I've always been "nerd"

   Though it never bothered me

It felt like it should

   And shouldn't be seen.

I've always been "nerd"

   But I'd hide behind glass

I'd hide behind books

   At the back of the class.

But once I found rhythm

   And the power of words

I'd form them in lines

   A different sort of nerd.

Then there was change

   I had to speak up

No one cared about poems

   Except to disrupt.

I should've been heard

   But I stayed to the side

And figured out how

   To hide in plain sight.

If I make people notice

   All the wrong things

They'll keep me around

   The caged bird sings.

So I'd try to be funny

   I'd go out of my way

I'd hope you'd all laugh

   And allow me to stay.

I've always been "nerd"

   Though it never bothered me

And rightly it shouldn't've

   What else could I be?