The one thing I can't figure out

And I think it will remain a mystery.

How come for some who have been abused

They don't become an abuser later on in life?

And for others, even though they know

Exactly how it feels, become abusers anyway.

What makes a person be one or the other,

There doesn't appear to be any answers.

You'd think the experience of having lived it

Would be a definitive guiding aspect in their life

As to what one should and should not do,

But clearly, that's not the case for everyone.

Is it a choice?  Is it something that just happens?

What does it depend on to determine which is to be?