Be a Man
Take a stand and "be a man"
They say
But what is a man to me?
Is a man whose chest is hairy and burly
and whose biceps are ten inches wide?
Is a man whose smell is of oak and musk
and whose touch is coarse and dry?
Is a man whose knowledge of sports and cars
manlier than the thoughts in the head of mine?
Because I dare reject this notion set in motion.
Because if the definition I provided is so true,
Then where is my letter delivered by owl
Telling me that I, being a man, is fairly overdue.
I accept. I am no man.
I have no qualms and dare not start a feud
Fitting into this masculine mold has
Riddled my short-lived life with anxiety
The fear of not being a man
Has left a boy lost in identity
What action to do? What saying to say? What thoughts to think? What life to pay?
The fee being my soul. They reap my personality.
And I fear not knowing what to tell my son,
A future man, if I choose to have one.
Being a man has not been to taught to I
The lessons has been deaf to my ears and blind to my eyes
But having lived a life, being a man has been redefined
And this profound, personal definition is what I came to find.
So I will tell my son in arms and kisses and lullabies
That being a man is being gentle and kind.
A man is someone who puts one step forward
And are not emotionally or logically blind.
A man is vulnerable and open
And his restraints are not his binds.
A man is a shield, protective and strong.
A man holding back to learn and understand
Is a man listening and seeing through the eyes of another.
It is a man holding out a helping hand
Imbued with empathy and warmth,
given to the struggling for a second chance.
So my son,
Be what I cannot be when I was at your age:
Be fearless and brave.
Be gentle and kind.
And most of all,
Be a man.