We are still unable to protect ourselves
and our trans siblings from the destructive power of propaganda, bigotry, hatred, and violence that are still part
of daily life for marginalized communities around the world.
Constantly, you made me question myself.
Relentlessly, you told me I was not enough.
Remember the ones
you passed in the hall
never stopping to talk
or know them at all?
The awkward kid
who didn’t fit in
tried to make friends
but just couldn’t win?
Do you think it’s really so simple,
that everything is just black or white?
Pitting your morals against us,
it’s not a question of who’s wrong or right.
You cast judgment without understanding,
while your foundation is crumbling away.
Believing you’re walking above us,
when your morals are deep in decay.
My mom used to write letters at the end of each year, to keep friends and family up to date on the happenings in our family.
I hadn’t written any poetry in a while. So, in the middle of the night, I wrote a little update letter of my own.
Sometimes I feel like a sheep in wolves clothing.
In our formative years,
we all change certain aspects of our behavior
in order to better fit in with others.
We all compromise in different ways
so we can ease tension with those around us.
We give up parts of ourselves,
thinking it will make things easier.
It seldom does.
(640 words)
The beauty of a rose,
wrapped tight within the vines,
upon my trellis waiting,
just waiting for her time.
Bursting open, petals stretch
unto the light of day.
Exploding colors all around,
for Spring has come to stay.
A heavy storm is brewing,
out on horizon’s line.
Panic sets as we worry how,
to prepare ourselves in time.
Life is serenely complicated.
Some people try to stand out,
and by doing so hope to fit in
with others who do the same.
Me, I never wanted to stand out,
to be different, but I am.
I guess we all are, in our own way,
different that is.
