Not like other women

“You are not like the other girls”

You smile as though you are the first to say this

Eyes glazed

You wave your hand as if to wipe out all my sisters from view

“You are not like the other girls”

What if I like the other girls?

I know this is a revolutionary concept

While boys are taught teamwork and sportsmanship

We are taught at our mother knee to sharpen Barbie hairbrushes to stives

Always on the lookout for rivals

We are taught of evil step sisters seeking to steal our light and shoes

Of evil step mothers hating our youth and beauty

We are shaped with candy pink poisoned lips that we are only the worthy

Just as long as we are the loveliest at the ball

“You are not like the other girls”?

Those other girls have been my safe place  

My story is written in their laughs, tears and triumphs

My sisters

I think of a Megan once that held my hand as I cried over a boy like you

I remember a Lee that inspirited me to write my soul on blank pages

I recall a girl named Candice that made me laugh so hard I peed my pant

My cousins are the other girls

My sister is just a “basic” as them all

My nieces will one day grow to become those other women

And god willing I hope to raise a daughter

“You are not like the OTHER woman”

Kind?

Compassionate?

Loyal?

Funny?

Talented?

What characteristic am I lacking? Why can’t I be like the brave sisters I see before me? The ones that dance with life, the ones that create beauty, the ones that teach the world, why don’t you see them in my eyes?

“You are not like the other women”

Then I guess you don’t know me at all.

I stand in a line of incredible sisters that can’t not be defined by a weak word

Other girls you call them

Sisters, cousins, friends.

They are who I am

Who I strive to be

To disassociate me from their characteristics is not a compliment

Tell me I remind you of your mother’s strength

Tell me I remind you of your sister’s grace

Tell me I remind of Maya Angelou voice

Tell me I remind you of the determination and justice of those suffragette

Tell me I remind you that all women are worthy, and though we are different we are all endowed with the strength that holds us together

Whisper this to me and I will simmer

Now that’s a line 

Author's Note

I'm back :)

Reviews

[olyvia]

Cried reading this! Love it

[Emily]

Lovely poem!
Keep on writing!!

[Julia Ledo]

Lovely concept. I love this, I've written one like it in some forgotten notebook

[Karmee]

I really enjoyed this write, It's really good.

[sinNsincerity]

This was so awesome Crystal! All girls/ women are not the same as every other. I find each one special and I learn so much from every single one I encounter in my life. Almost close to worship because they are the closest thing to God in my eyes.
I was raised to learn sportsmanship since I was four when I began playing baseball and played hardball along with girls who were better than most boys- including myself.
So right on! Don't be like them, be YOU!

[Chris]

Alikenesses and differences always seem to be used to define what we are about - as a person. And yet each of us IS unique within our own moments.

[Asante]

This was beautiful, wonderful, sobering, and largely eye-opening. I'm proud to have read it. As a man, it forces me to take a step back and reevaluate my own way of thinking, and I couldn't appreciate that fact enough. Again, beautifully worded, and straightforward enough at varying points to pin a reader down.

Fantastic job, Crystal. :)