Critical Condition

Her name is Liz. She's just ten years old,
Yet she already knows that all that glisters is not gold.
She tries so hard to please no other,
Than the perfectionist who is her mother,
Who when she opens her mouth all that escapes is,
"Do it again. It's WRONG, JEEZ LIZ!"

His name is Andy. A decade and six,
Who is constantly subjected to whippings and 'licks',
He strives to be just like his dad,
You'd think his father would be glad,
Yet he all but hates his bastard son,
"You're an idiot," he'd say. "Nothing but a moron!"

Her name is Liz. She's one score and some,
She's haggard and worn. She thinks she's just scum.
The sayings are there, indoctrinated into her mind,
She'll never be good enough.She's as bitter as rind.
So she smokes and drinks just to get a high,
For it matters not to her whether she lives or she dies.

His name is Andy. He feels ages old,
And he's come to realise that there is no true gold,
The world is so bleak and it's beyond his ken,
So his rage and frustration shows on his girlfriend.
He loves her but doesn't understand why she can't see,
That this is his version of how love's supposed to be.

Their names are Critics and their words never age,
They imbue in you unhappiness, desperation and rage.
So forget what negativity they may have to say,
'Cause they only do it to dampen your day,
To everyone out there, please listen to my admonition,
Else like Andy and Liz you'l wind up in critical condition.