Paradise and Sacrifice

I refuse to give you part of me
I suffused you with my empathy
I infused you with my self-pity
And confused you with my hinting need

The battle of the sexes
Athena stretches, flexes
As Ares, he perplexes
Standing in the nexus

At war with self and selflessness
Abhorred by most with common sense
Ignored by those who whine and wince
Distorted by the blackened fence

Stop, hey, what’s that sound
Everybody look at who just drowned
In the bubbling pool I found
With my red and ruddy hound

Heal my wounds, Sophia, please
I seek to end this painful tease
All that's left is but a piece
Of my ceded dignity.