Retiring from the Helping Hand Game of Life

Heather has a Bachelor's Degree in English from Moravian College and has been freelance writing for more than 13 years.

Why does being a thoughtful person always come at a price?

Letting the wolves in through the front door to only be pilfered

Turning a blind eye to someone's truly dark nature

Wondered if kindness and naivete came hand in hand

Trusting that good deeds were meant to be spread around

Was the furthest possible thing from the truth ever imagined

Fed up with being kind to other people and only get burned by it

Betrayed for having an open heart and having garbage thrown back

Being a legitimately giving person meant not always getting it in return

Can accept that idea; as long as it's not returned in tiny bite size pieces

Run through a woodchipper out of spite for being put in such a position

Unfair assessment to think that there were a lot of people like this

Just the ones who truly didn't want the help; an outlet to complain

Project their inadequacies onto random passersby at will

Especially brutal when those feelings come out at the end of a relationship

Thrown back as insults that you were too giving to them

Lesson learned out of getting emotionally blowtorched

Hesitant to open up to anyone on a profound level now

Wondered if it was even worth it to be considerate again

Don't misconstrue the newfound sentiment as giving on others

Not even close to the truth in any possible way

Will always help those who legitimately need the support

Just simply tired of giving it to those who take advantage

Using your genuine kindness as a double edged weapon

Thrusted upon you in a moment of weakness or anger

On their part as per the usual infliction of emotional damage

Ready to no longer be considered a victim of this game

No longer willing to help those who can't help themselves

Kept repeating the same dysfunctional patterns time and time again

Stepping off this twisted merry go round for good

Rehabbing my own welfare before helping anyone else's

Lesson finally learned in the end.