A gust of wind pushes the girl in black.

She is grateful for the wind,

Though she can’t help but look back at herself.

She waves goodbye to her past life

And looks forward toward the future.

Far ahead is a giant, red curtain.

The girl knows that once inside,

There will be no coming back.

She remembers her times as a child.

Sitting in the back of a classroom.

Looking at all of the blonde,

Blue-eyed heads in front of her.

Opening the dusty, ripped book.

Wishing to read the new ones the others held.

Going to the grocery store.

Being followed by a blue-eyed man.

Carefully placing ideas in a basket.

Never looking up.

As the girl glides toward the curtain,

A single tear runs down her cheek.

Memories tell her she is wrong.

The curtain brings hope.

The curtain carries a new life.

As the girl goes through the curtain,

The black turns to white.

She is looked upon

As an angel, even though

She cannot fly.

The curtain is a mask.

The mask will become who I am.

No more being treated as the black sheep.

No more being followed in stores.

No more being guilty before action.

I have become a white girl

In a black girl’s body.

When people meet me,

They are surprised by my

Ability to act ¨so white.¨

I did what I had to do

To survive in an unfair world.

I cannot help but miss

The girl I used to be.

The girl outside of the curtain.

There is no going back.