You Will Wonder
You will tell them that you were raped,
They will say “What clothes were you wearing”,
You will tell them that a boy was making you uncomfortable,
They will say” You are being dramatic”.
They will tell you to cover your bra straps,
You will ask your mother why,
She will say”You don't want to make the boys feel awkward”.
Through all of this you will ask,
‘Why does it matter what clothes I had on”,
And “Why don’t they believe me”,
So many Whys and Hows,
You will feel drowned in them.
So many voices telling you,
“You look better when you smile”,
And “You would be prettier with makeup”
You will wonder when your body became an object,
When your intelligence was to be hidden,
You will wonder when all that mattered was,
What clothes you wear,
And what was hidden underneath.
You will wonder all these things,
But wonder this,
When did their opinion become all that important?
Never wonder about their opinion,
There are much better things to wonder about.
Wonder about what lies in the deepest oceans and what flies on the open horizon,
Wonder about far off stars and other galaxies,
Wonder about the molecules that make up everything you see,
And wonder about everything in between.
Tend to that flame of curiosity,
And not by any means will that flame die.
You are their equal in every way,
They will never look down upon you,
Because you will be right there,
Looking them in the eye.
And when you get there,
Don’t forget where you roots lay,
Don’t forget,
Don’t forget for every young girl,
Don’t forget so that no schoolgirl has to go through that to.
Copyright © Kat Wallace | Year Posted 2018
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