The Mirror You Broke

You watch from the height of your privilege,

And find it easy to predict a fall.

You see a woman who stands her ground,

And mistake her fire for a wall.

"I feel sorry for her," you whisper to the air,

As if your pity were a healing grace.

But your sorrow is a cage I’ll never wear,

A mask you try to fit upon my face.

You see "anger" in a heartbeat that’s loud,

You see "danger" in a spirit that won't bow.

But this heat is the only way to melt the crowd,

The only way to survive the here and now.

Don't mourn a life that hasn't reached its end,

Or claim that "no one is able to help."

I am not a broken thing you need to mend,

I am the master of the hand I’ve been dealt.

You look at my stature and miss my soul,

Thinking my story is a tragedy told in small parts,

But I am the ocean, I am the whole,

I am the rhythm in a million hearts.

Your "sympathy" feels like a heavy chain,

A way to keep me beneath your feet,

But I’ve learned to find the harvest in the rain,

And find the victory in the cold and the heat.

What you call "bitter," I call my armor,

Forged in a world that wasn't built for my frame.

I am the seed and I am the farmer,

I am the one who remembers my name.

You think I’m drowning in a pool of my rage,

But I’m just swimming to a shore you can’t see.

I’m tearing the bars right out of the cage,

That you built out of "mercy" to try and hold me.

You talk of my future like it’s already gone,

Like the sun won’t rise on a woman like me.

But I am the break of the golden dawn,

I am the wind on a restless sea.

I don't need a savior with a downward glance,

Or a hand that reaches out just to pat my head.

I’m lead singer here, I’ve taken the dance,

I’m feasting on life while you offer me bread.

The anger you fear is my holy light,

It’s the "no" I say to a world that says "stay."

It’s the power I use to reclaim the night,

And the courage I use to demand my day.

I am black, I am woman, I am built for the climb,

My height is a mountain you’ll never scale.

I’m taking my space and I’m taking my time,

I’m the hurricane wind in a tiny sail.

So keep your sighs and your worried brow,

Keep the "sadness" you save for the "weak."

I’m more alive than you’ll ever allow,

With a fire in my eyes and a truth when I speak.

You see a victim, I see a queen,

You see a struggle, I see a win.

I am the greatest thing you’ve never seen,

The gold that remains when the fire gets thin.

Keep your mercy. Keep your hollow sighs.

I am surviving, even as you close your eyes.

I am thriving, under your judging skies,

Watching my own spirit continue to rise.