The expectations set out before me 

I am meant to be better, greater, different 

An immigrant cultivating the ‘American Dream’ 

Struggling to focus and breathe 

Pinned to corners and dreams 

Dreams that are not mine but somehow have to be  

Powerless and needy I forge my path  

Under the stress I learn  

I learn to fight 

I learn to be me  

I learn to realize what I’m meant to be 

 

I am meant to be great for me  

Myself, I should take care of  

Myself, I should help grow 

Myself, I should fight for 

 

I’m supposed to be perfect 

Not ill in anyway 

It’s not as if I can be broken  

Or born a certain way  

 

The expectations become a hurdle  

I can’t seem to conquer  

I breathe and I breathe  

I see the fear  

Flash before my eyes 

If I fail 

If I don’t be  

If I can’t be  

Until I conquer and become  

Yet the achievements meant nothing  

Since it’s where all my pain is from 

 

I needed help  

I couldn’t feel  

The hope  

The joy  

The point of life  

So I had to fight   

With all the courage I had   

I had to tell them 

That I was suffering  

In need of help 

 

Blame, blame, blame  

Became everyone’s middle name 

Tears as a flood that couldn’t wipe away  

The words left astray in the air  

That stung the heart  

And left a mark in its way 

 

I became a ball 

Rolled in the corner of the room  

Lonely  

Sliding against the wall 

Panic  

Tears  

Pain  

I hoped they’d see  

I need them to help me  

 

I conquered the battle  

I helped me  

I saw what I’m meant to be  

And that is a fighter  

For myself and others  

And that is how it’ll be