Underlying Contention

She is a hyper-sensitive lady,
That is to say,
She has a hair trigger mechanism
Ready to take offense
At the slightest provocation.
Her husband doesn’t have
To say six words
Before she is up in arms
And he’s in the doghouse.
She has never distinguished
What has her act that way,
But she knows the cost well.
She has lots of clues
Like pieces out of a puzzle,
But she has never been able
To put the picture together.
She thinks she weighs too much,
And she doesn’t like
Seeing herself in the mirror.
If she doesn’t like
The way she is,
It’s irrational to expect
Anyone else to either,
And when others profess to,
It doesn’t compute,
And she questions
Both their honesty
And their motives.
She expects her husband
To boost her esteem
By constantly telling her
How pretty she is,
That he loves her,
Yet she sees herself
As neither beautiful
Nor lovable,
And doesn’t believe
A word he says.
Her radar is tuned
For evidence otherwise,
Real or imagined.
The first sign of agreement
With her underlying contention
That she is ugly
And nobody wants her,
Has her explode
In righteous indignation.
Her husband has his
Unspoken truths as well,
And both are victims
Of their contentions.