I Am Me

Who are you?

Do you know who you are?

Maya Angelou “[was] a woman

Phenomenally”

Phenomenal woman she was

But what defines us women

Do our vivacious locs and delicate features remind men to “have us go make them a sandwich?”

Were the lines blurred when women decided to take off the aprons?

Grace and power have room to exist

Blunt hair and rosy cheeks

There’s more to me than what meets your needs

Your wants

Your desires

You don’t know my pain

You just know that I am in pain

Or you figured

Sofly placed, highly favored

I make your gaze look more tailored

See me more as a woman

I hope to bring laughter and blend

Man

Woman

Trimmed

Sharp

See my tie and confuse me with someone else

Recognize the conditioning that is felt

Within you

As you tell yourself “She must be a female”

Gender roles and everything that comes with it

You only see what you want to see

I am gentle

I am grace

I need to establish

That I am wanted in any space

My light is bright

My skin can evoke a grin

My beauty is does not denote my ingenuity

You sit there

And worry

Contemplate

Don’t mistake me

I want you to revel in my beauty, too

But you can’t see that

You’re just sitting there

Who are you?