If I weren’t scared I’d
do what I knew, I’d
stick to what’s true
for myself, not the crew,
not the crowd nor the trends
that most people pretend
are laws that don’t bend.
My gut knows that’s pretend
and that time that I spend
learning, observing
this life and this world
is more than deserving
of being spoken and turning
folks’ minds to their yearnings.
Faith in myself
is what waits on the shelf
for the day that the shame
gets released from the claim
that I’m worthy of blame
and I redeem my name.
