruel.
Their words may sting, but they will pass,
While I stand strong, beneath their mass.