I don't know how to celebrate being a woman.
There's very little to celebrate without conjuring hate
and I often wonder about the genuineness of their smiles
because they've been seeking to plunder my thighs
while giving me compliments about my pretty eyes,
see.
I learned pretty early that being a female is not easy
because they're constantly taking from me
and they let the boys run free.
They said, close your legs so men don't cry
like their last is my seven-year-old responsibility.
They said, don't play like a boy, act like
a lady,
become his baby so maybe he'll stay and I
don't know if I want him to stay because
those who've come before him have almost killed me.
I learned early that things don't work
that way
so I tried to be a boy because the boys looked safe.
They didn't have to worry
about being undressed.
They could sit with nothing on and their legs widespread.
Nobody
tried to get inside them like with me.
He made me feel dirty and if I could choose
I would read what is female for me
because it's not safe to be a girl in a
female body.