I simply wanted the scissors he held

Not prepared for the question he asked

Nor the way he stared

“Like, do you even want to be black?”

These words i will never forget

In my  heart, is where they hit

 

There were questions I wish I  could avoid

Or were they?

 

“You’re an oreo.”

Black on the outside,

white on the inside.

Many say the black is the bad,

The white is good

 

The blackness stripped of humanhood?

The white, a sense of pride?

 

There were statements i wish i could avoid

Or are they?

 

“Is that weave?”

He says as he yanks on my locks

He did it jokingly,

But it wasn’t  funny to me

The natural, kinky curl that my hair is becomin’

Society is always shunning

Except only to use as art that’s exotic

But never the main topic

 

There were jokes i wish i could avoid

Or are there?

 

“She’s the only black girl in GT”

They say black excellence,

Shouldn’t everywhere have a component

 

There were judgements i wish i could avoid

Or are they?

 

“You’re pretty for a bla-”

I’ll stop that one there

The end is irrelevant, anyway

So why should i or even you care?

 

There were things i wish i could avoid

Or are they?

 

“I love hanging with Kanye West.”

She captioned the picture of the white girl painted black

“Will you take this down?” I asked

I received no reply back.

 

There were comments i wish i could avoid

Or are they?

 

Do i really wish i never heard those things

Because now i feel that i’ve grown

As if i got my wings

They gave me a new perspective

One that’s all my own

As if i’ve gone from winter to spring

Embracing all my color

After all, it’s not like any other

 

These comments are not the things I wish I could avoid

No, they are not.

 

I am getting to embracin’

The beauty in my melanin

I love my skin

In spite of it, I do not win

I win with pride of the flesh that i’m in

God made me perfect

and that’s what i find comfort in

 

And i hope you do the same

Never feel shame

for the appearance you can’t change

 

So every girl and every boy,

These are the things I am glad I couldn’t avoid