What You Are
young children
oft care too much
of others
what others say
what others do
am I the same?
do I fit?
young children
oft care too much
of fitting in
being different
is no good
do they like me?
am I strange?
one invents oneself
and then is subject
to others
and their criticism
but reinvention
rarely works
first impressions
are oft the last
I am myself
and
I am different
I prefer to swim against
the current
now
for I once tried to swim with
the current
and drowned
there wasn’t room for me
or so
I was told
held under water
by the overwhelming mass
of people
which I so desperately
wanted to be part of
so young, I was
no strong swimmer
yet
19