The Me Inside

Written for Transgender Awareness Week (2018)

That damn mirror. I wish it

Would stop lying to me.

I keep forgetting it shows

Only what others see.

The real me, the me inside,

Sometimes I scream, others I hide.

They say “it’s a sin that comes from pride,”

All I ever see is if one of us died.

I’m not a danger, a predator,

A rapist, your “societal headache.”

If you think I’m a monster,

You’ve made a mistake.

Your body is yours; my body, mine.

The only difference: my mind won’t align

With the box of your gender, my body, so fine.

I do what it takes and cross your line.

Why should you care anyways?

Nothing I do to me, for me,

Is about you. Not even this poem.

I wrote this to be free.

Author's Note

constructive criticism is appreciated, just don't be rude about it

Reviews

[CMC]

The greatest irony in this piece is the rage. The narrator is directing it at bigots to be heard, yet they say this poem is not for them. It creates a very sincere feeling of unkempt fury, and genuine anger.

[mattavelli]

Hello, Chandler! :)
I've never understood the transgender mind. I've written it off as some sort of ocd. And lately I've heard people say that gender is different then sex, which seems nonsense to my mind. But it's not a topic that I'm invested in. I don't care. Do what you want. I'm sure I do things that you think are weird. I'm a creepy person. I see how my behavior affects others, and again, I don't care. We live how we want, then we die, and eventually nobody cares. So do what keeps you happy and healthy, or die with regrets.

[LE Berry]

Would never be rude when it comes to expressive, emotion filled thoughts reflected in poetry. A strong statement of self, I liked it very much...