Be Quiet Your Ideas Are Strange

Be us they said. Stop the dancing. Stop whirling, you look stupid. Be normal they said. And they thought They had done you a favor. Be quiet they told you. Your ideas are strange. If people think you are weird, they will shun you. You were little. Confused. Wondering about it. But you were too afraid of them to shine yourself anyway. Good boy! Good girl! They said, treating your new Unknown, unhappy, sad self as if you had accomplished something When in fact, your creativity was being squelched as rapidly As the bird inside who was trying desperately to keep your Happiness alive in spite of them. Stop singing so loudly they told you. It is embarrassing. You were shamed, so you stopped singing. Sunday School teacher hissed as you stumbled over The Old Testament; terrific way to get you to stop reading forever. They squelched you the best they could, smashing you into them. At night you could live your truth, fly the cosmos, and so you did. Keeping your art, your music, your poetry, and your voice inside. Some of you escaped them, but unfortunately, not all.