Chelo-Mae Almanon
Contributor
being a woman is a love-hate relationship.
beauty industries making profit
off insecurities they put into our heads,
not feeling safe walking late at night,
make sure to be where there’s light,
keep looking behind.
i had to learn that no man is actually kind.
paying to bleed,
the pill making us ill;
as long as they make money,
they don’t have a single worry,
seems like nobody cares about our bodies.
they reap sow they can repair.
oppression leading to depression.
don’t talk like that,
don’t sit like that,
and don’t you dare talk back.
just smile and agree.
you were born to please.
you were born from a woman just to be called
weak,
soft,
sensitive.
all these creeps catcalling
but forget calling the police.
those pigs won’t even help me.
that’s why it’s fuck 12 ‘til the day I die.
a rapist won’t even be given 12 years,
especially if he’s white.
the system’s not in my favor,
but I just hope the universe is.
I must keep faith to believe I am not just bait.
no I am not just a woman.
the truth is I am everything.
no one would be here without us.
“the future is female,”
the future can be repaired.
just teach these young girls that
they’re not any less than a man.
in you, I see my little me,
filled with innocence
until it all got stolen.
I lost her.
somebody issue an amber alert,
my inner child has gone missing.
I keep writing her letters,
sorry after sorry:
sorry I couldn’t protect you.
sorry I couldn’t speak up.
sorry I almost gave up.
I promise you are okay now.
you are safe now.
you have made it back home
and you are striving better than ever.
you have dug your power back out of the grave.
thank you for being so brave.
you’re now surrounded by good energy
and pure love.
let me tell you how much I love women,
women who let you hit their joint in a concert crowd,
women who protect you in clubs,
women who give you a tampon or a pad
when you forgot your own,
women who compliment others,
women who uplift those around them,
women who see the beauty in everything.
now, I can hug her tightly when I close my eyes,
and tell her:
“you’ll be okay,
I promise
you'll end up finding your voice.”
thank you for staying, my love.
